Atomic Energy Authority (Weapons Group) Act 1973
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority is a
UK government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_es ...
research organisation responsible for the development of
fusion energy Fusion power is a proposed form of power generation that would generate electricity by using heat from nuclear fusion reactions. In a fusion process, two lighter atomic nuclei combine to form a heavier nucleus, while releasing energy. Devices des ...
. It is an executive
non-departmental public body In the United Kingdom, non-departmental public body (NDPB) is a classification applied by the Cabinet Office, Treasury, the Scottish Government and the Northern Ireland Executive to public sector organisations that have a role in the process of n ...
of the
Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) is a department of His Majesty's Government. The department was formed during a machinery of government change on 14 July 2016, following Theresa May's appointment as Prime ...
(BEIS). The authority focuses on United Kingdom and European fusion energy research programmes at
Culham Culham is a village and civil parish in a bend of the River Thames, south of Abingdon in Oxfordshire. The parish includes Culham Science Centre and Europa School UK (formerly the European School, Culham, which was the only Accredited Europea ...
in
Oxfordshire Oxfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the north west of South East England. It is a mainly rural county, with its largest settlement being the city of Oxford. The county is a centre of research and development, primarily ...
, including the world's most powerful operating fusion device, the
Joint European Torus The Joint European Torus, or JET, is an operational magnetically confined plasma physics experiment, located at Culham Centre for Fusion Energy in Oxfordshire, UK. Based on a tokamak design, the fusion research facility is a joint European pro ...
(JET). The research aims to develop fusion power as a commercially viable, environmentally responsible energy source for the future.
record
59 megajoules of sustained fusion energy was demonstrated by scientists and engineers working on JET in December 2021. United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority owns the Culham Science Centre and has a stake in the Harwell Campus, and is involved in the development of both sites as locations for science and innovation-based business. On its formation in 1954, the authority was responsible for the United Kingdom's entire nuclear programme, both civil and defence, as well as the policing of nuclear sites. It made pioneering developments in nuclear (fission) power, overseeing the development of nuclear technology and performing much scientific research. However, since the early 1970s its areas of work have been gradually reduced, with functions transferred to other government organisations as well as to the private sector. UKAEA has also been involved in undertaking safety and reliability assessments for outside bodies, due to its long running experience in such work within the nuclear field.


