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History: Beta 4

A single, desperate focus drove Y‑12's construction: Create an atomic weapon before the Nazis. The photo inset at right shows much of Y‑12 during those early years. Four similar Beta buildings were constructed to house beta calutrons, which were the final stage in separating the scarce uranium isotope 235U. This first mission ended in December 1946, and the calutrons were decommissioned as a result of another separation method, developed at a sister site, that proved to be more efficient.

In the 1950s another weapons race, this time with the U.S.S.R., demanded lithium isotopes to power America's thermonuclear weapons. One of the beta buildings, Beta 4, was reconfigured and helped supply that demand. Next the building housed a 7,500-ton press, several large vertical turning machines and huge furnaces to create large components for nuclear weapons.

This role was especially important during accelerated production in the 1980s, which some believe led to the end of the Cold War. More recently, the building was used for disassembly, testing and storage.

Now, though, Beta 4 has outlived much of its usefulness. Thanks to economic stimulus money, Y‑12 is accelerating its ongoing efforts to clear and disposition materials. See pages 8-13 for more about Y‑12's initial efforts under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

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