Thomas L. Neff's Vision: Turning Soviet Nuclear Warheads Into Electricity for America

Thomas L. Neff devised an unconventional plan as the Soviet Union fell apart. Instead of using Soviet nuclear warheads to destroy American cities, what if the United States could purchase the uranium cores to convert them into reactor fuel? Despite facing significant challenges and doubt, Dr. Neff successfully orchestrated an unprecedented deal, providing the financially struggling Moscow with hard currency, decreasing nuclear threats, and yielding one of the most substantial peace returns in history.

A Bright Legacy

During a span of 20 years, his innovative concept facilitated the transformation of approximately 20,000 Russian nuclear arms into electricity, illuminating billions of American lightbulbs. Sadly, Dr. Neff, a physicist, passed away on July 11 at the age of 80. Following a breakfast with his wife at their residence in Concord, Mass., he collapsed and did not regain consciousness. The cause of death, as stated by his daughter, Catherine C. Harris, was a subdural hematoma, or bleeding from the brain.