Published June 29, 2026 · Category: News

Overview

Valar Atomics was one of the first companies to bring its new nuclear reactor online. It built its experimental design in a tentlike structure in the Utah desert, and on June 18 it went critical (nuclear-speak for switched on).

A program initiated by the Trump administration has allowed small companies to rush their testing of several new nuclear reactor designs. Some worry that safety is being compromised.

Details

(Image credit: Valar Atomics)

Source

Originally published at www.npr.org.

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