You might imagine nuclear power plants as behemoth facilities spanning hundreds of acres. Nuclear microreactors, by contrast, could sit on land the size of a football field and power a whole town.

However, after decades of fraught relationships between the nuclear industry and communities in many parts of the United States, building these tiny reactors requires reckoning with the complex history of nuclear technology and rebuilding public trust.

Microreactor technology for use in towns or cities hasn’t been developed yet, but many researchers have been building the case for its use.

For example, this technology could benefit college campuses, remote communities in Alaska primarily powered by oil and diesel, tech companies looking for reliable electricity for AI data centers, companies in need of high-temperature heat for manufacturing and industrial processes, mining operations that need a clean energy source, and even military bases in search of a secure sour