problem, a second set of emergency rods could be quickly dropped into the reactor. The test was carried out on 29 November 1955. As the power was ramped up, at 500 W the temperature reading became confusing. Concerned that it was beginning to surge, the scientist in charge of the test ordered the operator to drop the emergency rods, but the operator pushed the button for the slower motor-controlled ones. The scientist realized what had happened and pushed the correct button, but in those few seconds, the power continued rapidly increasing. A second safety system was then triggered which dropped the entire blanket into a pit below the reactor, which had the effect of stopping the reactions. About half of the core had melted in seconds, leaving the reactor so radioactive that it could not be approached. Teams were finally able to open the core weeks later and it was not immediately clear what had caused the problems. If it had been caused by Doppler effects, it suggested a larger plant would be completely uncontrollable. It was finally determined that the cause of the problems was that the fuel rods would bend, or droop, as they heated up, allowing them to move closer together and the reaction rate to increase. The issue of the Doppler coefficient remained untested. The EBR meltdown brought to a head another lingering concern with the breeder design. As the core was highly enriched, even slight movements of the fuel could cause significant changes in reactivity, as occurred on EBR. If the blanket fell onto the fuel in the core it could "compact" it to prompt supercriticality, leading to an explosion. The same might occur if the fuel melted and collected at the rounded bottom of the reactor and then the rest of the core was pressed down onto it. Amorosi designed a simple solution to this later problem; a metal cone, not unlike an upside-down ice cream cone, was placed in the center of the sodium tank at the bottom of the reactor. During normal operation, this would help guide the flow of the sodium into the core. If the fuel melted, the cone would force it to flow outward into a ring shape which could not reach critical mass. Application and McMullough review Cisler applied for a construction permit for Fermi 1 in January 1956. A new company was formed to build the plant,