Radiological threats

The History of WIPP
In 1975, the nation asked Sandia to investigate the possibility of building a repository in New Mexico for the disposal of radioactive transuranic defense waste. Little did those assigned to the project know that the task would absorb most of their careers and become one of the most controversial and important projects in U.S. history.
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War Risks from Nuclear Power Plants? Just Look at Zaporizhzhia
As evidenced in an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) report released in September, Russia’s occupation of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine continues to create high risk of a nuclear disaster. In considering future conflicts, no one can safely assume that an enemy will avoid targeting nuclear power stations.
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Safer and More Precise Nuclear Plant Dismantlement
As the need for technologies to cut and dismantle reactors and internal structures increases due to the end of the operational lifespan of nuclear power plants, an innovative laser cutting technology for nuclear dismantlement has been developed.
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No Power, No Operator, No Problem: Simulating Nuclear Reactors to Explore Next-Generation Nuclear Safety Systems
To create safe and efficient nuclear reactors, designers and regulators need reliable data consistent with real-world observation. Data generated at the facility validates computational models and guides the design of nuclear reactors.
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Uranium Science Researchers Investigate Feasibility of Intentional Nuclear Forensics
Despite strong regulations and robust international safeguards, authorities routinely interdict nuclear materials outside of regulatory control. Researchers are exploring a new method that would give authorities the ability to analyze intercepted nuclear material and determine where it originated.
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How Do You Convince Someone to Live Next to a Nuclear Waste Site?
The world’s first permanent depository for nuclear fuel waste opens later this year on Olkiluoto, a sparsely populated and lushly forested island in the Baltic Sea three hours north of Helsinki. Engineers know how to build a site that can safeguard nuclear waste for 100,000 years. The challenge is convincing people to live next to it.
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Hardy Transistor Material Could Be Game-Changer for Nuclear Reactor Safety Monitoring
The safety and efficiency of a large, complex nuclear reactor can be enhanced by hardware as simple as a tiny sensor that monitors a cooling system. That’s why researchers are working to make those basic sensors more accurate by pairing them with electronics that can withstand the intense radiation inside a reactor.
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How Do You Convince Someone to Live Next to a Nuclear Waste Site?
Engineers know how to build a site that can safeguard nuclear waste for 100,000 years. The challenge is convincing people to live next to it.
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‘Risks of Nuclear Terrorism Are High and Growing.’ New Tools, Alliances, Renewed Focus Needed, experts recommend
For roughly 80 years, the United States has managed the threat of nuclear terrorism through nonproliferation treaties, agency programs, intelligence activities, international monitoring support and more, withstanding the Cold War, the fall of the Soviet Union, and 9/11. A National Academies committee wants to ensure the U.S. remains prepared.
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Iran's Nuclear Activities 'Raises Eyebrows' at IAEA
Iran’s enrichment of uranium and a lack of access to international monitors is fueling suspicions about its nuclear activities. The International Atomic Energy Agency said its committed to promoting dialogue with Tehran.
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Memo: The Reported Destruction of Secret Workshop in 2020
On March 24, 2024, Iran International reported that an “industrial production workshop […] belonging to the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) was deliberately set on fire” in the summer of 2020. 1 The incident was not reported publicly at the time, and Iran International cites judicial and intelligence documents provided by a hacking group as their source. Iran alleged that the Israeli intelligence service, Mossad, hired a group of nine Iranians to destroy the facility.
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Plan B: Keeping Nuclear Power Plants Cool in a Warmer, Drier Climate
Waterways — tried and true cooling sources for nuclear power plants — could get warmer due to global climate change. Climate scientists and nuclear science and engineering experts are joining forces to develop a plan B for nuclear power.
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Raging Texas Wildfires Force U.S. Main Nuclear Weapon Facility to Evacuate, Temporarily Shut Down
Raging wildfires in the Texas panhandle have forced the evacuation and temporary closure of the Pantex plant, the U.S. premier nuclear weapons assembly facility. The Pantex plant said that “All weapons and special materials are safe and unaffected.”
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Decades After the U.S. Buried Nuclear Waste Abroad, Climate Change Could Unearth It
A new report says melting ice sheets and rising seas could disturb waste from U.S. nuclear projects in Greenland and the Marshall Islands
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Japanese Yakuza Leader Charged with Trafficking Nuclear Materials
Takeshi Ebisawa of Japan, leader within the Yakuza transnational organized crime syndicate, was charged with trafficking nuclear materials, including uranium and weapons-grade plutonium.
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