Rockville, Maryland (October 8, 2025) – The American Nuclear Society has selected Sonal Patel, senior editor of POWER magazine, as the recipient of the Darlene Schmidt Science News Award for 2025. The biennial award—named for Darlene Schmidt, the first ANS staff member dedicated to outreach efforts—acknowledges journalists who provide accurate, innovative, and well-researched media coverage to the general public related to science, technology, engineering, and math, including nuclear applications. Patel will receive the award during the 2025 ANS Winter Conference and Expo in Washington, D.C., on November 11.
“Sonal Patel’s reporting for POWER shapes understanding across the power industry,” says Aaron Larson, executive editor of POWER magazine. “She is an exemplary recipient of the Darlene Schmidt Science News Award for her commitment to providing quality, effective, and engaging news coverage of nuclear science and the greater energy sector. Sonal’s creative storytelling across mediums demonstrates her extraordinary strength in delivering clear, data-driven insights to both inform the industry and reach non-scientific audiences.”
Patel has covered the global power and energy sector at POWER for more than 17 years, since 2008. The three-time national award-winning journalist’s reporting spans electricity generation, transmission, and distribution, as well as technology, policy, and infrastructure through technical deep dives, investigative features, and historical retrospectives widely cited in academic and policy circles. She also serves as a key contributor to the annual Experience POWER conference and has played an instrumental role in launching the new Data Center POWER eXchange (DPX) summit, which takes place on October 28 to address the energy capacity crisis amidst rapid artificial intelligence and digital expansion.
A committee of judges representing communication and technical professionals from across ANS found Patel’s extensive work highly deserving of this recognition, scoring submissions based on creative engagement, audience awareness, consistency, content quality, and writing standards. The Darlene Schmidt Science News Award recognizes Patel’s technically rigorous and accessible reporting that reaches a broad and influential readership across the power and energy sector. In the past two years alone, her coverage has spanned advanced reactor deployment, microreactor demonstrations, spent fuel recycling, and nuclear power for space exploration.
Readers can find Patel’s comprehensive coverage of the power industry online at POWER magazine and in the print magazine.
About POWER magazine
POWER is the single global resource for print, media, and events in the power and energy industry. The brand was established in 1882, and it is the only industry publication that addresses all power generation, and related technologies and fuels, utilized throughout the world, providing news and information for this increasingly complex sector. POWER is dedicated to providing its global audience with exclusive analyses of the latest trends, best practices, and insights on power generation and related projects through several platforms, including print, digital, and in-person events. POWER equips generation professionals and those who support them with the resources they need to make informed decisions that power the future.
About Access Intelligence
Access Intelligence is a privately held B2B media and information company headquartered in Rockville, Maryland, serving the marketing, media, PR, cable, healthcare management, defense, energy, infrastructure, engineering, satellite, and aviation markets. Leading brands include AdExchanger, AdMonsters, Chemical Engineering, Cynopsis, Cablefax, Chief Marketer, Defense Daily, Event Marketer, LeadsCon, POWER, Via Satellite, and P3C. Market-leading conferences and trade shows include LeadsCon, AdMonsters OPS and Publisher Summits, Experiential Marketing Summit, SATELLITE Conference and Exhibition, OR Manager Conference, LDC Gas Forums, Clean Gulf, Experience POWER, and The P3C Conference & Expo.