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
Mathematics & Computation
Division members promote the advancement of mathematical and computational methods for solving problems arising in all disciplines encompassed by the Society. They place particular emphasis on numerical techniques for efficient computer applications to aid in the dissemination, integration, and proper use of computer codes, including preparation of computational benchmark and development of standards for computing practices, and to encourage the development on new computer codes and broaden their use.
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!
Latest Magazine Issues
Apr 2025
Jan 2025
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
May 2025
Nuclear Technology
April 2025
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Norway’s Halden reactor takes first step toward decommissioning
The government of Norway has granted the transfer of the Halden research reactor from the Institute for Energy Technology (IFE) to the state agency Norwegian Nuclear Decommissioning (NND). The 25-MWt Halden boiling water reactor operated from 1958 to 2018 and was used in the research of nuclear fuel, reactor internals, plant procedures and monitoring, and human factors.
Andrew P. Hull
Nuclear Technology | Volume 87 | Number 2 | October 1989 | Pages 383-394
Technical Paper | TMI-2: Health Physics and Environmental Release / Radiation Biology and Environment | doi.org/10.13182/NT89-A27728
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Although the advance planning for it was minimal by today’s standards, a large integrated federal and state environmental monitoring response was made to the Three Mile Island Unit 2 accident. In particular, major resources were committed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). They include the Brookhaven National Laboratory-based Radiological Assistance Program, the Atmospheric Release Advisory Capability, and the Aerial Measurements System, with backup personnel from other DOE national laboratories. Additional resources were provided by the Environmental Protection Agency. The monitoring effort included plume tracking, field environmental monitoring and sampling, sample analysis, and dose assessment. The ranges of the installed plant monitors having been exceeded, these data were important for establishing the nuclides and their quantities in the daily releases from the plant during the first few weeks after the accident. In particular, it was established that the continuing releases consisted almost entirely of radiogases, with very small quantities of radioiodines. The highest measured ground-level dose rate was 1.3 × 102 C/kg (50 mR/h) and the largest concentration of 131I <3.7 × 10−6 Bq/cm3 (<1 × 10−10 µCi/cm3). From DOE population dose assessment, the highest individual dose appears to have been <1 mSv/h (<100 mR/h) and the total population dose 20 person-Sv (∼2000 person-rems). This largely ad hoc response became the basic model for today’s Federal Radiological Monitoring and Assessment Program, which would be put into operation should a major accident occur at a U.S. nuclear facility.