All Things Nuclear

Maps, GIS shapefiles, news, resources about nuclear energy, reactors, fallout dispersion, power, storage, meltdown, risks, fukushima, chernobyl, hazards, health, transportation and weapons.

View and Download All Things Nuclear

Heavy Flooding Coming to California and Nevada?

We've had a heavy snow year in the Sierra Nevada and Cascade mountains. Next week temperatures are forecast to increase dramatically in California and Nevada snow country. NOAA's California River Flood Center map shows that many California rivers are now above monitor stage and the Yolo Bypass is above flood stage and near the danger stage. We could be in for some major flooding.



Check NOAA's California and Nevada River Flood Center Maps

Mike

Free GIS Shapefiles, Maps, Tutorials and Software

Updated Nuclear Facilities in the U.S. Maps, Shapefiles and Images - Download Free

Yesterday I asked the question, "How many nuclear reactors are there in the United States?" I asked this because after Greenpeace.org published my maps and download link on their blog, a person commented that there are 104 nuclear power plants in the U.S. not 63 as the blog said. At first I figured the confusion came about because some facilities have multiple reactors, but the numbers still didn't add up. As I looked into it further I was becoming increasingly dismayed because every data set I looked at was a bit different - facilities on one list didn't appear on others.

After examining lists in various reports and at government and NGO websites, I've determined that as of March 2011 there are 65 operating nuclear power facilities in the U.S. Each facility has from 1 to 3 reactors for a total of 104. This number does NOT account for those reactors that are decommissioned, reactors at research and university facilities or all of the nuclear waste at various locations around the United States. In time, I will make shapefiles available of these other nuclear hazards. See below for an updated nuclear and seismic hazards shapefile and spreadsheet that you may download and use as you wish.

Here's the new map based on this updated data:



For now, you can download an updated shapefile and speadsheet that shows all of these nuclear reactors that are currently operating in the U.S.

Also, I've added some map images in PNG, TIF and Acrobat PDF formats that you may download and use as you see fit.

Download the U.S. Nuclear Facility and Seismic Hazards Shapefiles, Maps and Images

How many nuclear power plant reactors are there in the United States?

A few people visiting the nuclear power plant and seismic hazard page have noted that their only appears to be around 63 nuclear power plants on the map, yet, they say, there should be 104. At first I thought they were confused because many of the nuclear power plant facilities have more than one reactor. Some have as many as 3. So, I checked with the NRC and found 2 different lists that had 64 plants and 103 reactors, but the lists were not identical. A few plants appearing on one list, did not appear on the other. So, to get at the bottom of this and find the most current list of operating nuclear power plants in the U.S. I am going to compare the two NRC lists with those from Nukeworker.org, IEA and the World Nuclear Association and come up with THE list.

Note that if you look at the current spreadsheet or shapefile that you may download from this page, you will find several other types of nuclear related facilities besides Nuclear Power Plants. In the future, I'd like to also list and document all the non-energy related reactors that are in operation at national laboratories, universities, hospitals, research firms and elsewhere. Beyond that it is also important to document decommissioned nuclear power plants and other places that nuclear waste is currently stored.

View and download the nuclear power plant and seismic hazards shapefiles and spreadsheet

Maps of Nuclear Reactor Power Plants of the World

Navigate around the world or countries to find nuclear power plants. Click on a facility for more information.



Find nuclear reactor power plants around the world

Can a Fukushima Like Nuclear Accident Happen in the United States?

Yesterday I told you about free nuclear facility, seismic hazard and earthquake shapefiles. I've added a spreadsheet showing the names, locations and type of facilities that are included in the shapefile. These include Power Plant, Fuel Cycle Licensee, Material Licensee, Site Decommissioning, Uranium Mill Site, High Level Waste, and Independent Spent Fuel Storage Installation.

Download the nuclear facility spreadsheet and shapefiles here.

Free U.S. Seismic Hazard, Historical Earthquakes and Nuclear Reactor Power Plant ArcGIS Shapefiles

These ArcGIS shapefiles are derived from U.S. Government data sources. Layered together they show the proximity of nuclear reactors in the United States with historical earthquakes. They also show proximity to seismic hazard zones. Each shapefile set includes detailed source and data information in a metadata file.

I have provided some sample maps. I created these with Maptitude GIS. If you are new to GIS, check out our Learn2Map GIS Tutorial and Atlas, learn more and download a free GIS program that you can use to make your own maps with these shapefiles.



Nuclear Facilities and Seismic Hazard Zones



Nuclear Facilities and Historical U.S. Earthquakes



Nuclear Reactors in the United States



U.S. Seismic Hazard Zones

Download U.S. Nuclear Reactor, Historical Earthquakes and Seismic Hazard Shapefiles

Japan Tsunami Maps and Shapefiles

We'll be adding more maps and shapefiles of Japan specifically related to the recent Tsunami and impending nuclear disaster. For now, here are a variety of maps of Japan. If you are looking for ArcGIS shapefiles of Japan, you can drill down to them beginning with "Asia" on this page.

TIGER/Line 2010 Census Redistricting (P.L. 94-171) ArcGIS Shapefile

The U.S. Census Bureau has made our job much easier. This is the fourth and latest release of the TIGER/Line files in ESRI ArcGIS shapefile format. Shapefiles work with most GIS programs including ArcGIS Explorer and ArcGIS. If you are new to GIS, take advantage of our Free GIS Tutorial and Atlas and learn the basics today. Click on a state or territory below to download its shapefiles and those for any county you select from the U.S. Census FTP site.

Download TIGER/Line Shapefiles

Visit MapCruzin.com for Free GIS Software Programs, Shapefiles, Maps, and Tutorials

2010 Census Redistricting [P.L. 94-171] Data and Shapefile Availability

Census 2010 Tiger/Line shapefiles are available for all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Download from the U.S. Census Bureau's 2010 TIGER/Line products web page.

The technical documentation for the 2010 Census Redistricting [P.L. 94-171] TIGER/Line Shapefiles can be accessed here.

The following redistricting data files (2010 population and housing characteristics) are now available from the American Factfinder:

Alabama

Arkansas

Colorado

Delaware

Hawaii

Illinois

Indiana

Iowa

Kansas

Louisiana

Maryland

Mississippi

Missouri

Nebraska

Nevada

New_Jersey

North_Carolina

Oklahoma

Oregon

South_Dakota

Texas

Visit MapCruzin.com for Free GIS Software Programs, Shapefiles, Maps, and Tutorials

Take a Ride with Trimble Mobile Mapping

Taking a Ride with Trimble Mobile Mapping

Trimble Mobile Mapping

Visit MapCruzin.com for Free GIS Software Programs, Shapefiles, Maps, and Tutorials

Nevada Geographic Information Society Annual Conference, Reno, Nevada

Here's a headsup to all of you in Nevada or Northern California. The Nevada Geographic Information Society is holding their annual conference in Reno at the Atlantis Casino, May 9 – 11, 2011.

The 2011 Annual Conference theme is "GIS At Your Service". This is a particularly apt theme, as geographic information systems have expanded in to every facet of public life. From routine commerce to personal navigation, to emergency services, geographic information systems have become an integral part of the fabric of our society. Once the province of a few experts, geographic data systems are now so ubiquitous that it is taken for granted. The 2011 conference will showcase many of the services that GIS provides and give us all a glimpse of many such services that lie just over the horizon. See the link on this page to get more conference information, to register, and to submit papers and session plans.

More information and to register for the NGIS 2011 Conference

Visit MapCruzin.com for Free GIS Software Programs, Shapefiles, Maps, and Tutorials