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Another access control irregularity at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Station: exit gate fails to intercept unauthorized passage

Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) announced on August 7 that an irregularity related to access control occurred at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Station. An operator improperly used his own ID card to allow a colleague who had left his ID card in the central control room to pass through the gate and exit. TEPCO stated that the access control system failed to display an error message at the time and was unable to prevent this unauthorized passage. According to disclosed information, the incident occurred during the exit process and involves management matters related to nuclear material protection. TEPCO has not yet publicly disclosed the specific date of the incident, the identities of the personnel involved, the detailed reasons why the system failed to trigger an alarm, or subsequent disciplinary actions and preventive measures. Kashiwazaki-Kariwa...

2026-08-08

"AI-Based Automated Authenticity Verification System for Quality Certificates" — Diao Long, Deputy Chief Engineer of Engineering Quality Assurance, CGN Huizhou Nuclear Power Co., Ltd.

On November 14, 2025, Diao Long, Deputy Chief Engineer of Engineering Quality Assurance at CGN Huizhou Nuclear Power Co., Ltd., delivered a keynote report titled "AI-Based Automated Authenticity Verification System for Quality Certificates" at the "AI+Nuclear Innovation Application Scenario Roadshow" of the Shenzhen Nuclear Expo. The presentation introduced Huizhou Nuclear Power's AI-based automated authenticity verification system for quality certificates, designed to address issues such as low manual verification efficiency, error-proneness, difficulty in traceability, and diverse counterfeiting methods. The system achieves batch, high-speed, and traceable authenticity verification through certificate upload, QR code recognition, web scraping, large model key information comparison, and report generation, and has identified anomalies in multiple real-world counterfeiting cases...

2026-08-08

Jiangsu's First uLinac HalosTx Integrated Ring-Gantry CT Linac Enters Clinical Use

On August 7, the first uLinac HalosTx integrated ring-gantry CT linear accelerator in Jiangsu Province was officially put into clinical use at the Third Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University (Changzhou Second People's Hospital). The system integrates a diagnostic-grade CT scanner and a ring-gantry accelerator on a single platform, shifting regional tumor radiotherapy from the traditional step-by-step positioning approach to a same-platform real-time model. Radiotherapy is one of the important modalities for cancer treatment. In the conventional split-system radiotherapy workflow, patients typically need to be transported between the CT room and the treatment room, and treatment plans are mostly formulated based on static images acquired beforehand. In cases such as tumor regression or changes in patient weight, previous images may not fully reflect the actual condition on the day of treatment...

2026-08-08

IAEA Launches Global Marine Microplastics Monitoring Platform

The International Atomic Energy Agency recently launched a global marine monitoring platform under the "Nuclear Techniques for Controlling Plastic Pollution" initiative, aiming to strengthen cooperation and data sharing among countries on the abundance, distribution, and trends of microplastics in marine and coastal areas. Scientific experts from 65 countries attended the platform launch event. The platform will serve as a repository of results from the network of marine monitoring laboratories supported by the initiative. Participating laboratories can enter monitoring data into the platform to compile global information on marine microplastic pollution; users can access relevant content after creating a free IAEA Nucleus account. Plastic pollution has become a global environmental issue. According to reports...

2026-08-09

France's Golfech Nuclear Power Plant Reconnected to Grid After Shutdown Due to High Temperatures

French utility EDF (Électricité de France) announced that the Golfech nuclear power plant, located in the Tarn-et-Garonne department, has been reconnected to the grid. Unit 2 of the plant was restarted around noon on August 7, following a forced shutdown on July 29 due to high-temperature weather. At the time of the shutdown, Unit 1 was in the maintenance and refueling phase, making the interruption of Unit 2 more impactful on plant operations. The direct cause of the shutdown at Golfech was that the water temperature of the Garonne River reached regulatory limits. According to relevant regulations, when the daily average water temperature of the Garonne River exceeds 28 degrees Celsius, the plant must reduce reactor power or temporarily cease operations. Since the nuclear plant needs to draw water from the river for...

