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Nuclear
Lab analysis reveals forensic signatures of nuclear material during international smuggling exercise
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientists received mock evidence, consisting of two uranium oxide (UO2) fuel pellets, as part of an international nuclear forensic exercise in support of a simulated nuclear smuggling investigation. The exercise was part of the CMX-5 Collaborative Materials Exercise organized by the Nuclear Forensics International Technical…
Warhead life extension passes key milestone
The program to extend the life of the W80 nuclear warhead recently achieved a significant milestone when the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) gave passing grades to the plans to refurbish certain components and the proposed approach to developing component cost estimates. Passing the milestone confirms that the life extension program (LEP), dubbed the W80-4…
Lab team uses pulsed ion beams to probe radiation defect dynamics in nuclear materials
Materials scientists at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) have developed a novel experimental method to access the dynamic regime of radiation damage formation in nuclear and electronic materials. Their approach is based on using pulsed ion beams for measurements of defect lifetimes, interaction rates and diffusion lengths. The creation of stable radiation…
NNSA completes removal of high security special nuclear material from the Laboratory
The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) on Friday announced that the last of the Security Category I/II special nuclear material items that required the highest level of security at the Laboratory have been removed. LLNL's primary mission will continue to be to ensure the safety, security and reliability of the nuclear weapons stockpile, but this mission will…
Lawrence Livermore Laboratory team achieves breakthrough detecting nuclear materials
When a young man was advised to pursue a career in plastics in the 1967 movie, "The Graduate," people could not have envisioned one of the material's uses developed by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientists. In a key discovery, a team of LLNL researchers has developed the first plastic material capable of efficiently distinguishing neutrons from gamma…
NTI works to reduce danger of nuclear, bio and chemical weapons
The Washington, D.C.-based Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) combines the voices of its experts with projects to reduce the dangers from nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons and material. That's the view of Lab employee Page Stoutland, who for the past seven months has been serving on a high-level assignment as vice president for the nuclear materials security program…
