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Division Spotlight
Aerospace Nuclear Science & Technology
Organized to promote the advancement of knowledge in the use of nuclear science and technologies in the aerospace application. Specialized nuclear-based technologies and applications are needed to advance the state-of-the-art in aerospace design, engineering and operations to explore planetary bodies in our solar system and beyond, plus enhance the safety of air travel, especially high speed air travel. Areas of interest will include but are not limited to the creation of nuclear-based power and propulsion systems, multifunctional materials to protect humans and electronic components from atmospheric, space, and nuclear power system radiation, human factor strategies for the safety and reliable operation of nuclear power and propulsion plants by non-specialized personnel and more.
Meeting Spotlight
2022 ANS Annual Meeting
June 12–16, 2022
Anaheim, CA|Anaheim Hilton
Standards Program
The Standards Committee is responsible for the development and maintenance of voluntary consensus standards that address the design, analysis, and operation of components, systems, and facilities related to the application of nuclear science and technology. Find out What’s New, check out the Standards Store, or Get Involved today!
Latest Magazine Issues
Dec 2021
Jul 2021
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
December 2021
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
November 2021
Latest News
Maximizing decommissioning lessons learned
Larry W. Camper
The track record for the successful decommissioning of nuclear facilities, both nationally and internationally, is impressive. In the United States, we have decommissioned many nuclear facilities, including complex materials sites, uranium recovery sites, research and test reactors, and nuclear power plants. To date, according to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 10 nuclear power plants have been completely decommissioned for unrestricted use, and another 26 power reactor sites are currently undergoing decommissioning through either SAFSTOR or DECON, following NRC regulatory requirements. In addition, the Nuclear Energy Institute identifies three nuclear power plants that were successfully decommissioned outside of NRC jurisdiction. While such a track record is impressive, the nuclear industry must be vigilant in focusing on lessons learned in order to continue to make gains in efficiency, cost savings, improved environmental stewardship, and enhanced stakeholder confidence. In reviewing the outcomes of decommissioning over many years, a number of key lessons learned have emerged.
View Recipients
Downloads: Download Nomination Form
Nomination Deadline
March 1 &
August 1
Presented at the
Annual Meeting &
Winter Meeting
The ANS Distinguished Service Award recognizes ANS members who have contributed in an outstanding manner to the vigor of the Society or who have made outstanding non-technical contributions to the nuclear field. Such contributions might include development and understanding or extension of the goals and policies of the Society, outstanding leadership in and for the Society, or for outstanding non-technical contributions to the Society’s aims in any area.
The award consists of an engraved plaque which may be presented by the ANS President at the President’s Special Session during either ANS Annual or Winter Meeting. There is no predetermined frequency or time for presentation of the award.
Thanks to a generous donation in 2020 from Margaret Chu, a member of the American Nuclear Society since 2000, the ANS Distinguished Service Award was named to honor Milton Levenson, ANS past president (1983–1984) and Fellow who died in 2018. Chu’s career path intersected with Levenson many times over a 13-year span through their work as consultants. Following his death, Chu wanted a way to honor the man she described as “an extraordinary scientist who dedicated over 70 years of his life to nuclear energy.”
Milton Levenson was an ANS member for more than 50 years and was elected in 1983 as the Society’s 29th president. He had a long and successful 73 years in the industry, beginning his work experience at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in 1944, mostly focused on nuclear reactor safety and fuel processing.
Levenson served as a research engineer as part of the Manhattan Project at Oak Ridge from 1944 to 1948; during part of that time (1944–1946) he was also in the U.S. Army. In 1948, he moved to Illinois to work at Argonne National Laboratory, where he retired as associate laboratory director in 1973.
Levenson then moved to the Electric Power Research Institute in Palo Alto, Calif., where he served as the first director of the nuclear power division, a post he held until 1980. From 1981 to 1988, he served as executive consultant to Bechtel Power Corporation and became vice president of Bechtel International in 1984, a position he kept until 1989. In 1990, he began work as a private executive consultant and ended his career as a senior technical advisor to the weapons safety program of the National Nuclear Security Administration.
The criteria for this award are quite broad and cannot be applied as a rigid standard to any one individual. The award is a suggestive award and each nomination is considered on the basis of the individual’s merits and contributions.
Recommendations for consideration for the award may be sent to the ANS Executive Director at any time. Recommendations made to the Executive Director are presented to the Honors and Awards Committee, where they are evaluated. The nominee must receive a majority of the total membership’s positive votes, with no more than twenty percent (20%) of the Honors and Awards Committee voting in the negative to be recommended for the award. A positive recommendation by the Honors and Awards Committee is then forwarded to the ANS Executive Committee for approval.
Nominations must include the completed nomination form accompanied by the following supporting documents:
Nomination forms and supporting documents (in Word or Adobe Acrobat) should be emailed to honors@ans.org.
Hard copies can be mailed to:
Honors and AwardsAmerican Nuclear Society555 N. Kensington AvenueLa Grange Park, IL 60526-5535
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