Roving Reactor Project – May/June/July, 2023

Each quarter, I’ll offer a brief update about the River Reactor Project.

• Advisors / Feedback
  • I’m very grateful to have onboard the following ongoing advisors from the worlds of nuclear energy, the public art, and large-scale fabrication:
    • Dr. Abdalla Abou Jaoude – R&D Staff Scientist, INL
    • Yasmina Abou Jaoude – Contemporary Artist, London, England
    • Yvonne Boudreau – Production Designer, Yellowstone (tv series)
    • Professor Jacopo Buongiorno — Professor in Nuclear Engineering, MIT
    • Anna Gallagher-Ross – Senior Manager of Programming, The Bentway
    • Jennifer Hayden – President & CEO, National Museum of Nuclear Science & History
    • Heather Hoff – Co-Founder, Mothers for Nuclear
    • Jordan Houghton – Senior Media Relations Manager, Nuclear Energy Institute
    • Dr. Carra Martinez – Co-Artistic Director, Fusebox Festival / Live in America
    • Eric Meyer – Founder & Executive Director Generation Atomic
    • Jon-Michael Murray – Nuclear Policy Manager, Clean Air Task Force
    • Jon Wentzel – Vice President, Communications, Nuclear Energy Institute
    • Kristin Zaitz – Co-Founder, Mothers for Nuclear
• Progress
  • In collaboration with digital artist Andrew Wells, generated 5 detailed images of possible designs for the River Reactor in different locations.
  • Printed 150 high-resolution postcards of each image.
  • Created an initial three-page summary brief about the project.
  • Attended the US Nuclear Industry Council’s Advanced Reactor Summit in Charlotte, NC as a representative of Generation Atomic who graciously covered my conference entrance fee. While there, I met leaders from across nuclear energy and gave away 140+ copies of the 5 postcards to seed future conversations.
    
    River Reactor Project at USNIC in Charlotte

    
    

  • In addition to the ongoing advisors, I was incredibly honored to talk about the project with:
    • Honorable Alex Beehler, President at Alex A. Beehler & Co
    • Dave Gardy, President & CEO, TV Worldwide
    • Jared Hoffman, Artist and filmmaker, currently at work on a documentary about microreactors
    • Joseph Kent, Director of Curation and Exhibits at the National Atomic Testing Museum
    • Dr. Victor Reis, Former head of the Stockpile Stewardship Program and DARPA
    • Sally White, Founder & CEO of EchoWolf Solutions
    • Peter D. Wolf, President at Nuclear Energy Solutions, Inc.
• Next steps for the coming quarter
  • Recruit additional advisors.
  • Create a project timeline.
  • Generate a comprehensive budget.
  • Commission architectural schematics of the project’s floating chassis.
  • Compile list of potential granting organizations.
  • Submit at least two grant applications.
  • Attend monthly meetings of the Nuclear Science Week steering committee.

We’re grateful for your ongoing support and expertise as we continue to advance the project. Please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts or guidance on any aspect of the work.

-Steve