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This article is part of the Opinion series At the Brink,about the threat of nuclear weapons in an unstable world. It follows a decades-long freeze on designing, building or testing new nuclear weapons. The new buildings and cutting-edge machinery will eventually process the uranium needed to make the next generation of American nuclear weapons. Now there are an estimated 12,000 nuclear weapons in the world. It is undeniably true that the world is becoming more contentious, and nuclear weapons do deter our adversaries.

Persons: Melissa Durkee’s, Adalie, —, Warren Air Force Base Missiles Ellsworth Air Force Base Pantex Plant Minot Air Force Base Dyess Air Force Base Lockheed Martin Tinker, Todd Weeks, Weeks, you’re, Eric Helms, Helms, it’s, ”, aren’t, Robin Darnall, she’s, “, can’t, Northrop Grumman, Nunn, Walter Schweitzer, Mr, Schweitzer, Robert Oppenheimer, didn’t, Jay Coghlan, Charles McMillan, Greg Mello Organizations: U.S, Preston Veterans ’ Memorial, Dynamics, U.S . Navy, Preston Veterans ’, The Times Naval Base Kitsap Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Northrop Grumman Nevada National Security, Air Force Base Malmstrom Air Force Base Sandia National Laboratories Los Alamos National Laboratory, Warren Air Force Base Missiles Ellsworth Air Force Base Pantex Plant Minot Air Force Base Dyess Air Force Base, Warren Air Force Base Missiles Ellsworth Air Force Base Pantex Plant Minot Air Force Base Dyess Air Force Base Lockheed Martin Tinker Air Force Base Offutt Air Force Base Kansas City National Security, Chaffee, Air Force Base Whiteman Air Force Base, Security, Laboratory Naval Submarine Base, Bay Northrop, Newport News Shipbuilding General Dynamics Electric, Submarines, Submarines Connecticut Rhode Island, Submarines Connecticut Rhode Island Virginia General Dynamics Electric, General Dynamics, Columbia, Engineering, Republican, Democratic, Office, General Dynamics Electric, Navy, NASCAR, Manhattan, Reactor, The Energy Department, National Nuclear Security Administration, Energy Department, National Nuclear Security, Fort, Missiles Wyoming North Dakota, Missiles Wyoming North Dakota Colorado Nebraska Montana America’s, The Air Force, Minuteman III, Air Force, Warren Air Force Base, Sentinel, Banner, Soviets, Air Force Base, McCurdy, Pentagon, Montana Farmers Union, Mexico South, Environmental Protection Agency, Los Alamos, Nuclear Watch, Alamos County, Atomic, Los Alamos Study, United States Locations: Preston, Conn, New England, America, Russia, China, North Korea, Iran, United States, Savannah, Manhattan, Washington, Submarines Connecticut, Submarines Connecticut Rhode Island Virginia, Narragansett, Rhode Island, Quonset, R.I, Groton, Soviet Union, Rhode Island , Connecticut, Virginia, Columbia, Tennessee, Oak Ridge, Tenn, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, Texas, Fort Knox, Missiles Wyoming North Dakota Colorado, —, Wyoming , Nebraska , Colorado , Montana, North Dakota, Plains, F.E, Wyoming, Nebraska, Banner County, Great Falls, Mont, Mexico, Mexico South Carolina, New Mexico, Los Alamos, N.M, Savannah River, S.C, Colorado, Rocky, Alamos, Nuclear Watch New Mexico, Santa Fe

☆ The US is dismantling nuclear warheads to power next-gen reactors
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-09 | by ( Ella Nilsen | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

This fuel is set to power the next generation of America’s nuclear reactors — small, modular power stations that are easier and cheaper to build. They require far less upkeep and physical space than the aging fleet of large nuclear power plants. “In order to meet our energy security needs and our climate goals, we do need significantly more nuclear energy deployed.”The nuclear power industry is increasingly looking to smaller reactors, which run on HALEU. The uranium for conventional reactors is enriched up to 5% and HALEU is uranium enriched between 5-20%. Highly enriched uranium is anything more than 20% and is used in weapons or naval submarines.

