Maryland couple pleads guilty to selling nuclear-related secrets abcnews.go.com

Constellation Joins State and Federal Officials to Celebrate Progress on Nation’s First Nuclear-Powered Clean Hydrogen Facility businesswire.com

Truth or bluff? Why Putin’s nuclear warnings have the West worried reuters.com

Nuclear attack in Ukraine should spark ‘devastating’ Nato response, says Poland theguardian.com

 

France to speed up new nuclear buildup energylivenews.com

First Belgian power reactor shut down world-nuclear-news.org

Germany extends life of two nuclear power plants to stave off winter energy shortage news.sky.com

South Korea announces supercritical CO2 collaboration world-nuclear-news.org

 

 

 

Ambient office = 92 nanosieverts per hour

Ambient outside = 95 nanosieverts per hour

Soil exposed to rain water = 91 nanosieverts per hour

Roma tomato from Central Market = 95 nanosieverts per hour

Tap water = 73 nanosieverts per hour

Filter water = 66 nanosieverts per hour

Dover Sole from Central = 89 nanosieverts per hour

     Canadian utility SaskPower has identified Estevan and Elbow, two areas in the province of Saskatchewan, for further study to determine the feasibility of hosting a small modular reactor (SMR).
     The Estevan study area incudes the areas around the Boundary/Rafferty Dam as well as the area around Grant Devine Dam. The Elbow study area contains the area around Lake Diefenbaker for Gardines Dam to the Diefenbaker Dam.
      In order to identify these study areas, SaskPower used technical criteria based on the requirements of various SMR technologies. These SMRs were evaluated by the utility earlier this year. These criteria include proximity to a suitable water supply, existing power infrastructure, workforce, nuclear regulations and standards, and learnings from past generation siting projects.
     Work will now begin on environmental and impact assessments and the Regional Evaluation Process (REP). This process will share current information about the project with regional and stakeholder organizations as well as indigenous groups potentially affected. It will also allow SaskPower to gather input on regional identity, siting considerations, and potential economic development. This information will be combined with future public participation preferences to support its regulatory and siting process. As a part of the REP, SaskPower will create a Regional and Indigenous and Stakeholder Committee made up of nominated representatives from each study area. This will be used in support of public participation on the SMR development project.
    Rupen Pandya is the SaskPower CEO. He said, “Feedback and perspectives from not just the regions but from the entire province are very important to SaskPower as we plan to potentially incorporate nuclear power into the generation mix. Engagement and consultation with Indigenous Rightsholders and the public is critical to this project, and I encourage the people of Saskatchewan to reach out and engage with us on this important project.”
     The utility noted that a final decision on whether or not to build an SMR will not be made until 2029. However, it said that to keep a nuclear power option for Saskatchewan, significant planning and regulatory work must be done. It also said that “A necessary step to advance this regulatory work is to identify and select a location to potentially host an SMR.”
     Don Morgan is the Minister Responsible for SaskPower. He said, “By identifying these two study areas, SaskPower has reached another critical milestone in its planning work to potentially bring nuclear power to Saskatchewan. Saskatchewan’s commitment to a sustainable, reliable, and affordable electrical system is evident with today’s announcement.”
     Last June, SaskPower selected GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy’s BWRX-300 SMR for possible deployment in the province in the mid-2030s after an assessment process in which it looked at several SMR technology.
      Although all of Canada’s uranium production currently comes from Saskatchewan, the province does not use nuclear power. Saskatchewan’s government identified development of SMR technology as a goal for growth in its 2019 development roadmap. Earlier this year, along with the governments of Ontario, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick and Alverta, it released a joint strategic plan setting out a path for developing and deploying SMRs.
     OPG has already selected the GE-Hitachi BWRX-300 for their Darlington New Nuclear Project in Ontario, where Canada’s first commercial, grid-scale, SMR could be completed as early as 2028.

 

 

 

Ambient office = 73 nanosieverts per hour

Ambient outside = 107 nanosieverts per hour

Soil exposed to rain water = 108 nanosieverts per hour

Red bell pepper from Central Market = 100 nanosieverts per hour

Tap water = 105 nanosieverts per hour

Filter water = 83 nanosieverts per hour

UN chief calls for an end to ‘nuclear blackmail’ and risk of ‘humanitarian Armageddon’ news.un.org

Ashtabula County EMA participates in Perry Nuclear Power Plant drill starbeacon.com

Nuclear threats hang over Europe as weapons leaders gather in Brussels politico.com

Stoltenberg warns Russia against “nuclear” rhetoric: Such war cannot be won Ukrinform.net

 

 

 

