The Future of Nuclear Power

Imitating the sun remains an elusive goal for energy researchers. David Biello reports

Nuclear power--like most forms of electricity generation--carries inherent risks. Is it worth the minor chance of a major catastrophe?

Nuclear waste is either a millennia's worth of lethal garbage or the fuel of future nuclear reactors--or both

Using comic books to explore the issues and history of nuclear power

Even environmentalists are reevaluating nuclear power as a possible solution to global warming, but can it really help?

A new wave of nuclear power plant construction has boosted the price of uranium reactor fuel

Steve Fetter, dean of the University of Maryland's School of Public Policy, supplies an answer

Two billion years ago parts of an African uranium deposit spontaneously underwent nuclear fission. The details of this remarkable phenomenon are just now becoming clear

New, safer and more economical nuclear reactors could not only satisfy many of our future energy needs but could combat global warming as well

Fast-neutron reactors could extract much more energy from recycled nuclear fuel, minimize the risks of weapons proliferation and markedly reduce the time nuclear waste must be isolated

Taking apart a nuclear power plant that has reached the end of its life is a complicated task. But not for the reasons you might expect

Newly approved reactor designs could reduce global warming and fossil-fuel dependence, but utilities are grappling with whether better nukes make market sense

What companies are doing to keep consumers out of the dark when a power facility fails

Plans are afoot to reuse spent reactor fuel in the U.S. But the advantages of the scheme pale in comparison with its dangers

Radiation monitors at U.S. ports cannot reliably detect highly enriched uranium, which onshore terrorists could assemble into a nuclear bomb

A new generation of reactors after more than 30 years without a new nuclear plant raises hopes, opportunities and concerns. David Biello reports. See tinyurl.com/2pb4bc

New Jersey-based NRG Energy applies to build the first new nuclear power plant in the U.S. in more than 30 years

An obscure scale helps communicate the relative severity of a nuclear accident

In this episode, MIT physicist Ernest Moniz discusses the future of nuclear energy and the article he co-authored in the September issue of Scientific American called The Nuclear Option. David Holmes of Manchester Metropolitan University talks about the reality of mouse food preferences and whether or not cheese is included. Plus we'll test your knowledge about some recent science in the news. Websites mentioned on this episode include www.sciam.com; http://web.mit.edu/nuclearpower; www.cheese.com; http://www.defensetech.org/archives/2006_09.html.

A threefold expansion of nuclear power could contribute significantly to staving off climate change by avoiding one billion to two billion tons of carbon emissions annually