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Renewal and Relicensing—
Extending the MURR Center vision . . .

A half of a century ago, University of Missouri President Elmer Ellis displayed powerful vision, appointing a committee to evaluate how a research reactor might stimulate scientific research at this land-grant institution. The reactor’s commission—to benefit society with scientific research into engineering, industrial and medical applications of nuclear energy.

The University of Missouri may not have been the first to design and construct a university research reactor in the mid 20th century, but it clearly responded to the University President’s call for excellence. Today, the MU Research Reactor (MURR) is the highest power reactor at a US university and leads the world with its unparalleled breadth of programs and safe and reliable operating record. The keen insight of the reactor’s designer and first director, Dr. Ardath Emmons, produced a compact and efficient reactor that has been adaptable to hundreds of experimental modes and afforded capabilities for revenue-generating products and services to sustain the Center’s outstanding research and development programs and educational opportunities.

. . . with investment in the future . . .

In addition to upgrades and renovations to infrastructure and facilities, the MURR Center is funneling significant resources into people and programs. The Center’s highly skilled and dedicated personnel collectively have some 1500 years of in-house experience. Ongoing training and the infusion of expertise from new hires bring increasing depth and breadth to support multiple University initiatives. In recent years the Center has built FDA approvable cGMP and GLP programs (good manufacturing/laboratory practices) to provide clinical-grade products and analytical services. Its rich history of partnering with industry to improve the lives of our citizens continues, most recently is the installation of a cyclotron to supply mid-Missouri with isotopes for PET imaging and support additional research, development and clinical trials.


January 2007 conceptualization


August 2007 opening ceremony


October 2007

The Center is also reconfiguring and revamping custom-built beamport facilities and instrumentation to expand the research capabilities. MU recently attracted world-renowned pioneer in boron neutron capture therapy Dr. Fred Hawthorne to a Professorship in Radiology. He had this to say about MURR: “…it’s the best-run, safest, cleanest, most secure and well-organized nuclear reactor that I’ve encountered as an academic.”

To read more about the MURR license renewal application and its importance to the University's mission, see MU Research Reactor Submits 20-year License Renewal Application at the MU Office of Research website.

Visit these pages for selected MURR Milestones and an overview of the renewal and relicensing efforts.

return to A Brief History of MURR forward to MURR Research and Development

MURR Introduction to the nation's premier university research reactor MURR Research and Development--R&D at the nation's premier university research reactor MURR Education--training tomorrow's nuclear scientists, engineers and technicians MURR Products and Services--providing quality nuclear products and services to a global community MURR Center homepage MURR Center homepage MURR Operations--safe and reliable University of Missouri-Columbia homepage MURR Site Map


MURR Relicensing
The reactor is in the process of relicensing for another 20 years of nuclear-based research, education and medical and other applications. Check here for project updates.


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Last updated July 2008