History
Since 1951, fifty-two reactors have been built on the grounds of what was originally the Atomic Energy Commission’s National Reactor Testing Station, currently the location of Idaho National Laboratory. Constructed in 1967, the ATR is the second-oldest of three reactors still in operation at the site. Its primary function is to intensely bombard samples of materials and fuels with neutrons to simulate long-term exposure to high levels of radiation, as would be present in a commercial nuclear reactor. The ATR is one of only four test reactors in the world with this capability. The reactor also produces rare isotopes for use in medicine and industry.
Read more about this topic: Advanced Test Reactor
Famous quotes containing the word history:
“A country grows in history not only because of the heroism of its troops on the field of battle, it grows also when it turns to justice and to right for the conservation of its interests.”
—Aristide Briand (1862–1932)
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Figuring the natures of the times deceased,
The which observed, a man may prophesy,
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—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“Anything in history or nature that can be described as changing steadily can be seen as heading toward catastrophe.”
—Susan Sontag (b. 1933)