Ambient office = 73 nanosieverts per hour

Ambient outside = 107 nanosieverts per hour

Soil exposed to rain water = 108 nanosieverts per hour

Red bell pepper from Central Market = 100 nanosieverts per hour

Tap water = 105 nanosieverts per hour

Filter water = 83 nanosieverts per hour

Part 2 of 2 Parts (Please read Part 1 first)
Nuclear Power
     Nuclear power is a reliable, low carbon energy source. It can benefit significantly from the incorporation of AI. By combining digital simulations of real nuclear with AI systems, the nuclear industry can optimize complex procedures and improve reactor design, performance and reduce maintenance costs.
     Machine learning is a process in which AI systems learn by analyzing huge amounts of data. It can help to automate tasks and thereby increase reliability and avoid errors. In addition, AI has considerable analytical and predictive potential to help monitor power plant processes and detect anomalies.
Nuclear Security and radiation protection
     More and more countries have chosen to employ nuclear technology for peaceful purposes and adopt power programs. The IAEA works continuously to ensure the protection of people and the environment from the potential harmful effects of ionizing radiation.
     AI can contribute to nuclear security and safety in a variety of ways. It can be used in the processing and analysis of data from radiation detection systems to enhance the detection and identification of nuclear and other radioactive material. AI can be applied to analyze data from physical protection systems to improve the detection of intruders at nuclear facilities. It can also assist in spotting anomalies that could indicate a cyber-attack on a nuclear facility. In the realm of radiation protection, the integration of AI in safety standards-related software can reinforce the protection of the millions of workers with occupational exposure in medicine, construction, mining, shipping, agriculture and nuclear power.
Safeguards
     Safeguards are technical verification measures that allows the IAEA to provide credible assurances that countries are honoring their legal obligations to use nuclear material for peaceful purposes only. The IAEA analyzes countries’ declared nuclear material and nuclear related activities. It then attempts to verify the absence of undeclared materials and activities through measures, such as inspections at nuclear facilities and sites.
     Safeguards rely on huge amounts of data obtained by various means. These include satellite imagery, environmental sampling, gamma ray spectroscopy and video surveillance. AI can assist nuclear inspectors and safeguard analysts by the analysis of collected data. Machine learning methods have already been used to detect outliers in large datasets. These methods assist in verifying spent fuel and analyzing surveillance recordings. AI is expected to further improve the efficiency of safeguard implementation by reducing the number of repetitive tasks that have to be performed by inspectors.
Final thoughts on the future
     The IAEA provides interdisciplinary forums for professionals to discuss and foster collaboration on the use of AI in nuclear applications, science and technology. It is committed to sharing knowledge and forging partnerships through its AI for Atoms platform. As part of this initiative, the IAEA collaborates with the International Telecommunication Union, the UN Interagency Working Group on AI and forty other UN organizations to provide a solid foundation for accelerated sustainable development of AI. (The AI for Good program is a year-round digital platform of the U.N. system. On the platform, AI innovators and problem owners learn, discuss and connect to identify practical AI solutions to advance U.N. Sustainable Development Goals.)

Push to strip nuclear power ban after subs begadistrictnews.com

World leaders, experts, respond to Putin’s nuclear threats deseret.com

Explainer: How close are we to nuclear war? 1nes.co.nz

IAEA and European Commission Expand Cooperation on Nuclear Safety iaea.org

 

 

 

 

Ambient office = 87 nanosieverts per hour

Ambient outside = 125 nanosieverts per hour

Soil exposed to rain water = 128 nanosieverts per hour

English cucumber from Central Market = 114 nanosieverts per hour

Tap water = 109 nanosieverts per hour

Filter water = 97 nanosieverts per hour

Part 1 of 2 Parts
     For decades, artificial intelligence (AI) has evolved rapidly. It has become increasingly sophisticated and capable of solving ever more complex problems. AI is deployed in sectors as diverse as manufacturing, transportation, finance, education and healthcare. It also has the potential to advance the development of nuclear applications, science and technology. Harnessing its capability in the nuclear field can positively contribute to addressing some of today’s most pressing challenges, from food security to climate change.
     Here is a list of seven ways that AI has and will continue to benefit the peaceful application of nuclear technology. These are discussed in more detail in a new IAEA publication titled Artificial Intelligence for Accelerating Nuclear Applications, Science and Technology.
Human health
     AI currently contributes to combating diseases. It is already being applied to support the diagnosis and treatment of cancer through enhanced image interpretation and precise tumor contouring. This enables more accurate treatment plans and adaptive radiotherapy. This allows the process to be tailored to the anatomical characteristics of the individual patient. The IAEA has recently launched a coordinated research project to explore this area.
     AI will also play an important part in the IAEA’s Zoonotic Disease Integration Action (ZODIAC) initiative to help experts better comprehend the impact of zoonotic diseases on human health and to predict, assess and contain future outbreaks of such diseases.
Food and Agriculture
    AI programs combined with nuclear technologies can help make food systems more sustainable and climate change resilient. Food and nutrition insecurity will also be addressed.
     Experts deploy AI to process and analyze data to increase crop yields, estimate soil moisture, and remediate radioactively contaminated land. AI is also used to detect and predict food fraud events and improve irrigation.
Water and the environment
Isotopic methods allow experts to study and track exactly how water moves through different stages of the hydrological cycle. This knowledge allows researchers to understand what transformations occur in this cycle due to climate change. Experts are already applying AI-based approaches to quickly analyze huge amounts of water-related isotopic data stored in global repositories. One such repository is the Global Network of Isotopes in Precipitation maintained by the IAEA and the World Meteorological Organization. Effective and efficient analysis of data with the assistance of AI increases the understanding of climate change and its impact on water availability across the globe.
Nuclear science and fusion research
     Artificial intelligence plays an increasingly important role in nuclear science. AI is used in data analysis, theoretical modeling and experimental design. This helps researchers to accelerate fundamental research in the realm of nuclear and data evaluation and compilation. This, in turn, advances technological innovation.
     A particular area that benefits from the application of AI tools is nuclear fusion research. AI has the ability to solve large and complex problems. AI can aid experiments and scientific discovery and help advance technological innovation. These applications of AI are spelled out in a new five-year IAEA coordinated research project aimed at accelerating fusion research and development.
Please read Part 2 next