Modeling the Subsurface Movement of Radionuclides

摘要

In past decades, when underground nuclear tests were routinely conducted at the Nevada Test Site (NTS), scientists and engineers designed their experiments so that data could be recorded without releasing radioactive gases and materials to the atmosphere. Less attention was given to the fate of the radionuclides that remained underground. But today, scientists know much more about the movement of fluids through geologic media, and they are paying greater attention to the issue of radioactive contamination of the groundwater near these old sites. In 1989, the Department of Energy (DOE), which operates NTS, created a multicontractor effort called the Underground Test Area (UGTA) Project to better understand the risks that past tests may still pose to human health and the environment.