MIT Nuclear Reactor Lab’s first director, Theos Thompson, operating the MITR-I. Thompson designed and supervised the construction of the MITR-I

Today in NRL history – July 21st, 1958

Taylor Tracy, NRL
July 21, 2021

Today marks 63 years since the MITR-I first achieved criticality! The MITR-I was the first core configuration of the MIT Reactor (MITR) and was in operation from 1958 until 1973 (when the conversion to the MITR-II, the MITR’s current core configuration, began).

Click here to watch the construction of the MITR. Click here to learn more about the MIT Nuclear Reactor Lab’s history.