Persons: —, Michael Goff, Bill Gates, ”, Jeff Navin, “, hasn’t, Benjamin Rasmussen, Jeff Chamberlin, Goff, Dan Leistikow, Josh Jarrell, Leistikow, Centrus, TerraPower’s Navin, ” Navin Organizations: CNN, Manhattan Project, National Nuclear Security, US, Energy, of Nuclear Energy, Idaho National Laboratory, Department of Energy, New York Times, United, US Energy Department, Miller, Centrus Energy, Idaho National Laboratories, Idaho National Labs, Energy Department, DOE Locations: Oak Ridge , Tennessee, Oak Ridge, Tenneseee, United States, Russia, Ukraine, Idaho, Wyoming, Kemmerer , Wyoming, Congress

☆ Archimedes’ death ray might have worked, teen science project suggests
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-08 | by ( Taylor Nicioli | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

But one fabled device has left scientists speculating on its existence for hundreds of years — the death ray. For his 2022 science project, Sener recreated the Archimedes screw, a device for raising and moving water. Sener found the death ray to be one of the more intriguing devices — sometimes referred to as the heat ray. Archimedes’ death ray is more commonly speculated to have been an array of several mirrors or polished shields. Sener’s mom, Melanie, was not surprised by her son’s choice in science project.

Persons: Archimedes, Brenden Sener, Sener, ” Sener, Melanie Sener, Cliff Ho, Ho, ”, “, Thomas Chondros, Melanie, … He’s Organizations: CNN, London Public, Canadian Science Fair, Sandia National Laboratories, US Department of, National Nuclear Security Administration, Greece’s University of Patras, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University Locations: Greece, London , Ontario, Syracuse, Albuquerque , New Mexico, Chondros

☆ The US is updating its nuclear arsenal amid growing security fears
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-28 | by ( Katie Hawkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The US Department of Defense announced plans to build a new gravity bomb. The announcement comes several days after the US issued a worldwide caution travel advisory. AdvertisementAdvertisementThe Department of Defense announced Saturday the US plans to add a new model of nuclear bomb to its arsenal. AdvertisementAdvertisementThe announcement comes just one week after the US announced a worldwide caution travel advisory amid the Israel-Hamas war. The US last issued a worldwide caution alert in August 2022 following the killing of al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, per CNN.

Persons: —, Ayman al, Zawahiri, Todd Brown Organizations: US Department of Defense, Service, of Defense, The, National Nuclear Security Administration, Department of Defense, US, Department of State, CNN, State Department Locations: Israel

☆ US aid to Israel and Ukraine: Here’s what’s in the $105 billion national security package Biden requested
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-20 | by ( Tami Luhby | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —The Biden administration on Friday laid out the details of a $105 billion national security package that includes military and humanitarian assistance for the conflicts in Ukraine and Israel. House Republicans are still struggling to unite behind a speaker to lead their conference, and until one is elected, the national security package will remain in limbo. The Biden administration’s prior request for $24 billion in Ukraine aid was not included in a stopgap government funding measure Congress approved in late September. Here’s what’s in the package, according to the White House:$61.4 billion in aid for Ukraine$30 billion for the Defense Department for equipment for Ukraine and the replenishment of US stocks. $10 billion for humanitarian assistance$9.15 billion for aid for Ukraine, Israel, Gaza and other humanitarian needs.

