The Department of Physics and Nuclear Engineering (PaNE) took sixty-one cadets to the STERIS IsoMedix Facility in Chester, NY to learn about the radiation applications involved in sterilizing everyday products. Cobalt-60 was received by the facility from Canada because of neutron activation and then observed to be loaded into the irradiation bay. Cadets also learned of the political and physical security concerns surrounding the handling of this type of material.
Photo: Cadets overlook the pool of water that shields against the radioactive Co-60 “pencil stick” sources