Los Alamos Canyon Bridge Inspections (2015)
This report provides details on the 2015 inspection of the Los Alamos Canyon Bridge that passes over Omega Road including suggestions for maintaining the bridge.
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SEARCH · Search NASA
Results for “LOS ALAMOS”
Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.
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A few Los Alamos Nuclear Safeguards stories and other things [Slides]
Two very different nuclear material safeguard missions will be briefly described to give the audience a feel for the type of work carried out by physicists at the Los Alamos National Laboratory. I will show how transit-state theory can be used to derive black-body radiation and the escape of particles from an ideal gas. Understanding these simple processes can led to a better understanding of how transit-state theory should be applied in the theory of nuclear reactions. Finally I will show a few photos to give a feel for some of the other missions conducted by Los Alamos.
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Podcast commemorating Black History Month, LANL history Lab Historian talks with member of first Black family to live in Los Alamos
The Lab is commemorating Black History Month with events, stories, and this podcast conversation between Lab Historian Madeline Whitacre and Clayborne Carson Jr.Carson Jr. was a member of what is thought to be the first Black family to live in Los Alamos. He was a young boy when his father, Clayborne Carson Sr., accepted a job with the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) as a security inspector in December 1947. The Carson family moved to Los Alamos shortly thereafter. Later, as a teenager, Carson Jr. worked at the Lab during the summers.
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‘Spokesperson for everyone at the Laboratory who believed in Oppenheimer’ Los Alamos physicist Fred Ribe’s 1954 petition protested former Lab Director’s revoked clearance
In 1953, J. Robert Oppenheimer received an ultimatum. The Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) sent the "father of the atomic bomb" and former Los Alamos Director a letter outlining two options: give up his Q clearance and role as advisor or appear before a board to prove that he wasn’t a threat to national security. Oppenheimer chose the latter. The ensuing saga that unfolded throughout 1954 peaked with a four-week, closed-door hearing in April and May after which Oppenheimer’s security clearance was formally revoked. The long, complex affair consisted of national security concerns, a tangle of questionable charges, divided opinions, loyalties, egos, and vendettas. AEC Chairman Lewis L. Strauss and Oppenheimer were at the center of events, though an important part of the historical record is Fred L. Ribe and the 493 other Los Alamos scientists who risked harming their careers to protest Oppenheimer’s ordeal. Ribe wrote a one-page letter, signed by his colleagues, to President Dwight Eisenhower and the AEC commissioners “objecting the decision and the grounds for it” as Ribe later wrote. This petition – and Strauss’s written response – were donated by Ribe and are part of the unclassified historical collections in the National Security Research Center, which is the Lab’s classified library.
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Quantum Computing at Los Alamos
Explore the source record for details and available documents.
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Los Alamos Scientists Support Planetary Defense Efforts Worldwide
Every two years the International Academy of Astronautics brings scientists, engineers, spacecraft developers, disaster specialists, and government officials together to share research and ideas, and to consider how to find, and ultimately deflect or destroy, an asteroid that might be threatening Earth. Attending these Planetary Defense Conferences are scientists from Los Alamos National Laboratory who contribute considerable expertise in the areas of computer modeling and asteroid mitigation technologies. Los Alamos scientists work with NASA's Planetary Defense Coordination Office to assist in the location and tracking near-Earth objects, characterization of those objects to determine their orbit trajectory, size, shape, mass, composition, rotational dynamics and other parameters, and planning and implementation of measures to deflect or disrupt an object on an impact course, along with measures that can be taken on Earth to protect lives and property include evacuation of the impact area and movement of critical infrastructure. At the Planetary Defense Conferences scientists share research findings, collaborate on planetary defense strategies, and work on hypothetical scenarios that consider the many timelines and options that might occur during an asteroid threat. To be sure, that threat is rare, but these emergency exercises provide officials with valuable information that may one day protect us all during the real thing.
45 MILITARY TECHNOLOGY, WEAPONRY, AND NATIONAL DEF↗
40 Years of SCES at Los Alamos
Reports of unconventional superconductivity in UBe 13 in 1983 and soon thereafter of the possible coexistence of bulk superconductivity and spin fluctuations in UPt 3 marked the beginning of a 40-year adventure in the study of strongly correlated quantum materials and phenomena at Los Alamos. The subsequent discovery and exploration of heavy-fermion magnetism, cuprates, Kondo insulators, Ce- and Pu-115 superconductors and, more broadly, quantum states of narrow-band systems provided challenges for the next 30 years. Progress was not made in a vacuum but benfitted from significant advances in the Americas, Asia and Europe as well as from essential collaborations, visitors and Los Alamos students and postdocs, many subsequently setting their own course in SCES. As often the case, serendipity played a role in shaping this history.
