113 



in order to assess the need and requirements. These discussions have 

 made clear that nuclear power will materially enhance our country's 

 ability to pursue many potential oceanographic and ocean eno^ineering 

 applications, and ultimately be a necessity for some applications. 



The intrinsic characteristics of nuclear power systems, particularly 

 their ability to operate under a variety of environmental conditions, 

 justify their development and application not only from a logistic 

 viewpoint but from an economic viewpoint as well. This effort is in 

 keeping with our mission to develop new uses for atomic energy. 



The recent and initial effort of AEC has been directed toward the 

 design and development of the first generation of isotope devices in 

 order to provide proof-of-principle. These first units were designated 

 SNAP-7 (meaning Systems for Nuclear Auxiliary Power) and were 

 powered by strontium-90. These devices have successfully demon- 

 strated the feasibility of long-lived isotope power systems that are 

 capable of unattended and safe operation in a variety of environments 

 hostile to man. This development effort was completed in 1966. 



Six first generation SNAP's, each providing 7.5 watts and 60 watts 

 of electrical power, were placed in service in a variety of oceanic situ- 

 ations as indicated in the first table. 



These were placed in a buoy, offshore oil platform, and in a light- 

 house as navigation lights, also in a weather station in Antarctica, and 

 in a Nomad buoy in the center of the Gulf of Mexico — which is a 

 metrological station — and also at the bottom of the sea, in a depth of 

 water of 15,000 feet, to provide power for a, a transducer for some Navy 

 experiments. 



These first generation units have been successful in demonstrating 

 the capability of isotope power sources for long-term, unattended 

 operation under severe environmental extremes without compromise 

 to the health and safety of the general public or to marine life. 



Of the six j)rototypes developed and tested, four were unqualified 

 successes. The remaining two experienced failure of electrical com- 

 ponents and so were only partially successful. 



The success of the SNAP-7 program has had two important results : 

 First, it has demonstrated to the oceanographic community the capa- 

 bilities of isotope power which, in turn has resulted in an increasing 

 demand for oceanographic nuclear power. 



Secondly, the data and operational experience obtained from these 

 prototypes have indicated where improvements in technology are 

 required to develop a second generation of economically attractive 

 energy sources. 



"We think that isotope power systems may be developed within the 

 technology available in the next 2 or 3 years to be economically at- 

 tractive for many more oceanographic and terrestrial applications. 

 These include underseas navigational aids ; ocean-moored buoys ; seis- 

 mological stations; unattended weather stations and military ocean- 

 engineering missions. 



To meet the primary user requirements of long life, demonstrated 

 reliability, and cost effectiveness, the AEC has underway or planned, 

 research and development programs of wide scope to meet many needs 

 in a timely and technically sound fashion. These possible applications 

 are summarized in the second table, headed, "Terrestrial Electric 

 Power Development." 



