In the interestingly written piece by Robert Crease, "Visionary Physicist's Crusade Serves As Lesson In Futility" (The Scientist, Nov. 27, 1989, page 1), the reader is not told what has happened with our aneutronic energy research during the past 14 years. There are three areas in which this omission might grossly distort factual information:
- Funds: In fairness to the American investors and the U.S. government, the Saudis' $1.5 million (received in 1975) is not the only funding our aneutronic migma program received. Twenty-five million dollars (in 1988 dollars) was spent on migma research, mostly experimentation, in the period 1973-88; about half of it came from American sources. Two and a half million dollars was received from the U.S. Air Force for two contracts for a feasibility study of an aneutronic migma power plant for space. This reactor simulation and design study, carried out jointly with Bechtel National Inc.,...
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