By Jaime Cookson
An undergraduate student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology studying nuclear science and engineering, Alexandra Delmore spent the summer working for INL’s International Safeguards and Global Security Group.
Delmore’s group focused on external power monitoring, which she explained as “how IAEA [International Atomic Energy Agency] inspectors verify that a nuclear reactor is operating at the power that the operators say it is running at.”
Specifically, the project is working on a small modular reactor design that is not compatible with current external power monitoring technologies and hoping to develop a new method of monitoring it.
This group included two other interns, and Delmore said she enjoyed the collaborative effort. She also took advantage of other opportunities offered to interns, including touring lab facilities and attending seminars to learn about other projects taking place at INL.
Delmore said the most interesting part about her project was the knowledge that it has real-world applications. Although she is only worked on one specific aspect, Delmore said “the project itself has this overarching application for nuclear nonproliferation which gives it importance and purpose.”
Outside of the office, Delmore said she enjoyed hiking in the Grand Tetons, Yellowstone National Park, and Craters of the Moon National Monument with her fellow interns, as well as going running on weekdays.
Delmore said she appreciated the research experience afforded to her by an INL internship and feels it will ultimately help her in graduate school. For Delmore, the chance to apply concepts learned in classes to her project was invaluable. She also was excited to learn about other research topics.
“It’s valuable to connect with other interns and scientists at INL for possible future collaboration,” Delmore said.
