Women get inside tour of nuclear sub: A group of women got to tour the nuclear submarine USS Missouri on Wednesday at the Naval Ordinance Test Unit at Port Canaveral.
About 45 in the Women in Nuclear group toured the USS Missouri submarine at the Trident Basin at Port Canaveral on Wednesday. The women entered the sub thru the foreward hatch.
About the group
The U.S. Women in Nuclear organization was established in May 1999 with these strategic objectives:
- Support an environment in nuclear energy and nuclear technologies in which women and men are able to succeed.
- Provide a network through which the women and men in these fields can further their professional development.
- Provide an organized association through which the public is informed about nuclear energy and nuclear technologies.
U.S. Women in Nuclear is the premier network of more than 5,000 women and men who work in nuclear- and radiation-related fields around the country.
PORT CANAVERAL — Women who work in the nuclear industry had a treat Wednesday as they learned about an alternative application of their field.
Offered as a side trip from the U.S. Women in Nuclear annual conference in Orlando, about 40 women who are used to working with power plants and engineering companies toured the USS Missouri — a nuclear attack submarine commissioned July 31, 2010 — while docked at the Naval Ordnance Test Unit.
Submariners explained the ship’s operations to groups of about six or eight women at a time.
“Everything is so big in scale that we do,” said Kara Lukehart, who works for URS, an engineering and construction company. “We’re so focused on our application that it’s so enlightening to see other applications.”
The women huddled in the glare of the display screens where sailors operate sonar, communications and weapons systems aboard the submarine. They also toured the galley, the torpedo room and the tight living quarters to which the submariners must get accustomed.
Lukehart said even though there are big differences in scale to power plants, the same principles apply to operating the nuclear submarine in many ways. Safety and training are guiding principles.
Jennifer Henning, a mechanical and chemical engineer who works for Enercon in Atlanta, said the tour of the submarine was a treat.
“Most of the work I do, I do at a desk,” she said. “I get to make visits to (nuclear) plants. There are a lot of similarities.”
Katie Damratoski, a communications specialist for Entergy, said the visit to NOTU ranked among the top activities for the people who attended the Women in Nuclear annual conference.
“This is awesome,” she said. “I’m fascinated. I have great respect for what (the submariners) do.”
U.S. Women in Nuclear is a network of more than 5,000 women and men who work in nuclear-related fields around the country. Members of the group toured Kennedy Space Center and the Crystal River Nuclear Plant, about 80 miles north of Tampa, in addition to the Naval Ordnance Test Unit and the USS Missouri.
Lt. Cmdr. Dave Rogers, the executive officer on the submarine, said it was a good opportunity to have the visitors on the USS Missouri.
“We’re kind of invisible most of the time,” he said. “It helps us. It’s a sense of personal satisfaction. It’s rewarding and reassuring.”
Rogers said it’s also good for the crew to come into Port Canaveral and Brevard County, where people are always so welcoming.
“We’re excited every time we get to pull into Port Canaveral,” he said. It’s one of my favorite ports on the East Coast.”
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