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Conference Spotlight
Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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The RAIN scale: A good intention that falls short
Radiation protection specialists agree that clear communication of radiation risks remains a vexing challenge that cannot be solved solely by finding new ways to convey technical information.
Earlier this year, an article in Nuclear News described a new radiation risk communication tool, known as the Radiation Index, or, RAIN (“Let it RAIN: A new approach to radiation communication,” NN, Jan. 2025, p. 36). The authors of the article created the RAIN scale to improve radiation risk communication to the general public who are not well-versed in important aspects of radiation exposures, including radiation dose quantities, units, and values; associated health consequences; and the benefits derived from radiation exposures.
Athena A. Sagadevan, Sunil S. Chirayath
Nuclear Technology | Volume 208 | Number 3 | March 2022 | Pages 428-436
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2021.1922259
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Until a long-term solution is finalized, interim storage of sufficiently cooled spent nuclear fuel (SNF) assemblies in dry casks is the predominant practice. Since these dry casks can contain approximately 160 kg of reactor-grade plutonium, they require safeguards monitoring. Results of a simulation study conducted on the design development and analysis of a remote monitoring system (RMS) are presented. The goal of the study was to determine the suitability of this RMS to meet the SNF monitoring objectives. MCNP simulations of a dry cask with all its contents and a set of simulations with one or two removed SNF assemblies were performed to test the detection capabilities of the RMS. The removed assemblies were substituted with dummy assemblies to simulate concealment. The studies showed that the RMS design is suitable to monitor and detect the removal of even a single SNF assembly from the cask.