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.
Division Spotlight
Operations & Power
Members focus on the dissemination of knowledge and information in the area of power reactors with particular application to the production of electric power and process heat. The division sponsors meetings on the coverage of applied nuclear science and engineering as related to power plants, non-power reactors, and other nuclear facilities. It encourages and assists with the dissemination of knowledge pertinent to the safe and efficient operation of nuclear facilities through professional staff development, information exchange, and supporting the generation of viable solutions to current issues.
Meeting Spotlight
2024 ANS Annual Conference
June 16–19, 2024
Las Vegas, NV|Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino
Standards Program
The Standards Committee is responsible for the development and maintenance of voluntary consensus standards that address the design, analysis, and operation of components, systems, and facilities related to the application of nuclear science and technology. Find out What’s New, check out the Standards Store, or Get Involved today!
Latest Magazine Issues
Apr 2024
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Nuclear Science and Engineering
May 2024
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
NWMO to select Canadian repository site this year
Canada’s Nuclear Waste Management Organization, a not-for-profit organization responsible for the long-term management of the country’s intermediate- and high-level radioactive waste, is set to select a site for a deep geologic repository by the end of the year.
Jesson Hutchinson, Jennifer Alwin, Alexander McSpaden, William Myers, Michael Rising, Rene Sanchez
Nuclear Technology | Volume 207 | Number 1 | December 2021 | Pages S62-S80
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2021.1908076
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Criticality experiments with 235U (metal and hydride) and 239Pu (metal) were performed during the Manhattan Project. Results from these experiments provided necessary information for the success of the Manhattan Project [LA-1033 to LA-1036 (1947), LA-02532-MS V I (1961), and Critical Assembly: A Technical History of Los Alamos During the Oppenheimer Years, 1943–1945 (1993)]. These experiments have been previously described in compilations made after the Manhattan Project, but those works are either lacking in technical details or are not publicly available. This work aims to provide detailed information while showcasing the enduring impact of these experiments 75 years after they were performed. Furthermore, we use modern computational methods embodied in the MCNP6® code and ENDF data to analyze and interpret these historic measurements. The world’s first four criticality accidents are also discussed, as lessons learned from these helped shape the field of criticality experiments.