This meeting led to the Operation Plowshare efforts , given this name in 1961 . Three primary concepts were studied as part of Plowshare ; energy generation under Project PACER , the use of large nuclear explosions for excavation , and as a sort of nuclear fracking for the natural gas industry . PACER was directly tested in December 1961 when the 3 kt Project Gnome device was emplaced in bedded salt in New Mexico . In spite of all theorizing and attempts to stop it , radioactive steam was released from the drill shaft , some distance from the test site . Further studies as part of PACER led to a number of engineered cavities replacing natural ones , but through this period the entire Plowshare efforts turned from bad to worse , especially after the failure of 1962 's Sedan which released huge quantities of fallout . PACER nevertheless continued to receive some funding until 1975 , when a 3rd party study demonstrated that the cost of electricity from PACER would be the equivalent to conventional nuclear plants with fuel costs over ten times as great as they were
Project Gnome
Project Gnome
Inertial confinement fusion