Persons: CNN —, Biden, Joe Biden, Here’s Organizations: CNN, House Republicans, Ukraine, White, Defense Department, National Nuclear Security Administration, Israel, Iron, State Department, West Bank, Treasury Department, World Bank Locations: Ukraine, Israel, Gaza, Mexico, Taiwan, Congress, Europe, assertiveness, China

☆ How would a government shutdown affect US foreign policy?
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Some foreign aid programs could also run out of money or have trouble performing their missions. "It would make it harder to do everything that we do to try to advance national security." Contracts awarded before the shutdown would continue, and the Pentagon could place new orders for supplies or services needed to protect national security. SPY AGENCIESThe Central Intelligence Agencies and other intelligence agencies have not publicly shared their plans for a shutdown. But in the past, staff involved in operations, analysis and cyber activities have been deemed critical to national security and ordered to keep working, possibly without pay.

Persons: Joshua Roberts, Biden, Antony Blinken, Lockheed Martin, Patricia Zengerle, Daphne Psaledakis, Mike Stone, Don Durfee, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, STATE DEPARTMENT U.S, Department of State, State Department, Pentagon, Boeing, Lockheed, Raytheon, National Nuclear Security Administration, Central Intelligence Agencies, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, Russia, Ukraine, States, China, U.S

☆ US government shutdown: What is it and who would be affected?
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

Contracts awarded prior to the shutdown would continue, and the Pentagon could place new orders for supplies or services needed to protect national security. NATIONAL PARKS AND NATURAL RESOURCESIt's not clear how the United States' 63 national parks would be affected. They remained open during the 2018-2019 shutdown, through restrooms and information desks were closed and waste disposal was halted. WHITE HOUSEIn 2018-2019 shutdown, the White House furloughed 1,100 of 1,800 staff in the Executive Office of the President. Some offices, such as the National Security Council, continued at full strength, while others like the Office of Management and Budget were scaled back sharply.

Persons: Kevin Wurm, Lockheed Martin, Donald Trump, Pete Buttigieg, Pell, Andy Sullivan, Pete Schroeder, Howard Schneider, Moira Warburton, Scott Malone, Alistair Bell Organizations: U.S, Capitol, REUTERS, Workers, Pentagon, Boeing, Lockheed, Raytheon, The, National Nuclear Security Administration, FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, Service, Border Patrol, Coast Guard, Federal Trade, AFFAIRS U.S, National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, National Oceanographic, Atmospheric Administration, NASA, Space, Disease Control, Prevention, Food and Drug Administration, Securities, Exchange, Commodities, Futures Trading, Federal Reserve, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Currency, Social Security Administration, Veterans Administration, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Education Department, White, Small Business Administration, National Labor Relations, National Security Council, Management, U.S . Postal, Thomson Locations: Washington , U.S, United States

☆ A nuclear bomb is still missing after it was dropped off the Georgia coastline 65 years ago
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-16 | by ( Jenny Mcgrath | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

In 1958, two Air Force jets collided over Georgia, and one was carrying a nuclear weapon. He headed for the ocean, dropped the nuclear bomb from about 7,200 feet, and landed the B-47 safely. A B-47 Stratojet similar to the one that dropped the nuclear weapon near Tybee Island, Georgia. Between 1960 and 1968, the US military kept jets armed with nuclear weapons at the ready in case of a surprise nuclear attack. A series of near misses and serious accidents with nuclear weapons caused the Air Force to end the program.

Persons: Stephen Schwartz, Howard Richardson, Clarence Stewart, Richardson, Stewart, he'd, irretrievably, Schwartz, Jack Howard's, Howard, it's, Derek Duke, Jack Kingston, Gerald Weaver, Duke, Shayela Hassan, Bettmann, Eric Schlosser, It's Organizations: Air Force, Service, Navy, US Nuclear, Getty, Savannah Morning, CBS News, Atlanta Constitution, Force, Department of Energy, Communications, National Nuclear Security Administration, US Government, DOE Locations: Georgia, Tybee, Wall, Silicon, Tybee Island, Savannah, Soviet Union, Island, Atlanta, Jack Kingston of Georgia, South Carolina

☆ How a US government program advocated using nuclear explosions for construction, farming radioactive crops, and blasting holes in the moon
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-31 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

Most focused on the potential for nuclear explosions to quickly excavate areas for construction projects at lower costs than conventional explosives. (Hamblin is the author of the book "The Wretched Atom: America's Global Gamble with Peaceful Nuclear Technology.") Fly the radioactive skiesUS officials also hoped nuclear energy could be used for transportation. Nicknamed the "pan-atomic canal," nuclear explosions would have carved a sea-level waterway through Nicaragua, Panama, or Colombia, per Forbes. Corbis via Getty ImagesFor Hamblin, the concept of "peaceful nuclear explosions" fell out of favor in the mid-70s.

