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
Isotopes & Radiation
Members are devoted to applying nuclear science and engineering technologies involving isotopes, radiation applications, and associated equipment in scientific research, development, and industrial processes. Their interests lie primarily in education, industrial uses, biology, medicine, and health physics. Division committees include Analytical Applications of Isotopes and Radiation, Biology and Medicine, Radiation Applications, Radiation Sources and Detection, and Thermal Power Sources.
Meeting Spotlight
International Conference on Mathematics and Computational Methods Applied to Nuclear Science and Engineering (M&C 2025)
April 27–30, 2025
Denver, CO|The Westin Denver Downtown
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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Nuclear Science and Engineering
May 2025
Nuclear Technology
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Latest News
TerraPower begins U.K. regulatory approval process
Seattle-based TerraPower signaled its interest this week in building its Natrium small modular reactor in the United Kingdom, the company announced.
TerraPower sent a letter to the U.K.’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, formally establishing its intention to enter the U.K. generic design assessment (GDA) process. This is TerraPower’s first step in deployment of its Natrium technology—a 345-MW sodium fast reactor coupled with a molten salt energy storage unit—on the international stage.
Carl M. Unruh
Nuclear Technology | Volume 24 | Number 3 | December 1974 | Pages 314-322
Technical Paper | Radioactive Waste | doi.org/10.13182/NT74-A31493
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Man receives radiation doses from a variety of sources. Background radiation from terrestrial sources, cosmic rays, and the internal deposition of naturally occurring radioactive materials amounts to about 94 mrem/yr at sea level and varies widely with location and elevation. Medical services are estimated to contribute an average of 75 mrem/yr currently. Global fallout from previous weapons tests contribute about 4 mrem/yr. For 1970 the average annual dose from the U.S. nuclear power industry was about 0.003 mrem. Extensive studies have shown that in the year 2000 the average annual dose from nuclear power generation may be about 0.4 mrem/yr. For the average U.S. citizen, the largest annual radiation dose arises from naturally occurring background. For the year 1970, the radiation dose from the U.S. nuclear power industry was about 0.003% of that received from unavoidable natural background radiation. For the year 2000, the radiation dose from the U.S. nuclear power industry is predicted to be about 0.5% of that received from unavoidable natural background radiation.