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 Winter Conference & Expo
November 15–18, 2026
Phoenix, AZ|Arizona Grand Resort & Spa
Latest Magazine Issues
Aug 2026
Jan 2026
2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
October 2026
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
August 2026
Latest News
Fuel loading process begins at Palisades
The Palisades nuclear power plant has drawn closer to restart, as plant staff began the process of loading fuel into the reactor vessel on Sunday morning.
The commencement of fuel loading places the Covert, Mich., facility in Mode 6—or the refueling stage—under the plant’s technical specifications, plant owner and operator Holtec International said in a news release. The Palisades reactor core consists of 204 fuel assemblies that include new fuel and partially used fuel from the plant’s most recent operating cycles. According to Holtec, the fuel loading is being conducted in accordance with plant procedures and technical specifications.
Merouane Najar, Najeeb. N. M. Maglas, Islam Sherif, Lilia Djebara, Zhao Qiang
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 200 | Number 7 | July 2026 | Pages 1733-1742
Research Article | doi.org/10.1080/00295639.2025.2530308
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The development of space reactors signifies a transformative leap in modern exploration, providing sustainable energy solutions for extended missions and emergency scenarios. This study investigates the radiological impacts of a hypothetical space reactor accident during atmospheric reentry at an altitude of 70 km, a critical threshold for aerodynamic and thermal stresses that heightens risks of structural disintegration and radionuclide release. Employing the HotSpot code for radionuclide dispersion simulations, enhanced by a Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) model, the research extends dose predictions to 321 km, exceeding HotSpot’s 200-km limit. The LSTM model demonstrated outstanding accuracy, achieving an R2 of 99.5%, a mean absolute error of 4.9 × 10-5, and a root-mean-squared error of 1.7 × 10-4. It replicated HotSpot-calculated values while refining predictions for extended distances, estimating doses as low as 5.9 × 10-5 kBq∙m−2 at 321 km. The total effective dose equivalent (TEDE) at 0.03 km was 130 Sv on the first day and increased to 710 Sv after 55 years, reflecting the cumulative environmental radiation exposure, while organ-specific analysis showed that the liver absorbed 130 Sv on the first day, escalating to a cumulative 1300 Sv over the same period. Persistent contamination was observed up to 80 km, where TEDE values remained measurable at 0.036 Sv after 55 years. These results underline the dual necessity of mitigating both immediate and long-term radiological risks. By integrating advanced AI methodologies, the study provides dynamic, precise modeling to support robust safety protocols, environmental monitoring, and emergency preparedness strategies for space reactor operations.