News

May 27, 2026

8 MIN READ

When SAMMY met VENUS: A powerful pairing introduces new method of non-destructive testing

ORNL researchers combined the SAMMY code with VENUS neutron imaging to identify nuclear materials without damaging them. The method uses precise data and modeling to distinguish complex isotopes. Tests on gold, tantalum and hafnium showed it can accurately match nuclear “fingerprints.”

August 29, 2024

5 MIN READ

VENUS rising: A new dawn for AI-powered atomic-scale 3D imaging

DOE commissioned a neutron imaging instrument, VENUS, at the Spallation Neutron Source in July. VENUS instrument scientists will use AI to deliver 3D models to researchers in half the time it typically takes.

September 26, 2023

4 MIN READ

NXS celebrates 25th year with new generation of neutron users

In 2023, the National School on X-ray and Neutron Scattering, or NXS, marked its 25th year during its annual program, held August 6–18 at the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge and Argonne National Laboratories.

August 14, 2023

5 MIN READ

Neutrons prove ‘Bond villain’ did not cause Arecibo telescope collapse

For more than half a century, the 1,000-foot-diameter spherical reflector dish at the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico was the largest radio telescope in the world. Completed in 1963, the dish was built in a natural sinkhole, with the telescope’s feed antenna suspended 500 feet above the dish on a 1.8-million-pound steel platform. Three concrete towers and more than 4 miles of steel cables supported the platform.

March 31, 2023

6 MIN READ

50 years after NASA’s Apollo mission, moon rocks still have secrets to reveal

How did we get from stardust to where we are today? That’s the question NASA scientist Andrew Needham has pondered his entire career.

August 1, 2022

1 MIN READ

Automating neutron experiments with AI

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers are developing a first-of-its-kind artificial intelligence device for neutron scattering called Hyperspectral Computed Tomography, or HyperCT.

January 27, 2022

4 MIN READ

VENUS neutron imaging beamline is taking shape

April 2, 2020

1 MIN READ

Nuclear — Seeing inside particles

Oak Ridge National Laboratory researchers working on neutron imaging capabilities for nuclear materials have developed a process for seeing the inside of uranium particles – without cutting them open.