ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Explore membership for yourself or for your organization.
Conference Spotlight
2026 Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
August 24–27, 2026
Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
Latest Magazine Issues
Aug 2026
Jan 2026
2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
October 2026
Nuclear Technology
September 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
August 2026
Latest News
Center for Used Fuel Research: Building confidence in storage and transport
Used nuclear fuel storage and transportation have reached a critical juncture.
Dozens of utilities need reliable data on how used nuclear fuel performs in dry storage casks and canisters to extend regulatory licenses at sites across the United States. Likewise, the Department of Energy expects to take ownership of the used nuclear fuel—termed “spent nuclear fuel” in the laws and regulations governing its stewardship—and transfer it to one or more federal staging facilities for management and disposition.
Meanwhile, dozens of reactor companies are testing prototypes of advanced reactors and advanced reactor fuels. Eventually, regulators and industry must also verify the safety and security of storage methods for these advanced fuel types.
To help address these challenges, the DOE established the Center for Used Fuel Research (CUFR) in January 2026 for work related to the long-term storage and transport of used nuclear fuel.
Global 2026
Director of Fuel Cycle Technology
Oklo
Dr. Christina Leggett is the Director of Fuel Cycle Technology at Oklo Inc. In this role, she oversees the team that is designing Oklo’s Fuel Recycling Facility, which will be sited in Oak Ridge, TN. Prior to working at Oklo, she was a lead engineer at Booz Allen Hamilton, where she worked as a nuclear technology advisor for the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E). In this role, she served as the lead technical advisor for the ARPA-E CURIE program, which focused on enabling the economic and secure recycling of the Nation’s existing used nuclear fuel (UNF); supported the development and implementation of several ARPA-E nuclear programs, most notably the ONWARDS and NEWTON programs focused on reducing advanced reactor and fission product waste; and provided technical oversight for approximately two dozen ARPA-E-funded nuclear fission and fusion projects. Dr. Leggett also worked as a federal program manager in the DOE Office of Nuclear Energy and as a nuclear engineer and reactor systems engineer at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. She holds a Ph.D. in nuclear engineering from the University of California-Berkeley and is very passionate about UNF recycling coupled with advanced reactors as an integral part of a sustainable nuclear future and mentoring the next generation of nuclear professionals. She is also very active in the American Nuclear Society (ANS), having served on the ANS Board of Directors and as Chair of the Fuel Cycle and Waste Management Division.
