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To the east that spring, Russian troops frequently shelled the Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology, damaging a hall containing a subcritical nuclear reactor.

Washington, however, is preparing to conduct next year at the Nevada Test Site two so-called subcritical experiments involving fissile materials in amounts too small to ignite a nuclear explosion.

National Nuclear Security Administration, which oversees the U.S. nuclear arsenal, announced in June that the United States is open to having international observers monitor the subcritical experiments.

“We are looking forward to establishing this capability in 2027, conducting the first subcritical experiments using these new capabilities to support our nuclear deterrent and demonstrate once again our technical prowess as a nation,” said Dave Funk, vice-president for Enhanced Capabilities for Subcritical Experiments at the Nevada National Security Site.

Scorpius will be fully assembled in an underground complex at the facility formerly known as the Nevada Test Site, where scientists have been conducting subcritical experiments since 1995 and nuclear testing dates to 1951.