Advanced Nuclear: The Foundation of Our Clean Energy Future
Last week marked a significant milestone in our country’s journey toward a clean energy future, with TerraPower, a leading nuclear technology developer founded by Bill Gates, formally submitting its construction application for the Natrium reactor to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). To those unfamiliar with the intricacies of nuclear regulatory processes, this might seem mundane. However, as a former NRC Chairman, I can assure you this is a significant moment in the world’s clean energy ambitions.
Earth is a Nuclear Planet
Earth Is a Nuclear Planet revolutionizes how we view nuclear power. It demystifies with wit and clarity, dismantling myths with captivating facts. Backed by leading scientists, this book illuminates complex science and highlights the potential of nuclear energy for a carbon-negative future.
Charles Till Obituary
Charles Edgar Till was the luckiest man that any of us ever knew.
His mother, Margery, had tried for 10 years to become pregnant. It was an extremely joyful event for his mother and father when Charles was born in rural Saskatchewan, Canada, in 1934. But this was before penicillin had become in use, so when Margery caught an infection in the hospital, it was to prove fatal. Just before she passed away two months after giving birth to Charles, she wanted to hold her baby and mercifully, she was able to.
NRC Endorses New Guidance for Advanced Reactor Licensing
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) issued new guidance documents to facilitate the licensing process for non-light water reactor designs. The guidance is expected to significantly reduce the regulatory uncertainty for new reactor concepts that don’t fit the mold of conventional reactor technologies.
Watering the West
We can drought-proof California.
The critical water shortage from which Californians got a welcome respite thanks to a succession of “atmospheric rivers” dousing the state in the winter of ’22-23 (and, to a lesser extent, the winter of 23-24) is reflective of a recurring pattern for the state—a multi-year severe drought with occasional years of ample—even abundant—precipitation. It would be naïve to think this recent relief ends California’s water problems.1 The unlikely possibility that such a drought will not happen again soon won’t come close to solving the state’s water future, for the population of California is expected to reach 60 million by mid-century, about double its 1990 population. Desperate for the water the state water project was unable to provide in most years, farmers continue to drill ever-deeper wells (as deep as 3,500 feet!2), draining aquifers around the state even more dramatically than they have in the past. Even prior to the severe conditions of the past few years, pumping had caused the ground to subside almost thirty feet in some areas of the state. As the ground sinks, the subsurface areas that were once saturated with water become compressed, making recharge of such aquifers nearly impossible, even in good years with plenty of water.
- 5 reasons we must embrace nuclear energy in the fight against climate change
- IAEA chief pushes development banks to fund new nuclear energy projects, FT reports
- Vogtle Unit 4 connects to electric grid for the first time
- U.S. Department of Energy Issues Draft Environmental Impact Statement Advancing Biden-Harris Administration’s Goal to Boost Domestic HALEU Production
- Why The Need For Nuclear Power Is Proliferating
- The International Bank for Nuclear Infrastructure
- New-wave reactor technology could kick-start a nuclear renaissance — and the US is banking on it
- COP28 agreement recognises nuclear's role
- 7 Things The Simpsons Got Wrong About Nuclear
- A people's guide to our nuclear planet