The March "reference" issue of Nuclear News magazine is available in hard copy and electronically for American Nuclear Society members (must enter ANS user name and password in Member Center). This issue-the 14th annual nuclear reference guide-includes:

The 97th carnival of nuclear energy bloggers is up at Next Big Future

After giving a brief update on recent Fukushima-related events in the United States, I'd like to talk about some good (but relatively unpublicized) things that have happened during what has otherwise been a very challenging year for the nuclear industry. Then I'll discuss what, to me, was the most disconcerting story in the past year.

One of the missions of the American Nuclear Society's Young Members Group is to promote participation of young members in the activities of the society. Boosting the involvement of young members in the technical programs of the society's professional divisions is an important goal in this effort.

The plant dodges another bullet at least for now

Albert Einstein's birthdate was less than a week ago, on March 14, in the year 1879. Happy belated birthday, Albert!

 By Bethany Cargle

This post is the collective voice of blogs with legendary names which emerge each week to tell the story of nuclear energy.

Japan's new political leadership represents a sea change in the post-Fukushima era

NRC Commissioners Magwood, Svinicki, Chairman Jaczko, Apostolakis, Ostendorff

A hearing titled "Lessons from Fukushima One Year Later: NRC's Implementation of Recommendations for Enhancing Nuclear Reactor Safety in the 21st Century" will be held in the U.S. Senate this morning at 10:00 AM EDT.  Witnesses will include NRC chairman Gregory Jaczko and fellow NRC commissioners Kristine Svinicki, George Apostolakis, William Magwood, and William Ostendorff.

At a recent conference I had the pleasure of meeting Kallie Metzger, a young nuclear engineering Ph.D. candidate from the University of South Carolina. Kallie and I quickly discovered that we have a great deal in common, especially when it comes to our shared passion for art and science. Kallie was kind enough to share her undergraduate thesis with me, and I found it to be so unique and contemporary that I had to share it here. In her own words, here is the inspiration of a young physics student who chose to express her passion for science through art.

The Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant received a 20-year extension of its operating license from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission on March 21, 2011. Vermont Yankee also is required to be issued a renewed Certificate of Public Good (CPG) from Vermont's Public Service Board to continue operating.

A hearing titled "Lessons from Fukushima One Year Later: NRC's Implementation of Recommendations for Enhancing Nuclear Reactor Safety in the 21st Century" will be held in the U.S. Senate on Thursday, March 15, at 10:00 AM EDT. The hearing will be a joint session of the Senate's Committee on Environment and Public Works and the Subcommittee on Clean Air and Nuclear Safety.

The 95th Carnival of Nuclear Energy Bloggers

Watch  via this link.  The ANS Special Committee on Fukushima full report is available for download.

The American Nuclear Society Special Committee on Fukushima will issue its full report on March 8 at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, at 10AM EST. The press conference will be available for viewing via this link.

We are within one week of the one year anniversary of the Great North East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami. That powerful punch from nature slowly destroyed four out of six of the nuclear units at Fukushima Daiichi while the world watched with rapt attention.

Retrospective and prospective views

The American Nuclear Society Special Committee on Fukushima has been conducting a comprehensive study of the events at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant following the Great East Japan earthquake of 2011. The special committee was tasked with providing a clear and concise explanation of what happened during the Fukushima Daiichi accident, and offer recommendations based on lessons learned. A report from the special committee will be released at a press conference on Thursday, March 8, at 10AM EST. The press conference will be webcast at http://www.visualwebcaster.com/event.asp?id=85244, and the report will be available for download at http://fukushima.ans.org/.

Since the Fukushima accident last March, several Japanese investigative groups have been created to try to establish what actually happened. As the number of groups has grown, some confusion has understandably emerged. Here's a "scorecard" of the five primary Japanese investigative commissions, with a brief description of each.