Persons: Christopher Nolan's, Oppenheimer, Jacob Hamblin, Dwight D, Eisenhower, Alex Wellerstein, Hamblin, you've, Dr Leonard Reiffel, Alaska's Cape Thompson, Edward Teller, detonations, Rio, Iran —, —, Corbis, Wellerstein, Marshall, we're Organizations: Service, White, Nevada . U.S . Department of Energy Office, Scientific, Atomic Energy, UN, United Nations, IAEA Imagebank, United, US Atomic Energy Commission, Technology, Institute of Radiation, Google, NASA, Sputnik, Air Force, U.S . Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration, AEC, of Energy, Popular Mechanics, New York Times, Carryall, US Department of Energy, Forbes, Atomic Energy Commission, Getty, IAEA Locations: Wall, Silicon, Suez, Nevada ., United Nations, New York, Hitachiomiya, Japan, Soviet Union, Nevada, Alaska's Cape, inconveniently, Israel, Panama, Nicaragua, Colombia, Pacific, Farmington , New Mexico, Rulison , Colorado, Rio Blanco, , Colorado, Iran, Mercury , Nevada, USA, Cuba, Vietnam, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada —, Marshall

☆ 'Oppenheimer' and the story behind those who lost their land to the lab
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-28 | by ( Andrew Hay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/2] The town of Los Alamos, New Mexico with Fuller Lodge and the "Big House" dormitories is seen in an undated photograph. "Oppenheimer had no qualms about displacing people from their homelands," said Gomez, who wrote "Nuclear Nuevo Mexico" about the setting up of the lab. Today Los Alamos County, where the lab is based, is one of the richest and best-educated in the United States. "There's no economic development in our areas because it's all focused in Los Alamos," said Cristian Madrid-Estrada, director of the regional homeless shelter in Espanola, Rio Arriba's largest town. The lab said over 61% of employees hired since 2018 were from New Mexico, with most of its workforce living outside Los Alamos County.

Persons: Oppenheimer, Cillian Murphy, Loyda Martinez, Martinez, Christopher Nolan's, Marcel Torres, Torres, dispossession, Myrriah Gomez, Gomez, Alisa Valdes, Mexico Rob Martinez, homesteader, Cristian Madrid, Estrada, Andrew Hay, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: Fuller, of Energy, REUTERS, U.S . Army, Homes, Los Alamos National Laboratory, National Nuclear Security Administration, U.S, Department, Labor, University of New, Manhattan, Hispano, Los Alamos, U.S ., Thomson Locations: Los Alamos , New Mexico, New Mexico, Espanola, New, University of New Mexico, Nuevo Mexico, Abiquiu , New Mexico, Publicists, United States, Los, Mexico, Los Alamos County, Neighboring Rio Arriba County, Los Alamos, Rio Arriba's, Taos , New Mexico

☆ Exclusive: Wagner fighters neared Russian nuclear base during revolt
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +20 min

Reuters GraphicsOnce the Wagner fighters reach more rural regions, the surveillance trail goes cold – about 100 km from the nuclear base, Voronezh-45. But in an exclusive interview, Ukraine's head of military intelligence, Kyrylo Budanov, said that the Wagner fighters went far further. The only barrier between the Wagner fighters and nuclear weapons, Budanov said, were the doors to the nuclear storage facility. It is one of Russia's 12 "national-level storage facilities" for nuclear weapons, according to a report by U.N. scientists. Another female resident also said Wagner had widespread support in the town, and that many Wagner fighters are from Boguchar.