History

The authority was established on 19 July 1954 when the
Atomic Energy Authority Act 1954 The Atomic Energy Authority Act 1954 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which established the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority with powers to produce, use and dispose of atomic energy and to carry out research into this and r ...
received Royal Assent and gave the authority the power "to produce, use and dispose of atomic energy and carry out research into any matters therewith". The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority was formed from the Ministry of Supply, Department of Atomic Energy and inherited its facilities and most of its personnel on its formation. The first chairman was Sir
Edwin Plowden Edwin Noel Auguste Plowden, Lord Plowden, GBE, KCB (6 January 1907 – 15 February 2001) was a British industrialist and public servant in the Treasury. Career Before the Second World War, Plowden joined C Tennant Sons & Co, commodity dealers. ...
, with board members running the three major divisions: * Industrial Group: Sir Christopher Hinton * Research Group: Sir
John Cockcroft Sir John Douglas Cockcroft, (27 May 1897 – 18 September 1967) was a British physicist who shared with Ernest Walton the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1951 for splitting the atomic nucleus, and was instrumental in the development of nuclea ...
* Weapons Group: Sir
William Penney William George Penney, Baron Penney, (24 June 19093 March 1991) was an English mathematician and professor of mathematical physics at the Imperial College London and later the rector of Imperial College London. He had a leading role in the d ...
United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority inherited nearly 20,000 employees, which doubled to 41,000 by 1961. Most of United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority's early activities were related to the United Kingdom's nuclear weapons programme, and the need for
plutonium Plutonium is a radioactive chemical element with the symbol Pu and atomic number 94. It is an actinide metal of silvery-gray appearance that tarnishes when exposed to air, and forms a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally exhibi ...
,
highly enriched uranium Enriched uranium is a type of uranium in which the percent composition of uranium-235 (written 235U) has been increased through the process of isotope separation. Naturally occurring uranium is composed of three major isotopes: uranium-238 (238U ...
, and materials for
hydrogen bomb A thermonuclear weapon, fusion weapon or hydrogen bomb (H bomb) is a second-generation nuclear weapon design. Its greater sophistication affords it vastly greater destructive power than first-generation nuclear bombs, a more compact size, a lowe ...
s. Between 1952 and 1958 UKAEA carried out 21 nuclear weapon tests in Australia and the Pacific. Following the
Atomic Energy Authority Act 1971 Atomic may refer to: * Of or relating to the atom, the smallest particle of a chemical element that retains its chemical properties * Atomic physics, the study of the atom * Atomic Age, also known as the "Atomic Era" * Atomic scale, distances comp ...
, the authority was split into three, with only research activities remaining with the Authority.
The Radiochemical Centre Ltd Amersham plc was a manufacturer of radiopharmaceutical products, to be used in diagnostic and therapeutic nuclear medicine procedures. The company became GE Healthcare following a takeover in 2003, which was based at the original site in Amersh ...
took over production of medical and industrial
radioisotope A radionuclide (radioactive nuclide, radioisotope or radioactive isotope) is a nuclide that has excess nuclear energy, making it unstable. This excess energy can be used in one of three ways: emitted from the nucleus as gamma radiation; transferr ...
s and was later privatised in 1982 as
Amersham plc Amersham plc was a manufacturer of radiopharmaceutical products, to be used in diagnostic and therapeutic nuclear medicine procedures. The company became GE Healthcare following a takeover in 2003, which was based at the original site in Amersh ...
.
British Nuclear Fuels Ltd British Nuclear Fuels Limited (BNFL) was a nuclear energy and fuels company owned by the UK Government. It was a manufacturer of nuclear fuel (notably MOX), ran reactors, generated and sold electricity, reprocessed and managed spent fuel (mainly ...
(BNFL) took over nuclear fuel and weapons material producing activities: the manufacturing plant at
Springfields Springfields is a nuclear fuel production installation in Salwick, near Preston in Lancashire, England (). The site is currently operated by Springfields Fuels Limited, under the management of Westinghouse Electric UK Limited, on a 150-year l ...
, the enrichment plant at
Capenhurst Capenhurst is a village and civil parish in Chester in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire England. According to the 2001 Census, Capenhurst had a population of 237, increasing to 380 at the 2 ...
, the spent-fuel facility at
Windscale Sellafield is a large multi-function nuclear site close to Seascale on the coast of Cumbria, England. As of August 2022, primary activities are nuclear waste processing and storage and nuclear decommissioning. Former activities included nucle ...
, and the dual-purpose
Calder Hall Sellafield is a large multi-function nuclear site close to Seascale on the coast of Cumbria, England. As of August 2022, primary activities are nuclear waste processing and storage and nuclear decommissioning. Former activities included nucle ...
and
Chapelcross Chapelcross nuclear power station is a former Magnox nuclear power station undergoing decommissioning. It is located in Annan in Dumfries and Galloway in southwest Scotland, and was in operation from 1959 to 2004. It was the sister plant to the ...
military
plutonium Plutonium is a radioactive chemical element with the symbol Pu and atomic number 94. It is an actinide metal of silvery-gray appearance that tarnishes when exposed to air, and forms a dull coating when oxidized. The element normally exhibi ...
producing reactors.Additional link
/ref> The
Atomic Energy Authority (Weapons Group) Act 1973 The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority is a UK government research organisation responsible for the development of fusion energy. It is an executive non-departmental public body of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy ( ...
transferred responsibility for management of the UK's
nuclear deterrent Nuclear strategy involves the development of doctrines and strategies for the production and use of nuclear weapons. As a sub-branch of military strategy, nuclear strategy attempts to match nuclear weapons as means to political ends. In additi ...
, including the
Atomic Weapons Research Establishment The Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) is a United Kingdom Ministry of Defence research facility responsible for the design, manufacture and support of warheads for the UK's nuclear weapons. It is the successor to the Atomic Weapons Research ...
at
Aldermaston Aldermaston is a village and civil parish in Berkshire, England. In the 2011 Census, the parish had a population of 1015. The village is in the Kennet Valley and bounds Hampshire to the south. It is approximately from Newbury, Basingstoke ...
, directly to the
Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...
. In 1982 the authority was involved in the creation of Nirex, to develop and operate radioactive waste disposal facilities in the United Kingdom. The
Atomic Energy Authority Act 1986 Atomic may refer to: * Of or relating to the atom, the smallest particle of a chemical element that retains its chemical properties * Atomic physics, the study of the atom * Atomic Age, also known as the "Atomic Era" * Atomic scale, distances comp ...
