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Conference Spotlight
2026 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
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Apr 2026
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Nuclear Science and Engineering
May 2026
Nuclear Technology
February 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
NRC proposed rule for licensing reactors authorized by DOE, DOD
Nuclear reactor designs approved by the Department of Energy or Department of Defense could get streamlined pathways through the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s commercial licensing process should applicants wish to push the technology into the civilian sector.
A proposed rule introduced April 2 by the NRC would “improve NRC licensing review efficiency, where applicable, by explicitly establishing by regulation an additional means for reactor applicants to demonstrate the safety functions of their reactor designs, and thus, would contribute to the safe and secure use and deployment of civilian nuclear energy technologies.”
Technical Session|Panel|Testing, Evaluation, and Production Supply Chain
Tuesday, April 28, 2026|10:10–11:30AM EDT|Room 305
The nuclear space renaissance is no longer a future prospect — it is happening now. From commercial radioisotope power systems to fission reactors on the lunar surface to Nuclear Electric Propulsion (NEP) demonstrations, the variety and scale of government and commercial interest has never been greater. A confluence of U.S. Presidential Executive Orders, agency initiatives, funding mechanisms, and private investment are all propelling this wave forward. But as the number, variety, and ambition of nuclear space systems accelerate, the frameworks, facilities, personnel, and institutional bandwidth required to accommodate them are being stress-tested in real time. This panel frames the conversation around a fundamental question: "Can institutions historically accustomed to supporting one nuclear space mission per decade rapidly adapt to enable a high cadence of missions as well as large-scale nuclear space deployment programs?" Panelists will candidly examine the barriers to scaling at speed — and debate the practical solutions needed to meet this moment.
Tim Frazier
Harsh Desai
Zeno Power
Sebastian Corbisiero
INL
Ron Faibish
General Atomics
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