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Beyond the grid
Craig Piercycpiercy@ans.org
In this month’s issue of Nuclear News, readers will find coverage of the “other” areas where nuclear technology is pushing into new frontiers. From marine nuclear propulsion to nuclear systems that enable planetary exploration, the articles in these pages are a reminder that the influence of applied nuclear science extends far beyond the electric grid.
When many people hear the phrase “civil nuclear technology,” they still think first of power plants—an understandable association. Nuclear power has been one of the most reliable sources of large-scale electricity for decades. It is our storefront.
But nuclear technology has always been bigger than electrons.
2020 ANS Virtual Winter Meeting Plenary Session Speaker
Dr. Peter B. Lyons retired from the Department of Energy on June 30, 2015. He now consults on several corporate and laboratory boards, as well as assisting several international groups. He was nominated by President Obama and confirmed by the U.S. Senate as Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy on April 14, 2011 after serving as Acting Assistant Secretary since November 2010. Dr. Lyons was appointed to his previous role as Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Office of Nuclear Energy in September 2009. Before joining DOE, Dr. Lyons was appointed by President Bush as a Commissioner of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, starting on January 25, 2005. He was subsequently nominated by President Bush and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. His NRC term ended on June 30, 2009.
Previously, Dr. Lyons served as Science Advisor to U.S. Senator Pete Domenici (R-NM) and the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources from 1997 to 2005. From 1969 to 2003, Dr. Lyons worked at the Los Alamos National Laboratory where he served on assignment to Senator Domenici and as Director for Industrial Partnerships, Deputy Associate Director for Energy and Environment, Deputy Associate Director for Defense Research and Applications and Group Leader for Fast Plasma Diagnostics. While at Los Alamos, he spent over a decade supporting nuclear test and laser fusion diagnostics.
Dr. Lyons has presented more than 400 papers or talks on a wide range of technical and policy topics in addition to testifying before the U.S. Congress on many occasions. He holds four patents related to fiber optics and plasma diagnostics and served as chairman of the NATO Nuclear Effects Task Group for five years. He received his doctorate in nuclear astrophysics from the California Institute of Technology in 1969 and earned his undergraduate degree in physics and mathematics from the University of Arizona in 1964. Dr. Lyons is a Fellow of both the American Nuclear Society and the American Physical Society; received the Dwight D. Eisenhower Medal from the American Nuclear Society, the Henry DeWolf Smyth Nuclear Statesman Award from the American Nuclear Society and the Nuclear Energy Institute, the Alvin M. Weinberg Medal from the American Nuclear Society, the James Landis Medal from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Nuclear Infrastructure Council; and was elected to 16 years on the Los Alamos School Board.
Dr. Lyons grew up in Nevada and is now a resident of Golden, Colorado.
Last modified October 21, 2020, 10:52am EDT