Persons: Wagner, Ukraine's, Kyrylo Budanov, Budanov, Alexander Lukashenko, Adam Hodge, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Matt Korda, Vladimir Putin's, Hans Kristensen, David Jonas, Amy Woolf, Jonas, Prigozhin, Dmitry Utkin, Putin, Sergei Shoigu, Staff Valery Gerasimov, Shoigu, Oleksiy Danilov, Don, Anna Sandrakova, Maxim Yantsov, Mikhail Vedernikov, Talovaya, Alexei Yablokov, Kristensen, Alexsandr Lukashenko, Dmitry Peskov, Lukashenko, he's, Mari Saito, Tom Balmforth, John Shiffman, Phil Stewart, Polina, Maria Tsvetkova, Anton Zverev, Christian Lowe, David Gauthier, Stephen Grey, Reade Levinson, Eleanor Whalley, Milan Pavicic, Daria Shamonova, Janet McBride Organizations: Reuters, Kremlin, Belarusian, U.S, White, National Security, Nuclear, Federation of American, Federation of American Scientists, U.S . National Nuclear Security Administration, Library, Congress, Wagner, State, Staff, Russian, Defence Ministry, Defence Council, Main, Russian Defence, U.S . Congress, Telegram, Thomson Locations: Moscow, Russian, Voronezh, United States, Ukraine, Russia, Rostov, Talovaya, Soviet, Washington, dabble, Syria, Libya, Mali, ., Pavlovsk, Elizavetovka, Vorontsovka, Buturlinovka, Talovaya district, Pskov, Soviet Union, Belarus, Minsk, he's, St Petersburg, Kyiv, London, New York, Paris, Villars, Istanbul, Gdansk

☆ Trump lacked power to declassify secret nuclear arms document, experts say
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-18 | by ( Jonathan Landay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/2] Former U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks following his arraignment on classified document charges, at Trump National Golf Club, in Bedminster, New Jersey, U.S., June 13, 2023. REUTERS/Amr Alfiky/File PhotoWASHINGTON, June 18 (Reuters) - Even when he was president, Donald Trump lacked the legal authority to declassify a U.S. nuclear weapons-related document that he is charged with illegally possessing, security experts said, contrary to the former U.S. president’s claim. The special status of nuclear-related information further erodes what many legal experts say is a weak defense centered around declassification. “The president is the executive branch and so he can declassify anything that is nuclear information,” he said. And it takes forever,” said Thomas Blanton, director of the National Security Archive.

Persons: Donald Trump, Amr Alfiky, Trump, ”, Steven Aftergood, David Jonas, Elizabeth Goitein, it’s, Thomas Blanton, Jonathan Landay, Don Durfee, Amy Stevens, Cynthia Osterman Organizations: U.S, Trump National Golf Club, REUTERS, WASHINGTON, Atomic Energy, Department of Energy, Department of Defense, Federation of Atomic Scientists, Prosecutors, Trump, Republican, Atomic Energy Act, DOE, Pentagon, AEA, U.S . National Nuclear Security Administration, Brennan Center for Justice, Constitution, DOD, National Security, Thomson Locations: Bedminster , New Jersey, U.S, declassify, declassification, United States, Florida

☆ U.S. Wires Ukraine With Radiation Sensors to Detect Nuclear Blasts
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( William J. Broad | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

The United States is wiring Ukraine with sensors that can detect‌‌ bursts of radiation from a nuclear weapon or a dirty bomb and can confirm the identity of the attacker. In part, the goal is to make sure that if Russia detonates a radioactive weapon on Ukrainian soil, its atomic signature and Moscow’s culpability could be verified. Ever since Russia invaded Ukraine 14 months ago, experts have worried about whether President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia would use nuclear arms in combat for the first time since the American bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. The preparations, mentioned last month in a House hearing and detailed Wednesday by the National Nuclear Security Administration, a federal agency that is part of the Energy Department, seem to constitute the hardest evidence to date that Washington is taking concrete steps to prepare for the worst possible outcomes of the invasion of Ukraine, Europe’s second largest nation. The Nuclear Emergency Support Team, or NEST, a shadowy unit of atomic experts run by the security agency, is working with Ukraine to deploy the radiation sensors, train personnel, monitor data and warn of deadly radiation.

