75 years of science and technology
Travel eastbound on Interstate 40 in Tennessee and you can glimpse a reminder of a project that, while it literally never got off the ground, had monumental influence on the direction of R&D at ORNL.
The two towers of the Tower Shielding Facility, briefly visible from the interstate, were built in 1954 to conduct shielding experiments for the Aircraft Nuclear Propulsion project—an effort to determine the feasibility of a nuclear-powered airplane.
The facility hoisted a reactor in the air to eliminate radiation backscattering from the ground, which interfered with instruments used to gather data on shielding. It was essential that researchers determine exactly how much material would be required to shield passengers from radioactivity.
Many dismissed the idea of a nuclear-powered aircraft—including longtime ORNL Director Alvin Weinberg, who once described the concept as a “contradiction in terms”—but such an aircraft could remain aloft almost continuously, it was theorized.
With $1 billion put up by the U.S. Air Force to explore the idea, ORNL applied its considerable nuclear engineering expertise. The ANP program provided the foundation for lab R&D strengths in advanced lightweight materials, biology and health