2026-08-08

South Korea Plans to Upgrade National Radiation Monitoring System to Address Impacts of Overseas Nuclear Facility Accidents

South Korea's Nuclear Safety and Security Commission is pushing to strengthen the national radiation monitoring system, bringing radioactive contamination of the domestic environment caused by potential overseas nuclear facility accidents into institutionalized regulatory scope. According to partial amendments to the Enforcement Decree and Enforcement Rules of the Atomic Energy Safety Act pre-announced on August 7, South Korea will incorporate radioactive contamination surveys into existing radiation environment surveys and environmental radioactivity monitoring and evaluation operations, entrusting the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety with the execution of related survey work. This institutional adjustment is a supporting measure following South Korea's revision of the Atomic Energy Safety Act in February this year, with the relevant law set to take effect on February 20, 2027. The core of the amendment lies in that when overseas...

2026-08-09

Hanbit Nuclear Power Plant launches 24-hour drone monitoring and strengthens no-fly zone publicity

The Hanbit Nuclear Power Headquarters of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) recently conducted a special no-fly zone publicity campaign regarding illegal drone flights around the nuclear power plant. The campaign was held on July 27-28 at Gamame and Gusipo beaches near the Hanbit Nuclear Power Plant, focusing on educating summer tourists and drone users about flight control regulations around the plant. The publicity was jointly promoted by the Hanbit Nuclear Power Headquarters together with Yeonggwang Police Station, Gochang Police Station, Mokpo Maritime Police Station, Buan Coast Guard Station, volunteer fire brigades, and beach operators. Personnel at the site explained to visitors the drone flight restrictions around the nuclear power plant, consequences of violations, and precautions...

2026-08-08

Rising Seawater Temperatures Prompt New Nuclear Safety Rules: TEPCO Sets Temporary Shutdown Criteria for Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Plant

Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings announced on August 7 that it has established a set of self-determined criteria for evaluating whether to temporarily halt nuclear reactor operations at the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant in Niigata Prefecture, in response to rising seawater temperatures in the surrounding area. These criteria are not mandatory requirements directly imposed by external regulatory authorities, but rather proactive measures voluntarily implemented by TEPCO based on safe operational needs. According to the conditions announced by TEPCO, the company will consider temporarily shutting down the relevant nuclear facilities when the 7-day average seawater temperature in the waters surrounding the plant exceeds 31 degrees Celsius, when water temperatures above 34 degrees Celsius are observed, or when water temperatures above 33 degrees Celsius persist for 12 hours. These numerical thresholds indicate that seawater temperature has been incorporated as a key variable in nuclear power plant operational risk management.

2026-08-08

Russia's First Domestic 3D Scanner Helix Included in National Product Registry, Rosatom Completes Additive Manufacturing Technology Chain

The Russian Ministry of Industry and Trade has included the first domestically produced 3D scanner, the RangeVision Helix, in the Unified Register of Russian Electronic Products and the confirmed register of Russian-made industrial products. The registration was carried out in accordance with Russian Government Resolutions No. 878 and No. 719. Thus, the Helix has become the first and currently the only 3D scanner in Russia to be included in the aforementioned national registers. The RangeVision Helix was developed and manufactured by RangeVision, an additive manufacturing partner of Rosatom. Since 2025, the company has become the only Russian 3D scanner manufacturer included in Rosatom's additive manufacturing ecosystem...

2026-08-08

Danube Water Level Temporarily Recovers, Hungary's Paks Nuclear Power Plant May Continue Reduced-Power Operation

Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar said on August 7 that due to rainfall in Austria, the Danube water level is expected to temporarily recover in the near term, which will help improve cooling conditions at the nuclear power plant, but the Paks Nuclear Power Plant, which supplies nearly half of Hungary's electricity, may still continue to operate at reduced power. In a social media video, Magyar said the current situation at the Paks Nuclear Power Plant remains very difficult. Affected by persistent high temperatures and historically low Danube water levels, the plant has been operating at approximately 10% output since last week. At a subsequent press conference, he stated that Hungary must find a solution for the operation of the Paks Nuclear Power Plant, because "the Hungarian economy cannot function for months without the plant." Previously, the government had called on businesses and residents to reduce electricity consumption in the evening and dim the decorative lighting of historic buildings in Budapest to alleviate power supply pressure.