CNN —The US has sensitive nuclear technology at a nuclear power plant inside Ukraine and is warning Russia not to touch it, according to a letter the US Department of Energy sent to Russia’s state-owned nuclear energy firm Rosatom last month. The Energy Department warned Rosatom in the letter that it is “unlawful” for any Russian citizens or entities to handle the US technology. The Energy Department’s National Nuclear Security Administration told CNN in a statement that the letter is authentic. “The Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration can confirm that the letter is legitimate,” said Shayela Hassan, the deputy director of public affairs for the National Nuclear Security Administration. She added: “The Secretary of Energy has the statutory responsibility for authorizing the transfer of unclassified civilian nuclear technology and assistance to foreign atomic energy activities.

☆ The US military once blasted airships with nukes on balloons to see if they could drop nuclear bombs on submarines and survive
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Airships were popular in naval combat and briefly considered for the delivery of nuclear weapons. In the 1950s, the military tried to nuclearize almost anything it could, a nuclear history expert said. The tests were a part of Operation Plumbbob's 24 above-ground nuclear tests from May to October 1957. "If we had already used blimps and airships effectively in World War II, then why wouldn't we consider putting nuclear weapons on them?" The US military eventually developed better aircraft and more effective ways of launching nuclear weapons, and the wild idea of using airships to drop nuclear weapons was lost to history.

U.S. scientists have achieved “ignition” — a fusion reaction that produced more energy than it took to create — a critical milestone for nuclear fusion and a step forward in the pursuit of a nearly limitless source of clean energy, Energy Department officials said Tuesday. The process imploded a tiny capsule inside the hohlraum that is filled with deuterium and tritium, creating a fusion reaction. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory"We have taken the first tentative steps toward a clean energy source," said Jill Hruby, the Energy Department's National Nuclear Security Administration. The Inflation Reduction Act provided millions in new funding for fusion projects and the White House this year convened the first fusion summit and developed a 10-year plan to commercialize fusion technology. A technician reviews an optic inside the preamplifier support structure at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in Livermore, Calif., in 2012.

☆ Nuclear fusion breakthrough: Scientists generate more power than used to create reaction
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( Catherine Clifford | In Catclifford | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

Fusion is the way that the sun makes power, but recreating a useful fusion reaction here on earth has eluded scientists for decades. The National Ignition Facility target chamber at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is where scientists shoot lasers and watch and measure what happens when those lasers collide on a fuel source. Reaching ignition means the fusion experiment produced more energy from fusion than the laser energy that used to drive the reaction. "For the first time on Earth, scientists have confirmed a fusion energy experiment released more power than it takes to initiate, proving the physical basis for fusion energy. But it's proven extremely challenging to sustain a fusion reaction here on earth, and scientists have been trying for decades.

☆ White House asks Congress for $500 mln to modernize oil reserve
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Timothy Gardner | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The SPR oil is stored in hollowed-out, underground salt caverns that can shift and potentially require maintenance when petroleum is removed and replaced. The SPR funding was included in the White House's proposal for nearly $38 billion in aid to Ukraine as part of a supplemental funding request. The funding for Ukraine for the duration of the fiscal year would go to defense equipment, humanitarian assistance, and nuclear security support, the White House said. It would also help Ukraine with security of nuclear and radiological materials, and prevent illicit smuggling of nuclear, radiological, and dual-use materials. read moreThe DOE and the White House did not immediately respond to inquiries for more details about why the SPR needs to be modernized.

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