On the job in Los Alamos at the U.S. Dept. of Energy’s Environmental Management – Los Alamos Field Office (EM-LA) Wednesday is analyst Allison Scott Majure, left, speaking with EM-LA’s Acting Director of Cleanup Execution Cheryl Rodriguez. When EM was first established in 1989 it was responsible for the cleanup of 107 sites in 35 states. Today, only 16 sites remain including Los Alamos National Laboratory. Locally, EM-LA oversees cleanup contractor N3B to investigate hazardous contamination that resulted from the Manhattan Era/Cold War period of LANL operations and then remediate sites Read More
Energy
Governor Lujan Grisham, Attorney General Torrez On Holtec License Decision: ‘We Will Not Stop Our Fight To Protect New Mexico From Becoming A Nuclear Dumping Ground’
STATE News:
New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham and Attorney General Raúl Torrez issued a joint statement following the decision by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission to grant a license to Holtec International for an interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel.
“This decision by the NRC – which has been made despite the grave concerns of the state and the legislature over the project’s potential impacts to health, safety and the economy – is incredibly disappointing. It also undermines the NRC’s alleged commitment to meaningful engagement with stakeholders, as it appears Read More
LANL: Strings Of Magnetic Energy Shown To Flex, Wiggle And Reconnect
A microscopy snapshot of a lattice of frustrated nanomagnets. The red lines connect dynamic points of high energy at the vertices of the lattice, which are indicated by the yellow dots. Courtesy/LANL
LANL News:
- Arrays of nanomagnets have string structures with complex topological processes
A multi-institutional team exploring the physics of collective behavior has developed and measured a model nanomagnetic array in which the behavior can be best understood as that of a set of wiggling strings. The strings, which are composed of connected points of high energy among the lattice, can stretch Read More
NNSA Awards $428 Million Phase II Contract To Nuclear Fuel Services For Uranium Purification And Conversion
NNSA News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration awarded a $428,050,945 Phase II contract to Nuclear Fuel Services (NFS).
This follow-on contract establishes capabilities for initial production and up to two years of full production for the purification and conversion of highly enriched uranium (HEU) and very highly enriched uranium (VHEU).
NNSA is modernizing facilities, equipment and processes used at the Y-12 National Security Complex to recycle and recover HEU. A Phase II contract will ensure an oxide-to-metal conversion Read More
Idaho Waste Treatment Facility Begins Operations To Address Tank Waste
Inside the Integrated Waste Treatment Unit control room as operators prepare to introduce radiological sodium-bearing liquid waste into the facility Tuesday. Courtesy/DOE
EM Senior Advisor William “Ike” White and Idaho Cleanup Project Manager Connie Flohr, at center, thank Integrated Waste Treatment Unit staff at the Idaho National Laboratory Site in late March as they prepared for the start of radiological operations that will convert 900,000 gallons of sodium-bearing liquid waste to a dried, granular solid. EM Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Jeff Avery Read More
Los Alamos National Laboratory Celebrating 80 Years Of Science, Innovation And Discovery Entire Month Of April
Courtesy/LANL
LANL News:
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) has designated the entire month of April for its 80th birthday bash.
The public is invited to take part in the celebration by attending a talk by historian Madeline Whitacre from the Lab’s National Security Research Center, where she’ll discuss the facts, photos and stories from the Lab’s origins, on April 17, 5:30 – 7 p.m. at ProjectY in Los Alamos.
Video gives a peek at rare footage
Additionally, you can see rare footage of the Laboratory’s history in this video, where Senior Historian Alan Carr narrates the story of the Lab from Read More
St. John’s College Santa Fe Goes 100% Solar
New solar installation to be unveiled on Earth Day April 22 at St. John’s College. Photo by Kevin Lange
SANTA FE — St. John’s College President Mark Roosevelt will cut the ribbon on a new grid-tied solar installation at noon Saturday, April 22. The installation will generate 100% of the campus’s electricity and includes 1,670 solar panels and 20 electric vehicle charging stations for use by the St. John’s community.
“At St. John’s College, we are proud to be moving forward on multiple fronts The implementation of these sustainable solutions ensures that our campus facilities and student offerings Read More
NNSA Establishes Advisory Committee For Nuclear Security
NNSA News:
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has established the Advisory Committee for Nuclear Security (ACNS).
Formerly known as the Defense Programs Advisory Committee, the newly formed ACNS enlists experts with knowledge that spans the full range of the NNSA missions to provide independent advice and recommendations to NNSA leadership. The ACNS will provide insight on the stewardship and modernization of the nation’s nuclear stockpile and enterprise, nuclear nonproliferation and arms control, and counterterrorism Read More
Public Shares Thoughts On WIPP, Nuclear Pit Production With NNSA & DOE EM Officials At Santa Fe Town Hall
Scene from tonight’s town hall at the Santa Fe Community Convention Center. Courtesy photo 
Speaking at tonight’s town hall, from left, Ike White, Senior Advisor for DOE and EM; Jill Hruby, Under Secretary for Nuclear Security/NNSA Administrator and moderator Anna Hansen, SF County Commission Chair. Courtesy photoStaff Report:
More than 200 people attend a Town Hall this evening at the Santa Fe Community Convention Center in collaboration with Jill Hruby, Under Secretary for Nuclear Security and Administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), and Ike White, Senior Read More
White House Honors Former Los Alamos Nuclear Chemist Darleane C. Hoffman With Enrico Fermi Presidential Award
Darleane C. Hoffman
LANL News:
-
-
-
-
- One of the highest science and technology honors bestowed by the U.S. government
-
-
-
Darleane C. Hoffman, a nuclear chemist who spent a significant part of her career at Los Alamos National Laboratory, has been honored with the Enrico Fermi Presidential Award, which is administered on behalf of the White House by the U.S. Department of Energy.
Hoffman is recognized for scientific discoveries advancing the field of nuclear and radiochemistry, for distinguished service to DOE’s missions in national security and nuclear waste management, and for sustained leadership Read More