ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — Sandia National Laboratories officials say the preliminary data from the test shipment of mock spent nuclear fuel from Spain to Colorado shows promising signs.

The Albuquerque Journal reports researchers from the Albuquerque lab tested the safety of transporting highly radioactive fuel last year by sending a mock shipment by truck, barge, ship and train nearly 15,000 miles (24,000 kilometers).

Three mock fuel assemblies, which would typically contain uranium pellets, were placed in a special cask outfitted with gauges to measure its movement. The cask was shipped across the Atlantic Ocean to Pueblo, Colorado, to simulate the movement to reach a storage facility.

Sandia transportation projects manager Sylvia Saltzstein says nothing was broken or damaged in the shipment. She says it will take several more months to fully analyze the data.

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Information from: Albuquerque Journal, http://www.abqjournal.com