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Division Spotlight
Nuclear Installations Safety
Devoted specifically to the safety of nuclear installations and the health and safety of the public, this division seeks a better understanding of the role of safety in the design, construction and operation of nuclear installation facilities. The division also promotes engineering and scientific technology advancement associated with the safety of such facilities.
Meeting Spotlight
ANS Student Conference 2025
April 3–5, 2025
Albuquerque, NM|The University of New Mexico
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!
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Mar 2025
Jan 2025
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Nuclear Science and Engineering
April 2025
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Lloyd’s Register supports Prodigy’s bring-your-own-reactor floating plant concept
Prodigy Clean Energy and Lloyd’s Register have announced a collaboration to support the deployment of Prodigy’s “transportable nuclear power plants” (TNPPs) in Canada by 2030. Prodigy’s goal is to build marine-based nuclear power plants that are compatible with different end uses and reactor suppliers. What the plants would have in common is offshore siting close to an end user, which could include offshore oil and gas platforms, commercial seaports, mining operations, remote communities, and desalination plants.
Technical Session|Panel|Radioisotope Power Systems
Tuesday, May 6, 2025|1:00–2:40PM CDT|Atlantis/Discovery/Columbia (Marriott)
Session Chair:
Harsh S. Desai
Session Organizer:
Alternate Chair:
Harold Gerrish
As the global space community advances its lunar exploration goals, a key technology shortfall remains: ensuring survival and sustained operation through the lunar night. The Civil Space Technologies Shortfall survey identified this challenge as vital, yet it's one we already solved during the Apollo missions with the use of Radioisotope Power Systems (RPS). Despite RPS's proven ability to support long-duration missions through harsh lunar conditions, current deployments are limited to marquee NASA missions like New Frontiers and Mars Sample Return, leaving Artemis without a dedicated solution. Meanwhile, other space agencies-ESA, ISRO, and China's CNSA-are integrating RPS into their lunar roadmaps. For the first time, commercial entities are stepping up to provide RPS solutions, bridging the gap to supplement government-built systems and expand their utilization in space. These commercial RPS options offer potential not only for government-led initiatives like Artemis but also for future lunar commercial operations. But procuring commercial RPS is a new paradigm for NASA, and NASA will need to determine how it will procure these commercial RPS to solve its top technology shortfall. This panel brings together key stakeholders from across NASA's programs to discuss the demand, pathways, and potential acquisition models for commercial RPS. Panelists will explore procurement methods through programs such as NASA's CLPS/PRISM, the RPS Program, and direct acquisition from NASA projects. Insights from the excellent slate of panelists will provide a comprehensive view of the evolving landscape for RPS in supporting sustained lunar exploration.
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