2026-08-08

Italian Neutrino Telescope Undersea Network Captures Fin Whale Songs

August 5 news, after months of silence, fin whale songs have once again been recorded in the southern Ionian Sea. This observation was jointly completed by multiple experiments connected to the underwater infrastructure of the Southern National Laboratory of the Italian National Institute for Nuclear Physics (LNS-INFN), involving three projects: ITINERIS, LOWNOISER, and VONGOLA. The related work was carried out with the participation of LNS-INFN and the Sicilian Center for Nuclear Physics and Structure of Matter (CSFNSM). The detection occurred in late winter. At that time, the eastern Mediterranean region was affected by strong anthropogenic noise from a long-term geophysical survey of offshore oil and gas resources, and only weeks had passed since the transit of Hurricane Harry. Researchers identified fin whale signals amid the complex acoustic background...

2026-08-09

Laser spectroscopy reveals for the first time the precise nuclear shape of fermium-255, offering new clues in the search for superheavy elements

An international research team has, for the first time, precisely determined the nuclear structure of the actinide fermium-255, confirming that its nucleus exhibits a pronounced prolate deformation, similar to a rugby ball. The study, published in *Physical Review Letters*, was conducted in collaboration with 18 institutions, including Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz in Germany, the Helmholtz Institute Mainz, and the University of Gothenburg in Sweden. The findings not only correct several unreasonable nuclear property values in previous standard data tables but also provide crucial experimental validation for modern nuclear theory models. Fermium is a synthetic heavy element that does not exist in nature. Fermium-255 contains 100 protons and 155 neutrons, making its experimental production extremely challenging. The research team...

2026-08-08

Unit 4 of Slovakia's Mochovce Nuclear Power Plant Reaches First Criticality

Slovenské Elektrárne stated that Unit 4 of the Mochovce Nuclear Power Plant reached first reactor criticality at 22:10 local time on August 6, and achieved minimum controllable power at 22:31. This is a key milestone in the pre-commissioning work of the unit, indicating that the reactor is ready for subsequent testing. First criticality refers to the first time the nuclear fuel in the core achieves a self-sustaining fission chain reaction. Slovenské Elektrárne stated that first criticality and reaching minimum controllable power are important steps in the commissioning process of a nuclear power plant, used to confirm the unit's readiness to enter the next phase of testing...

2026-08-08

Eagle Nuclear Energy Advances 47-Hole Pre-Feasibility Drilling at Aurora Uranium Project

Against the backdrop of rebuilding a domestic U.S. uranium supply chain, newly listed Eagle Nuclear Energy Corp. has entered the industry spotlight with what it claims to be the largest conventional measured+indicated uranium resource in the country. Its flagship Aurora uranium project, located on the Oregon-Nevada border, contains 32.75 million pounds of indicated resources and 4.98 million pounds of inferred resources under S-K 1300 standards. The company has submitted permit applications for a pre-feasibility drilling program comprising 47 holes totaling approximately 27,000 feet, with work slated to begin upon federal and state approvals and pre-feasibility study completion targeted for the second half of 2027. On the technical front, the company recently added Yukuskokon Professional Services and expanded its collaboration with BBA USA and SLR I...

2026-08-08

Fluor's Q2 New Orders Surge to $6.1 Billion, Nuclear Fuel Enrichment Projects Boost Backlog to $26.9 Billion

U.S. engineering and construction giant Fluor demonstrated a clear acceleration in order intake in the second quarter of 2026, with new project awards reaching $6.1 billion, significantly higher than the $1.8 billion recorded in the same period last year. Among these, nuclear fuel enrichment projects emerged as a key highlight, driving the company's ending backlog to $26.9 billion. The rapid expansion in order volume indicates that customer demand for its engineering, procurement, and construction capabilities is recovering, and also reflects the tangible results of converting earlier front-end design and project development work. In terms of contract structure, 89% of Fluor's new orders this quarter were reimbursable contracts, while reimbursable contracts also accounted for 85% of total backlog, up from 80% in the same period last year....

2026-08-09