Getting something from nuclear waste

For years, a subtle worry of mine has been accumulating in the mountains of Nevada. With a half-life of 100,000 years, nuclear waste is an enduring ghost. Just buried beneath dirt, rock, volcanic rock, and stone, spent nuclear fuel is a multi-generational liability that we hope nobody will ever be forced to confront.

Finding a way to get something (anything!) out of this material has always been a dream. But now we may be able to do something with it. We may finally have a path to a viable, rewarding solution, a path that shifts nuclear waste from its current dangerous, long-living "end state" to a potential fuel producing asset…