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Response to Notice of Disapproval TA-63 Transuranic Waste Facility Permit Modification Request, Rev. 2, Los Alamos National Laboratory
This document responds to the August 30, 2012, New Mexico Environment Department- Hazardous Waste Bureau (NMED-HWB) Disapproval notice referenced above. The notice was issued for the Permit Modification Request for Technical Area 63, Transuranic Waste Facility, Hazardous Waste Container Storage Unit (PMR), Revision 2.0, submitted to NMED-HWB on July 13, 2012, by the United States Department of Energy (DOE) and Los Alamos National Security, LLC, collectively the Permittees. The Permittees are seeking to modify the Hazardous Waste Facility Permit (Permit) for Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) for approval of the construction of the Transuranic Waste Facility (TWF) at Technical Area 63 (TA-63) and permission to store hazardous waste there. This response may contain information regarding the management of radioactive materials, including source, special nuclear, and byproduct material. Information on radioactive materials and radionuclides, including the results of sampling and analysis of radioactive constituents, is voluntarily provided to NMED-HWB in accordance with DOE policy.
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Measures of soil, sediment, and groundwater background used by Los Alamos National Laboratory, 2012
This document summarizes approaches used by Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) to estimate background concentrations of constituents in soils, sediment, and groundwater. For the sake of presentation and interpretation, LANL frequently reports a “background value” that statistically represents an upper bound for a data set of background concentrations. However, actual background concentrations vary by soil and bedrock type, disturbance regimes, precipitation levels, vegetative cover, and a wide variety of other factors. The LANL reported background values are estimates for comparison, not absolute limits of possible background concentrations. In evaluating whether a sample result represents a background concentration, LANL staff evaluate the results statistically (if the sample size is large enough) or graphically against the complete distribution of the relevant background data set. For analytes with no established background data set, LANL site results are sometimes compared to upgradient or geographically distant results on a study-specific basis.
Environmental Protection↗
Swedish Government Representatives Visit Nevada National Security Site and Los Alamos National Laboratory for Nuclear Nonproliferation Workshop
In October 2013, Los Alamos National Laboratory, with sponsorship and support from the NNSA Office of Nonproliferation and International Security, Office of Nuclear Controls (NA-242), hosted representatives from various agencies of the Swedish Government for a Nuclear Nonproliferation Workshop (NNPW). The purpose of the visit was to further promote the strong and mutually beneficial working relationship between the U.S. and Sweden on nuclear nonproliferation and related nuclear export control and safeguards subjects. Sweden is an important “like-minded” partner in the NSG and in other multilateral activities, such as implementation of special nuclear trade sanctions against Iran and North Korea, which work to combat the global nuclear proliferation problem. Sweden has been especially active in policy and technical initiatives in the NSG that serve to make the NSG’s export control lists better and more effective in combating nuclear proliferation activities.
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Los Alamos Neutron Science Center
For more than 30 years the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE) has provided the scientific underpinnings in nuclear physics and material science needed to ensure the safety and surety of the nuclear stockpile into the future. In addition to national security research, the LANSCE User Facility has a vibrant research program in fundamental science, providing the scientific community with intense sources of neutrons and protons to perform experiments supporting civilian research and the production of medical and research isotopes. Five major experimental facilities operate simultaneously. These facilities contribute to the stockpile stewardship program, produce radionuclides for medical testing, and provide a venue for industrial users to irradiate and test electronics. In addition, they perform fundamental research in nuclear physics, nuclear astrophysics, materials science, and many other areas. The LANSCE User Program plays a key role in training the next generation of top scientists and in attracting the best graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and early-career scientists. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) —the principal sponsor of LANSCE—works with the Office of Science and the Office of Nuclear Energy, which have synergistic long-term needs for the linear accelerator and the neutron science that is the heart of LANSCE.
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User Guide for the Plotting Software for the Los Alamos National Laboratory Nuclear Weapons Analysis Tools Version 2.0
The Los Alamos National Laboratory Plotting Software for the Nuclear Weapons Analysis Tools is a Java™ application based upon the open source library JFreeChart. The software provides a capability for plotting data on graphs with a rich variety of display options while allowing the viewer interaction via graph manipulation and scaling to best view the data. The graph types include XY plots, Date XY plots, Bar plots and Histogram plots.
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Training With Industry, Los Alamos National Laboratory
This report gives the highlights of the Los Alamos National Laboratory's Training With Industry program.
