BGRR Operations, 1950-1968
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Completion, 1949 | Operations
1950-1968 | BGRR Images
A research reactor exists for one purpose only: to create vast
quantities of neutrons. Yet just this makes it one of the most versatile
of scientific instruments. Nuclear physicists, starting to develop
quantitative models of the nucleus, needed neutrons to obtain data on
nuclear behavior. Solid-state physicists wanted neutrons for discovering
the locations and motions of atoms in materials. Chemists could use
neutrons to examine many properties of matter of interest to them. Life
scientists used neutrons to study the effects of radiation on organic
tissues and to create radioisotopes for research and treatment. Reactor
engineers needed information on various fuel types, moderators,
coolants, and control systems, as did naval and air-craft engineers
designing nuclear-powered submarines, ships, aircraft, and, later,
spacecraft.*
Click on an image below to view a larger version.
* from "Making Physics" by R. Crease, University
of Chicago Press, 1999.
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