Submission + - Norway Launches Thorium Nuclear Reactor (singularityhub.com)
kkleiner writes: "Oslo based Thor Energy is pairing up with the Norwegian government and US-based Westinghouse to launch a thorium based nuclear reactor. The thorium will run at a government reactor in Halden as part of a four year test that they hope will showcase the benefits of thorium as a reactor fuel. Proponents argue that thorium reacts more efficiently than uranium does, that the waste thorium produces is shorter lived than waste from uranium, and that, because of its much higher melting point, is meltdown proof. An added plus is the fact that thorium reactors do not produce plutonium and thus reduce the risk of nuclear weapons proliferation."