Science: New machine to enhance understanding of nuclear weapons’ behavior
March 7, assembly began at Los Alamos National Laboratory on a groundbreaking machine that will allow scientists to use real plutonium in experiments while studying the conditions immediately before the nuclear phase of a weapon’s functioning. The machine will prove instrumental in the Laboratory’s stockpile stewardship mission, which ensures the safety, security and reliability of the nation’s nuclear weapons through computational tools and engineering test facilities, rather than underground testing. Read the full article here. Courtesy/LANL
LANL News:
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) shares a compilation of news stories for the week of March 25, 2024.
‘SAFE’ technology protects data from theft and accidental distribution
A new technology created by researchers at Los Alamos National Laboratory will improve data safety in several areas ranging from treaty verification to medical services. The project, called the Secure, Automatic, Failsafe Eraser (SAFE), is able to erase the memory of devices and prevent data disclosures. Read the full article here. Courtesy/LANL
Waste decontamination system offers far-reaching benefits
As it executes its national security mission, Los Alamos National Laboratory produces transuranic (TRU) radioactive waste — protective clothing, tools and equipment contaminated from nuclear weapons research and production. Handling, staging and shipping TRU waste offsite to the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in southern New Mexico are all central to the Lab’s mission — and so too is mitigating hazards to workers, the public and the environment associated with these activities. To achieve that goal, Los Alamos has been looking at ways to reduce the amount of TRU waste. In 2022, Los Alamos scientists and engineers developed a new instrument for decontaminating TRU waste that is safe, efficient, and will divert waste streams away from WIPP. And that could just be the start of this promising technology. Read the full article here. Courtesy/LANL
