1958 – The new department is housed in temporary huts built as dorms for the Navy’s V-12 program during World War II. Later, the dorms were razed for today’s Faculty Glade, and the department moved to Etcheverry Hall.

Early 1960s – Department chair Thomas Pigford interviews faculty candidates on his sailboat in the bay. One candidate tumbles off the boat during his interview.

1976 – Professor Olander publishes Fundamental Aspects of Nuclear Reactor Fuel Elements, a classic text in the field.

1980s – Professor Virgil Schrock’s research contributes to the understanding of thermal-hydraulic phenomena critical to the safety of current reactors, enabling concepts for future generations of passively safe nuclear reactors.

1997 – NE Ph.D. student Darren Bleuel launches “Nukees,” a comic strip about life as a nuclear engineering student. It is still published in the Daily Cal.

2005 – NE professor Jasmina Vujic becomes the first female nuclear engineering department chair of a Top 10 U.S. university.

2006 – Passive safety features studied at UC Berkeley in the 1990s are integrated into a majority of new reactor utilities selected for construction licenses.