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
Jun 2026
Jan 2026
2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
July 2026
Nuclear Technology
June 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
May 2026
Latest News
Antares achieves zero-power criticality at INL
Leveraging more than $140 million in private capital fundraising, over 322,000 square feet of operational manufacturing space, and multifaceted partnerships with the Departments of Energy and Defense, reactor start-up Antares has become the first company involved in the Reactor Pilot Program to achieve zero-power fueled criticality—a full month ahead of the July 4 deadline set by President Trump’s Executive Order 14301.
This milestone, announced yesterday, was achieved with the company’s Mark-0: a sodium heat-pipe-cooled, TRISO-fueled microreactor. The Mark-0 is a forerunner to the company’s flagship design, which it calls the R1. For Antares, this development represents a key validation of its reactor physics, control systems, and supply chain.
Technical Session|Panel|Sponsored by NISD
Wednesday, November 18, 2020|2:40–4:20PM EST
Session Chair:
N. Prasad Kadambi
Alternate Chair:
Robert W. Youngblood
Session Organizer:
Andrew J. Clark
Staff Producer:
Julie Bry (American Nuclear Society)
RIPB ideas are widely accepted in principle, but have so far realized only part of their full potential. In the operating fleet, licensing processes were originally developed based on Design Basis Accident considerations; RIPB ideas have been applied only perturbatively, generally in order to justify license modifications or enforcement decisions. Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) is finding increased use as a way to consider nuclear reactor design, construction, operation, maintenance, and decommissioning in a continuum of processes rather than compartmentalized activities. This should enable better use of RIPB methods for more useful consensus standards. The ANS has been making progress within the Standards Committee to improve standards development using some aspects of this approach. The panel discussion will consider application of RIPB approaches in other domains, its nexus with Model-Based Systems Engineering, and how best to reflect RIPB principles in consensus standards.
Robert Youngblood, III
Idaho National Laboratory
Kent Welter
NuScale Power
Ralph Hill
Westinghouse Electric Co
Chester Everline
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
To access the session recording, you must be logged in and registered for the meeting.
Register NowLog In
To access session resources, you must be logged in and registered for the meeting.