(Reprinted with permission from ANS News, January/February 2020, p. 2)

The 14th International Topical Meeting on Nuclear Applications of Accelerators (AccApp'20) is being organized by the Accelerator Applications Division (AAD) of the American Nuclear Society in cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency. AccApp '20 will be held April 5-9 at IAEA headquarters in Vienna.

Thank you for joining us for Episode 28 of RadioNuclear! This week, we talk about the recent false alarm involving the Pickering Nuclear Generating Station in Canada and about an opinion piece over a recent MIT study claiming that nuclear is not needed for deep decarbonization. We also discuss about why some regions of the world have an easier time building nuclear plants, when compared to other regions of the world.

Nuclear energy provides 10% of the world's electricity. To counter climate change, we need more clean and reliable energy sources. Currently, 30 countries operate nuclear power plants, and more than two dozen others are looking at nuclear energy to meet their power and climate needs. In the U.S., more than 30 towns and cities look to go carbon-free, and they're taking a chance on small modular reactors (SMRs) to achieve their goals. Enjoy this short video from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to learn more about how nuclear power can help bring our world toward a carbon-free future.

After the 2011 Fukushima incident shook the confidence of the people of Europe. It shook their confidence in the technology. Switzerland actually voted to phase out their nuclear power. ANS member & GA Section chair Juan Villarreal gives a Power Talk on the "Swiss Nuclear Brexit."

The ANS Winter Meeting has been awesome. Everyone is talking about this fantastic meeting and the excellent session offerings! Were you unable to attend the ANS Winter Meeting in Washington, D.C? If so, we have the video from the Monday morning Opening Plenary to share! ANS President Marilyn Kray started off the event and then introduced the new Executive Director/CEO Craig Piercy.  And of course, don't miss out on the great Opening Plenary speakers:

Episode 27 of RadioNuclear is now online! In this episode, the new partnership between the DOE and NRC, aimed at accelerating developments in new nuclear was discussed.  Also France's plan to reboot the EPR program, and finally get into a detailed discussion with Gene Grecheck, ANS Past President 2015-2016, about the value in preserving our LWR fleet.

In April 1957, when the new, small nuclear plant at the Army's Fort Belvoir, Virginia site first started up, it seemed as if the plant's vendor, ALCO Products, had carried off something of a coup.  Winning this important early contract had come about three years earlier for this small but well-equipped company that was looking to diversify and it seemed as if a bright future lay ahead for it.  However, by mid-1962 the company had sold the bulk of its nuclear business to Allis-Chalmers (with some vessel contracts going to Baldwin-Lima-Hamilton.)  What happened? We'll take a brief look as we walk through a photo montage.

Thank you for joining us on Episode 26 of RadioNuclear! Today, we discuss news items from two literal "Nuclear Islands". How can nuclear help out island nations that are energy constrained? Are there examples of this? Tune in to find out! We also discuss Westinghouse's purchase of Rolls Royce's North American nuclear business, and discuss how this could benefit utilities looking to reduce operations and maintenance costs.

Recently, a tremendous success story culminated at the Hanford Reservation - the completion of radioactive sludge removal from one of the K-Reactor basins.  Announcement of the completion of this task ends a years-long process that was a major barrier to finally cocooning the K reactors, which are the last two other than B left in their original state (albeit long since shut down and defueled) at Hanford.  (Of course, B Reactor has been preserved as a historic landmark and can be toured.)

The news this week that NASA has contracted for as many as 12 of the new Orion manned space flight capsules brings again to focus the fact that the US is returning to manned space flight in a big way.  While orbital flights will be first, it's clear that a return to the moon is in the cards and that, perhaps, we may go to Mars.

Happy birthday to RadioNuclear! The podcast, sponsored since 2019 by ANS, turned two years old earlier this month. The host, Doug Hardtmayer, and the Society would like to thank everyone who continues to listen and support the show!

Thank you for joining us on Episode 24 of RadioNuclear! In this episode, we briefly discuss the passage of H.B. 6 in Ohio, effectively saving the two nuclear plants in Ohio for the time being. This week we also talk about a recent article detailing the true cost of using battery storage for energy. How much could using them for 100% renewable energy cost? Tune in to find out!

The nearness of the completion of Rosatom's Akademik Lomonosov floating two-unit nuclear power plant is apparently raising interest in, of all places, the Philippines.  This island nation, which very nearly had a nuclear plant but which halted its operation when fully completed, has at least one official body considering the use of Russian-style floating nuclear plants to offset what it feels is an impending severe shortage of natural gas fuel as a major field is expected to run out.

An impressive 42 representatives of nuclear societies around the world were in France in May 2019 to sign the Declaration of Clean Energy. ANS Past President Donald Hoffman represented  the U.S. and the American Nuclear Society. The goal of the Declaration is to push for nuclear-related R&D to allow nuclear energy to make its contribution towards deep decarbonization goals as part of a clean energy portfolio. Remember folks, "There is no deep decarbonization without nuclear." Enjoy the video!

ANS Washington rep Craig Piercy asks: "What's the role for ANS members in realizing the nuclear future?"  Why get involved in the American Nuclear Society? Why attend the meetings? Because getting involved and facing the challenges together gets our voices heard.  ANS members make it happen! Listen as Piercy and ANS member Brett Rampal talk about why it's important to be a part of the nuclear community. Find out more.

ANS Annual Meeting will take place this year from June 9 to13 in Minneapolis.  If you haven't registered yet, don't wait much longer. ANS meetings have a long list offerings for you. From incredible speakers, sessions, and tours to the networking opportunities that will amaze. Need more convincing about what ANS Meetings can do for you? Listen to ANS member Brett Rampal as he talks about why he finds the ANS meetings so incredibly valuable.

Thank you for joining us on Episode 20 of RadioNuclear! In this episode, we discuss the news of the NRC's decision to issue a design certification license for the APR1400 and the monumental effort and process of getting a reactor through design certification process. We cover the recent and unfortunate news regarding the future of nuclear from Southern Company. There may also be a possible lifeline for the VC Summer project?  We also take a minute to discuss a video from friend of the show Dr. Georg Steinhauser on a recent fishing trip to the cooling ponds of Chernobyl.

Alyse Huffman is at work in the office of the U.S. House of Representatives Commit­tee on Science, Space, and Technology as the 2019 ANS Glenn T. Seaborg Congressio­nal Fellow. ANS News checked in with Huffman in late February, during her seventh week on the job.