by Timothy Gardner (Reuters) - Two Democratic lawmakers urged the U.S. Energy Department to move faster with a research program on converting nuclear reactors in the Navy's submarines and carriers from bomb-grade uranium to a safer fuel, a letter viewed by Reuters showed. Last year, Congress approved $5 million in defense policy and spending bills for the Energy Department's … [Read more...]
Russia Set to Dismantle First Nuclear-Powered Icebreaker
Russia is set to begin dismantling the nuclear icebreaker Sibir marking the first time ever that a nuclear-powered icebreaker has been sent for recycling. The icebreaker, which was built in 1978 at the Baltic Shipyard, was retired from service in 1993. With funding now approved, the icebreaker is set to be towed from Atomflot harbor to the Nerpa Shipyard north of Murmansk … [Read more...]
SPOTD: The World’s Largest & Heaviest Active Duty Warship
Today's Ship Photo Of The Day (SPOTD) is the Russian nuclear Battlecruiser Pyotr Velikiy. Technically the Russian Navy designation is Kirov class "heavy missile cruiser", but Western defense commentators re-invented the term "battlecruiser" to describe these because they are the largest warships in the world besides aircraft carriers. With a length of 252 m (827 ft) and … [Read more...]
China’s Plans To Float Nuclear Reactors In Disputed Waters
by Kathy Chen and David Stanway (Reuters) China aims to launch a series of offshore nuclear power platforms to promote development in the South China Sea, state media said again on Friday, days after an international court ruled Beijing had no historic claims to most of the waters. Sovereignty over the South China Sea is contested by China, the Philippines, Vietnam, … [Read more...]
Russia Lays Keel for Giant Nuclear-Powered Icebreaker
Russia's state-owned Baltic Shipyard (Baltijskiy Zavod-Sudostroyenie) has hosted the keel laying ceremony for a nuclear-powered icebreaker being built as part of a massive shipbuilding program undertaken by the Russian government. The shipbuilding program, dubbed Project 22220, involves the construction of three nuclear-powered icebreakers to be delivered by 2020 … [Read more...]