National Laboratory

NNSA Announces Selection of Centers of Excellence for Academic Computational Science Partnerships

July 1, 2013 by Submitted by Carol A. Clark

NNSA News:

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has announced the selection of its six new centers of excellence whose primary focus will be on the emerging field of predictive science.

Six universities were selected either as a Multidisciplinary Simulation Center (MSC) or as a Single-Discipline Center (SDC). The MSCs will receive $3.2 million and the SDCs will receive $1.6 million each year for five years under NNSA’s Predictive Science Academic Alliance Program II (PSAAP II) agreement. The six universities include:

University of Utah, Salt Lake City,

‘Downtown Friday Nights’ High-Speed Camera Demonstration Dazzles Crowd at Bradbury

June 30, 2013 by Submitted by Carol A. Clark

During the June 28 ‘Downtown Friday Nights’ at the Bradbury Science Musesum, Chris Danley demonstrated what people miss in the blink of an eye. During the ‘What’s in a Click?: The Wonders of High Speed Imaging.’ Danley, a UNM graduate student working at Los Alamos National Laboratory in P-23 group, showed the crowd new advances of high-speed cameras and the things scientists discover by using them. Members of the public engaged in live demonstrations using a 11,500 fps camera and learned about the work LANL is doing with these devices and the history of this Read More

Two Los Alamos Businesses Receive Venture Acceleration Fund Awards

June 29, 2013 by Submitted by Carol A. Clark

LANL News:

The two Los Alamos businesses receiving Venture Acceleration Fund Awards are GeoEnergy Monitoring Systems, Inc. and SportXast of Los Alamos.

GeoEnergy Monitoring Systems will use the funds tocontribute to the development of a seismo-acoustic system to monitor seismic activity where hydrofracturing (fracking) and fluid injection projects are occurring. The smart-sensor technology will be offered to field operators at a fraction of the cost of current systems.

SportXast of Los Alamos will use its fund in a beta mobile application and distribution through the Apple AppStore. Read More

Three Funding Opportunities in Engineering Research

June 28, 2013 by Submitted by Carol A. Clark

NIST News:

Funding opportunities for research in the areas of disaster-resilient buildings and communities, sustainable construction and manufacturing, and “smart” firefighting have been announced by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST.)

NIST anticipates selecting one project on each topic and awarding about $300,000 per project. Electronic applications are due no later than 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, July 25, 2013. The deadline for paper applications is 5 p.m., Eastern Time, July 25, 2013.

NIST’s Engineering Laboratory seeks proposals Read More

Humans Stoked Australia’s ‘Angry Summer’ Heat

June 28, 2013 by Submitted by Carol A. Clark

The Australian continent endured unprecedented high temperatures in the summer of 2013. This image, using data from NASA’s Aqua satellite, shows Australian land-surface-temperature anomalies, or departures from average, during Jan. 1-8, 2013. Red means above-average temperature; blue, below average; grey, incomplete data. Australia’s summer occurs during the northern-hemisphere winter. Image by Jesse Allen/NASA Earth Observatory

AGU News:

WASHINGTON, D.C. –- Human influences that drive global warming are likely to have played a role in Australia’s exceedingly hot summer Read More

Jim Nesmith Elected President of Rotary Club of Los Alamos

June 27, 2013 by Submitted by Carol A. Clark

Rotary President Jim Nesmith

Staff Report

The Rotary Club of Los Alamos has elected Jim Nesmith as president. He received the gavel from Immediate-past President Linda Hull during the organization’s annual dinner Tuesday at the Posse Lodge.

“I’m just so honored to be elected to this position and represent such a fantastic group of people,” Nesmith said. “I hope we can continue to provide service to the community at the same level as our former President Linda Hull has done.”

Nesmith is the Foreign National Program Coordinator at Los Alamos National Read More

US, Japan Develop New Method for Radiological Dose Assessment Around Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plants

June 27, 2013 by Submitted by Carol A. Clark

Courtesy/NNSA

NNSA News:

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and the Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) have developed a novel method for analyzing airborne radiological monitoring data. This new method has been used to perform a detailed study of survey data taken by the NNSA and JAEA in the months following the March 2011 radiological incident in Japan.

Aerial surveys were employed in the region surrounding the stricken Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant to cover the area impacted by the accident quickly, thoroughly and safely. This new analysis Read More

LANL Application for Android Now Available

June 27, 2013 by Submitted by Carol A. Clark

LANL News:

Los Alamos National Laboratory’s (LANL) new application is now available for the Android platform. The application is free and can be downloaded from Google play.

The new application was created as part of LANL’s year long celebration of 70 years serving the nation. The LANL application for iPhones and iPads has been downloaded more than 600 times.

The Apple application can be downloaded here.

Read more about the LANL application here.

Read more about LANL’s 70th anniversary. Read More

High-Speed Imaging Explored at Bradbury Science Museum

June 26, 2013 by Submitted by Carol A. Clark

Downtown Friday Nights is sponsored by the Los Alamos Creative District in coordination with local businesses and cultural organizations. Courtesy/BSM

LANL News:

Los Alamos National Laboratory Laboratory’s Bradbury Science Museum will host “What’s in a Click: The Wonders of High Speed Imaging,” 5-8 p.m. Friday, June 28.

Laboratory personnel and their families and the general public can learn about the advances of high-speed cameras and the discoveries scientists at LANL have made with them.

The museum partners with Fuller Lodge Art Center, the Los Alamos Historical Museum and Read More

LANL Takes Step Toward Remediating Contaminated Groundwater Plume

June 26, 2013 by Submitted by Carol A. Clark

Cheryl Rodriguez of NNSA’s Los Alamos Field Office and Dave McInroy of Los Alamos National Laboratory turn the valve necessary to release treated groundwater into a man-made reservoir. The effort is part of a pump and treat test of chromium-contaminated groundwater. Courtesy/NNSA

NNSA News:

Los Alamos National Laboratory environmental program experts are one step closer to determining the best way to remediate a chromium plume in groundwater beneath Mortandad Canyon.

Members of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and Laboratory environmental cleanup offices began