NPR has an article on Virtual world technology in sue by the Los Alamos National Lab (LANL) to create reconstructions of various nuclear laboratory environments.  The main benefits are that such environments are rare and dangerous, so training is hard to come by.  By training such people in virtual space with photorealistic environments, people can see areas typically reserved for only the most adventurous of personnel.  The project, called VISIBLE (Virtual Simulation Baseline Experience) has been underway for about three years, with their big claim to fame being the virtual version of the Idaho National Lab reactor.

Birch Hayes, the project’s key software expert, says response from the Idaho lab was positive.

“We gave this to them and they’ve used it in a number of ways — for visitors, trainees, new employees. We showed it at a workshop and then the following day took people out to the facility, and they felt like they had been there before, which was exactly the effect that we were looking for,” Hayes says.

via Using Virtual Reality To Make Nuclear Reality Safer : NPR.