put the authority into
trading fund A trading fund is an executive agency, government department or often simply a part of a department, that enables the department to handle its own revenues and expenses separately from overall government finances and more like a business, as opposed ...
mode, requiring it to act and account as though it were a commercial enterprise and become self-financing. The authority was then split again by the
Atomic Energy Authority Act 1995 The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority is a UK government research organisation responsible for the development of fusion energy. It is an executive non-departmental public body of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy ( ...
, with the more commercial parts transferred into a public company
AEA Technology Ricardo-AEA Ltd, trading as Ricardo Energy & Environment, was formed on November 8, 2012, when Ricardo acquired the business, operating assets and employees engaged in the business of AEA Technology Plc (AEAT, in administration) (AEA Europe), for ...
, which was then floated on the
London Stock Exchange London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange in the City of London, England, United Kingdom. , the total market value of all companies trading on LSE was £3.9 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Pau ...
in 1996. The nuclear facilities used for the UK's research and development programme, which held large decommissioning liabilities, were retained. The role of the authority became to decommission these nuclear assets and to restore the environment around the sites. From the early 1990s the authority completed more decommissioning work than anyone in Europe, and had considerable success in regenerating former nuclear sites for commercial use. Following the
Energy Act 2004 The Energy Act 2004 (c 20) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom concerned with nuclear power, renewable and sustainable energy and energy regulation. Royal assent was granted on 22 July 2004. Part 1 Chapter 1 Section 10 Section 10 ...
, on 1 April 2005 the UK's specialist nuclear police force, the
UK Atomic Energy Authority Constabulary The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority Constabulary was the armed security police force of the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority is a UK government research organisation responsible for th ...
, was reconstituted as the
Civil Nuclear Constabulary The Civil Nuclear Constabulary (CNC) (Welsh: ''Heddlu Sifil Niwclear'') is a special police force responsible for providing law enforcement and security at any relevant nuclear site and for security of nuclear materials in transit within the Unit ...
. Responsibility for the force was also removed from the authority and transferred to the
Civil Nuclear Police Authority The Civil Nuclear Police Authority ( cy, Yr Awdurdod Heddlu Niwclear Sifil) is the police authority that oversees the Civil Nuclear Constabulary. A police authority is a body corporate in the United Kingdom that defines strategic plans for a polic ...
. The 2004 Act also established the
Nuclear Decommissioning Authority The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) is a non-departmental public body of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, formed by the Energy Act 2004. It evolved from the Coal and Nuclear Liabilities Unit of the Department o ...
(NDA), which on 1 April 2005 took ownership and responsibility for the liabilities relating to the cleanup of UK nuclear sites. The authority became a contractor for the NDA for the decommissioning work at
Dounreay Dounreay (; gd, Dùnrath) is a small settlement and the site of two large nuclear establishments on the north coast of Caithness in the Highland area of Scotland. It is on the A836 road west of Thurso. The nuclear establishments were create ...
,
Harwell Harwell may refer to: People * Harwell (surname) * Harwell Hamilton Harris (1903–1990), American architect Places * Harwell, Nottinghamshire, England, a hamlet *Harwell, Oxfordshire, England, a village **RAF Harwell, a World War II RAF airfield, ...
, Windscale, Winfrith and the JET facilities at Culham. On 1 April 2008, the Authority announced a major re-structuring to meet its decommissioning obligations with the NDA. A new wholly owned subsidiary, UKAEA Limited, was formed with established expertise from the existing company, to focus on nuclear decommissioning and environmental restoration management and consultancy in the United Kingdom and international markets. At the same time, Dounreay Site Restoration Limited (DSRL) was formed out of the existing Authority team at Dounreay and was licensed by the
Health and Safety Executive The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is a UK government agency responsible for the encouragement, regulation and enforcement of workplace health, safety and welfare, and for research into occupational risks in Great Britain. It is a non-depar ...
to operate the site and carry out its decommissioning under the Authority's management. DSRL became a subsidiary of United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority Limited. In parallel with these changes, the site at Windscale in Cumbria was transferred to
Sellafield Ltd Sellafield Ltd is a nuclear decommissioning Site Licence Company (SLC) controlled by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA), a government body set up specifically to deal with the nuclear legacy under the Energy Act 2004. From 2008–2016, ...
, a site licence company under contract to the NDA, following close review and scrutiny by the Health and Safety Executive and environmental and security regulators. The majority of authority employees at the site transferred to Sellafield Ltd. On 2 February 2009, the authority announced the next stage in restructuring. Research Sites Restoration Limited (RSRL), was formed from the existing teams at Harwell in Oxfordshire and Winfrith in Dorset and licensed by the Health and Safety Executive to operate those sites. RSRL continued the decommissioning programmes for Harwell and Winfrith on behalf of the NDA. RSRL also became a subsidiary of UKAEA Limited. In October 2009,
Babcock International Group Babcock International Group plc is a British aerospace, defence and nuclear engineering services company based in London, England. It specialises in managing complex assets and infrastructure. Although the company has civil contracts, its main b ...
plc acquired UKAEA Limited, the nuclear clean-up subsidiary of the authority, including its subsidiary companies DSRL and RSRL. In 2009 the
Culham Centre for Fusion Energy The Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (CCFE) is the UK's national laboratory for fusion research. It is located at the Culham Science Centre, near Culham, Oxfordshire, and is the site of the Joint European Torus (JET), Mega Ampere Spherical Tokamak ...
(CCFE) was launched as the new name for the home of United Kingdom fusion research. In 2014 UKAEA announced the creation of a new branch of research, using expertise gained from the remote handling system created for JET to form a new centre for robotics known as
RACE (Remote Applications in Challenging Environments) Remote Applications in Challenging Environments (RACE) is a remote handling and robotics test facility located at Culham Science Centre near Oxford, UK, operated by UKAEA. As part of the UK Government's Robotics and Autonomous Systems Strategy (R ...
. The Authority has continued to expand its facilities at Culham in recent years, with the opening of a Materials Research Facility in 2016 and creation of th
Oxfordshire Advanced Skills
apprentice training centre.