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Los Alamos National Laboratory Directed Energy Capabilities [PowerPoint]
The presentation covered Los Alamos National Laboratory's history, responsibilities, notable accomplishments, partnerships, and R&D capabilities for potential future work.
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Women of Project Y. A Snapshot of Women at Wartime Los Alamos [Slides]
A brief history of women’s roles at Los Alamos National Laboratory during the Manhattan Project. Then, a focused section on one female lab employee, Miriam White Campbell.
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Los Alamos National Laboratory 2022 Annual Site Environmental Report (Rev. 2)
Los Alamos National Laboratory (Laboratory) annual site environmental reports are prepared each year by the Laboratory’s environmental organizations as required by U.S. Department of Energy Order 231.1B, Administrative Change 1, Environment, Safety, and Health Reporting, and Order 458.1, Administrative Change 4, Radiation Protection of the Public and the Environment. The chapters in this report discuss our compliance with environmental laws, regulations, and orders (Chapter 2, Compliance Summary); how we manage the Laboratory’s environmental performance and assure the quality of data from analysis of environmental samples (Chapter 3, Environmental Programs and Analytical Data Quality); how we monitor for air emissions of radioactive materials and for weather conditions (Chapter 4, Air Quality); how we monitor for effects of Laboratory operations on groundwater quality (Chapter 5, Groundwater Protection); how we monitor the levels of chemicals and radionuclides in storm water runoff and sediment (Chapter 6, Watershed Quality); how we monitor for the levels and effects of chemicals and radionuclides in plants, animals, soil, and vegetation (Chapter 7, Ecosystem Health); and finally, what radioactive dose or risk from chemical exposure that members of the public could experience as a result of Laboratory operations (Chapter 8, Public Dose and Risk Assessment).
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Keeping the Momentum and Nuclear Forensics at Los Alamos National Laboratory
LANL has 70 years of experience in nuclear forensics and supports the community through a wide variety of efforts and leveraged capabilities: Expanding the understanding of nuclear forensics, providing training on nuclear forensics methods, and developing bilateral relationships to expand our understanding of nuclear forensic science. LANL remains highly supportive of several key organizations tasked with carrying forth the Nuclear Security Summit messages: IAEA, GICNT, and INTERPOL. Analytical chemistry measurements on plutonium and uranium matrices are critical to numerous programs including safeguards accountancy verification measurements. Los Alamos National Laboratory operates capable actinide analytical chemistry and material science laboratories suitable for nuclear material and environmental forensic characterization. Los Alamos National Laboratory uses numerous means to validate and independently verify that measurement data quality objectives are met. Numerous LANL nuclear facilities support the nuclear material handling, preparation, and analysis capabilities necessary to evaluate samples containing nearly any mass of an actinide (attogram to kilogram levels).
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Airborne Projection of Burning Embers – Planning and Controls for Los Alamos National Laboratory Facilities
As a result of the Las Conchas Fire, the Department of Energy in correspondence SO:32CK 372899 (DOE 2011) requested that LANS take the following action: Evaluate the Las Conchas fire experience and other data on airborne projection of burning embers and the appropriate planning and controls for Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) facilities, including nuclear and high hazard facilities. This paper addresses the DOE action by evaluating 1) the meteorology at the time of the accident and implications for new wild land fires; 2) the ability of LANL facilities to withstand fires as a result of burning embers, and 3) LANL programs in place to mitigate the effects of wild land fires. The spread of fire as a result of burning embers is a known and important mechanism. Both empirical and computational studies have been performed, and it is recognized that these studies should continue (Kim 2009, Koo 2010, Sardoy 2007). Due to the locale and environs of LANL, burning brands or embers from forest fires are a credible risk at LANL. With the exception of the Area G TRU Waste Facility, LANL nuclear facilities have fire resistant exteriors with UL Class A roofs. Waste at Area G is stored in fire resistant containers. The laboratory has comprehensive Emergency Operations and Fire Protection Programs, which includes assessing wildland fire risk and mitigating the spread of fires, for example, by maintaining fire breaks and additional defensible buffer areas free of combustibles around LANL facilities and limits on combustible loading. Vegetation is cut-back to at least national consensus standards on a regular basis around nuclear facilities. Fire Department services are provided by Los Alamos County through an agreement with the Department of Energy. The interface between the Fire Department and LANL during emergencies is the Emergency Operations Division. The ability of LANL facilities to withstand a wildland fire was tested by both the Cerro Grande fire in 2000 as well as the Las Conchas fire. No nuclear or high-hazard facilities were damaged even though the Cerro Grande fire burned around a number of the facilities. Since then, the laboratory has strengthened programs to protect against wildland fires.
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