The potentiality of uranium as a vast source of industrial power became apparent with the launching in 1954 of the first nuclear-powered submarine, the USS Nautilus. By 1989, 112 nuclear power plants in the United States produced more than 101,000 megawatts electric, MW(E). In addition, there are 316 plants in 40 countries outside the United States which produced more than 213,000 MW(E). The first such U.S. plant, which began operations at Shippingport, Pennsylvania, generates 60,000 kw and requires about 15 lb of uranium-235 per month. Conventional plants producing 60,000 kw consume about 40 million lb of coal per month. Problems of uranium scarcity, plant safety, and storage of radioactive uranium and plutonium waste products, however, have prevented the full realization of nuclear energy's potential.

Uranium ores are widely distributed throughout the world. Deposits of pitchblende, the richest uranium ore, are found chiefly in Canada, Zaire, and the United States. Most of the uranium mined in the United States is obtained from carnotite occurring in Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, Arizona, and Wyoming. A mineral called coffinite, discovered in 1955 in Colorado, is a high-grade ore containing nearly 61 percent uranium. Coffinite deposits were found subsequently in Wyoming and Arizona and in several foreign countries. In 1990, U.S. production of pure uranium concentrate was about 3417 metric tons, while Canadian production was about 8729 tons; world production totaled about 29,100 metric tons.