Current activities

United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority states its mission as "To lead the delivery of sustainable fusion energy and maximise the scientific and economic benefit." Its research programmes include a number of laboratories and other facilities at the Culham site.


Facilities and programmes


Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (CCFE)

The UK's national laboratory for fusion research, CCFE undertakes plasma theory and modelling studies to establish the physics basis for future fusion powerplants. It also studies the materials and engineering technology of
tokamak A tokamak (; russian: токамáк; otk, 𐱃𐰸𐰢𐰴, Toḳamaḳ) is a device which uses a powerful magnetic field to confine plasma in the shape of a torus. The tokamak is one of several types of magnetic confinement devices being d ...
fusion reactors. The centrepiece of CCFE's programme is the MAST Upgrade
spherical tokamak A spherical tokamak is a type of fusion power device based on the tokamak principle. It is notable for its very narrow profile, or '' aspect ratio''. A traditional tokamak has a toroidal confinement area that gives it an overall shape similar to ...
experiment - the successor to the MAST device - which is expected to begin operation in 2019. CCFE also operates and maintains the Joint European Torus (JET) for its research partners around Europe, and is a member of the co-ordinated R&D programme led by the
EUROfusion EUROfusion is a consortium of national fusion research institutes located in the European Union, the UK, Switzerland and Ukraine. It was established in 2014 to succeed the European Fusion Development Agreement ( EFDA) as the umbrella organisation o ...
consortium.


Materials Research Facility

UKAEA's Materials Research Facility carries out micro-characterisation of radioactive materials for researchers in both fusion energy and nuclear fission. It is open to users from academic and commercial organisations, aiming to bridge the gap between university laboratories and those at nuclear licensed sites. It is part of th
National Nuclear Users' Facility
and has received funding from the
Henry Royce Institute The Henry Royce Institute (often referred to as ‘Royce’) is the UK’s national institute for advanced materials research and innovation. Its vision is to identify challenges and to stimulate innovation in advanced materials research to suppo ...
.


Oxfordshire Advanced Skills

A partnership between United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority and the
Science & Technology Facilities Council The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) is a United Kingdom government agency that carries out research in science and engineering, and funds UK research in areas including particle physics, nuclear physics, space science and astro ...
, Oxfordshire Advanced Skills is an apprentice training centre located at Culham Science Centre. It offers training for technicians in engineering and hi-tech disciplines, with the intention of providing employers with highly skilled recruits ready to enter the workplace. Training is provided by th
Manufacturing Technology Centre


Remote Applications in Challenging Environments (RACE)

RACE is a test facility for robotics and autonomous systems. It grew out of UKAEA's remote handling operations at the JET nuclear fusion device, which date back to the 1990s. The UK Government funded the construction of the RACE centre at Culham with the intention of taking the knowledge gained at JET into other industries with 'challenging environments' where it is difficult for humans to perform work. RACE currently works with organisations in nuclear fusion and fission, with large physics facilities and with autonomous vehicle developers.


Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production (STEP)

The £220 million STEP programme aims to accelerate the delivery of fusion power to the energy market. STEP will be a prototype powerplant capable of demonstrating fusion as a viable technology for electricity generation. It uses the compact 'spherical tokamak' concept developed by UKAEA at Culham Centre for Fusion Energy. STEP is currently in a five-year conceptual design phase and is expected to be constructed and operational by 2040.


H3AT and FTF

In December 2017, UKAEA announced plans for two further fusion research centres: Hydrogen-3 Advanced Technology (H3AT) and Fusion Technology Facilities. H3AT, located at Culham, will study the processing and storage of tritium, one of the two fuels expected to supply commercial fusion reactors. The Fusion Technology Facilities, based at both Culham and at a new UKAEA Yorkshire site in
Rotherham Rotherham () is a large minster and market town in South Yorkshire, England. The town takes its name from the River Rother which then merges with the River Don. The River Don then flows through the town centre. It is the main settlement of ...
,
South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a ceremonial and metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. The county has four council areas which are the cities of Doncaster and Sheffield as well as the boroughs of Barnsley and Rotherham. In N ...
, carries out thermal, mechanical, hydraulic and electromagnetic tests on prototype components to replicate the conditions experienced inside fusion reactors.


Coat of Arms


Locations

Authority site locations: *
Culham Science Centre The Culham Centre for Fusion Energy (CCFE) is the UK's national laboratory for fusion research. It is located at the Culham Science Centre, near Culham, Oxfordshire, and is the site of the Joint European Torus (JET), Mega Ampere Spherical Tokama ...
, Culham, Oxfordshire *
Harwell Science and Innovation Campus The Harwell Science and Innovation Campus is a 700-acre science and technology campus in Oxfordshire, England. Over 6,000 people work there in over 240 public and private sector organisations, working across sectors including Space, Clean Ener ...
, Oxfordshire *
Advanced Manufacturing Park The Advanced Manufacturing Park (AMP) is a manufacturing technology park in Waverley, Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England. It was partly funded by the European Regional Development Fund, and developed by thHarworth Group previously the prope ...
, Rotherham Historical site locations: *
Atomic Weapons Establishment The Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) is a United Kingdom Ministry of Defence research facility responsible for the design, manufacture and support of warheads for the UK's nuclear weapons. It is the successor to the Atomic Weapons Research ...
,
Aldermaston Aldermaston is a village and civil parish in Berkshire, England. In the 2011 Census, the parish had a population of 1015. The village is in the Kennet Valley and bounds Hampshire to the south. It is approximately from Newbury, Basingstoke ...
,
Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...
*
Capenhurst Capenhurst is a village and civil parish in Chester in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire England. According to the 2001 Census, Capenhurst had a population of 237, increasing to 380 at the 2 ...
(near
Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...
) *
Chapelcross nuclear power station Chapelcross nuclear power station is a former Magnox nuclear power plant, nuclear power station undergoing decommissioning. It is located in Annan, Dumfries and Galloway, Annan in Dumfries and Galloway in southwest Scotland, and was in operation ...
,
Chapelcross Chapelcross nuclear power station is a former Magnox nuclear power station undergoing decommissioning. It is located in Annan in Dumfries and Galloway in southwest Scotland, and was in operation from 1959 to 2004. It was the sister plant to the ...
(near
Annan, Dumfries and Galloway Annan ( ; gd, Inbhir Anainn) is a town and former royal burgh in Dumfries and Galloway, south-west Scotland. Historically part of Dumfriesshire, its public buildings include Annan Academy, of which the writer Thomas Carlyle was a pupil, and ...
) *
Culcheth Culcheth is a village in the Borough of Warrington, ceremonial county of Cheshire and historic county of Lancashire, England, six miles (10 km) north-east of Warrington town centre; it is the principal settlement in Culcheth and Glazebury ci ...
(near
Warrington Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The population in 2019 was estimat ...
) *
Daresbury Laboratory Daresbury Laboratory is a scientific research laboratory based at Sci-Tech Daresbury campus near Daresbury in Halton, Cheshire, England. The laboratory began operations in 1962 and was officially opened on 16 June 1967 as the Daresbury Nuclear ...
,
Daresbury Daresbury is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the unitary authority of Borough of Halton, Halton and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. At the 2001 United Kingdom census, 2001 census it had a population of 216, in ...
(near
Warrington Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The population in 2019 was estimat ...
) *
Dounreay Dounreay (; gd, Dùnrath) is a small settlement and the site of two large nuclear establishments on the north coast of Caithness in the Highland area of Scotland. It is on the A836 road west of Thurso. The nuclear establishments were create ...
,
Caithness Caithness ( gd, Gallaibh ; sco, Caitnes; non, Katanes) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. Caithness has a land boundary with the historic county of Sutherland to the west and is otherwise bounded by ...
*
Windscale Sellafield is a large multi-function nuclear site close to Seascale on the coast of Cumbria, England. As of August 2022, primary activities are nuclear waste processing and storage and nuclear decommissioning. Former activities included nucle ...
(now part of
Sellafield Sellafield is a large multi-function nuclear site close to Seascale on the coast of Cumbria, England. As of August 2022, primary activities are nuclear waste processing and storage and nuclear decommissioning. Former activities included nucle ...
) * Risley (near
Warrington Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The population in 2019 was estimat ...
) * Springfields (near Preston) *
Winfrith Winfrith Atomic Energy Establishment, or AEE Winfrith, was a United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority site near Winfrith Newburgh in Dorset. It covered an area on Winfrith Heath to the west of the village of Wool between the A352 road and the South ...
,
Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset (unitary authority), Dors ...


