Oak Ridge has been the location for many firsts. When you mention being from Oak Ridge, you do not even need to add Tennessee. Most people will immediately identify Oak Ridge with the atomic bomb. Many will even know that the uranium-235 for the “Little Boy” atomic bomb came from Oak Ridge. However, not many will identify Oak Ridge with the birth of the nuclear navy, the first shipment of isotopes for nuclear medicine, the creation of the first industrial-size nuclear reactor, much less the first use of nuclear energy to produce electricity (a small but early demonstration at the Graphite Reactor).
This “Historically Speaking” series will feature the birth of the nuclear navy. It will bring out the details that resulted in what became one of the most effective nuclear deterrence elements of the nation. This first part of the series will focus on the support given to the U.S. Navy by Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
The K-25 Gaseous Diffusion Plant, ORNL, and the Y-12 National Security Complex have all played distinct but interconnected roles in supporting the U.S. Navy’s nuclear program since the Manhattan Project. Their involvement has primarily revolved around the production of enriched uranium and the development of nuclear technologies, with one significant exception: the USS Seawolf propulsor…