
The Pentagon is looking to nuclear waste for power
A Rhode Island start-up is working to recycle spent nuclear fuel into long-lasting power systems for the military

The Pentagon is looking to nuclear waste for power
A Rhode Island start-up is working to recycle spent nuclear fuel into long-lasting power systems for the military

A Bill Gates–backed nuclear power plant just got cleared to start building
TerraPower, a start-up founded by Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist Bill Gates, is set to build a new kind of nuclear power plant in Wyoming


Loosening radiation exposure rules won’t speed up nuclear energy production
Relaxing radiation safety standards could place women and children at higher risks of health issues

Science Carries On. Here Are Our Top Topics for 2026
Whether space, health, technology or environment, here are the issues in science that the editors of Scientific American are focusing on for 2026

Chernobyl Nuclear Plant’s Protective Shield Has Been Damaged for Months
The site of the world’s worst nuclear disaster remains damaged, but so far, radiation levels outside the plant have not increased, according to officials

The mind-bending challenge of warning future humans about nuclear waste
Designing nuclear-waste repositories is part engineering, part anthropology—and part mythmaking

Here’s How a Nuclear-Powered Cruise Missile Works
Russian leader Vladimir Putin claimed his nation conducted a successful flight of a nuclear-powered cruise missile. Here’s how that missile might work

See How Fusion Energy Could Power the Future
Inertial confinement reactors, stellarators and tokamaks each have pros and cons

U.S. Nuclear Energy Plans Could Proliferate Weapons
The White House has now fully embraced bomb-prone nuclear fuel technology. This should stop before an arms race, atomic terrorism or even nuclear war results

Record-Breaking Results Bring Fusion Power Closer to Reality
Breakthroughs from two rival experiments, Germany’s Wendelstein 7-X and the Joint European Torus, suggest the elusive dream of controlled nuclear fusion may be within reach

Did the U.S. Really Destroy Iran’s Nuclear Program?
Nuclear policy specialist David Albright explains how his organization is monitoring for damage to nuclear sites following U.S. and Israeli strikes

How Dangerous Nuclear Waste Is Stored in the U.S.
The decades-long struggle to find a permanent place to dispose of nuclear waste in the U.S. will continue, probably for many years to come