Aging nuclear plants in New England

David L. Ryan/Globe Staff
In this photo, Pilgrim Station is located a few miles down the coast from Plymouth Rock. It opened in 1972 and its license expires next year.
Both Pilgrim and Vermont Yankee stations were designed to withstand a more than 6.0-magnitude earthquake, with Pilgrim capable of handling an 18.3 feet storm surge and 131 mile per hour winds.