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 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
Latest Magazine Issues
Mar 2026
Jan 2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
April 2026
Nuclear Technology
February 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Going Nuclear: Notes from the officially unofficial book tour
I work in the analytical labs at one of Europe’s oldest and largest nuclear sites: Sellafield, in northwestern England. I spend my days at the fume hood front, pipette in one hand and radiation probe in the other (and dosimeter pinned to my chest, of course). Outside the lab, I have a second job: I moonlight as a writer and public speaker. My new popular science book—Going Nuclear: How the Atom Will Save the World—came out last summer, and it feels like my life has been running at full power ever since.
H. Märten, A. Ruben, D. Seeliger
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 109 | Number 2 | October 1991 | Pages 120-127
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE91-A28511
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A phenomenological scission point model including temperature-dependent shell effects is used to solve the energy partition problem as a function of mass asymmetry (A1/A2) for plutonium fission. Relevant fragment data such as average excitation energy and total kinetic energy are used as the basis for applying a temperature distribution model based on the Madland-Nix theory that includes the full mass number dependence of spectra, a realistic temperature distribution of fragments, a modified center-of-mass (CMS) spectrum ansatz, CMS anisotropy of neutron emission, and competition of neutron and gamma-ray emission. This new model describes neutron multiplicity, energy, and angular distribution of prompt fission neutrons. Calculated data for 238Pu, 240Pu, and 242Pu spontaneous fission are presented and discussed in comparison with experimental data.