See also

*
Atomic Energy Authority Act Atomic Energy Authority Act (with its variations) is a stock short title used for legislation in the United Kingdom relating to the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority. The Bill for an Act with this short title will have been known as a Atomic ...
*
Atomic Energy Research Establishment The Atomic Energy Research Establishment (AERE) was the main Headquarters, centre for nuclear power, atomic energy research and development in the United Kingdom from 1946 to the 1990s. It was created, owned and funded by the British Governm ...
*
Atomic Weapons Research Establishment The Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) is a United Kingdom Ministry of Defence research facility responsible for the design, manufacture and support of warheads for the UK's nuclear weapons. It is the successor to the Atomic Weapons Research ...
*
Nuclear weapons and the United Kingdom In 1952, the United Kingdom became the third country (after the United States and the Soviet Union) to develop and test nuclear weapons, and is one of the five nuclear-weapon states under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons ...
*
BNFL British Nuclear Fuels Limited (BNFL) was a nuclear energy and fuels company owned by the UK Government. It was a manufacturer of nuclear fuel (notably MOX), ran reactors, generated and sold electricity, reprocessed and managed spent fuel (mainly ...
*
John Dolphin John Robert Vernon Dolphin (1 October 19052 May 1973) was a British engineer and inventor, who joined the Secret Intelligence Service and then became the Commanding Officer of the top-secret Second World War Special Operations Executive (SOE) " ...
CBE *
Nuclear Decommissioning Authority The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) is a non-departmental public body of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, formed by the Energy Act 2004. It evolved from the Coal and Nuclear Liabilities Unit of the Department o ...
*
Nuclear power in the United Kingdom Nuclear power in the United Kingdom generated 16.1% of the country's electricity in 2020. , the UK has 9 operational nuclear reactors at five locations (8 advanced gas-cooled reactors (AGR) and one pressurised water reactor (PWR)), producing 5. ...
*
UK Atomic Energy Authority Constabulary The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority Constabulary was the armed security police force of the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority is a UK government research organisation responsible for th ...
*
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) is an organisation that advocates unilateral nuclear disarmament by the United Kingdom, international nuclear disarmament and tighter international arms regulation through agreements such as the Nucle ...
*
United States Atomic Energy Commission The United States Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) was an agency of the United States government established after World War II by U.S. Congress to foster and control the peacetime development of atomic science and technology. President H ...


References


External links

*
Culham Centre for Fusion Energy website

Dounreay Site Restoration Limited (DSRL) Website

Research Sites Restoration Limited (RSRL) Website

UKAEA History – The First Fifty Years


- Daily Telegraph obituary {{Authority control Culham Centre for Fusion Energy Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Government agencies established in 1954 Governmental nuclear organizations 1954 establishments in the United Kingdom 1954 in technology 1954 in the environment Non-departmental public bodies of the United Kingdom government Nuclear energy in the United Kingdom Organisations based in Oxfordshire Science and technology in Oxfordshire Scientific organizations established in 1954