The Pentagon is accelerating test equipment purchases for initial operational testing and evaluation of the LGM-35A Sentinel to reduce risk and prevent further delays in development of the Northrop Grumman-built intercontinental ballistic missile.
Pentagon acquisition chief William LaPlante signed an Acquisition Decision Memo (ADM) regarding the Sentinel program on March 27, the Defense Department said on May 11.
“The ADM approved prudent actions to reduce schedule and transition risk, specifically, accelerating the procurement of test assets needed for Initial Operational Test and Evaluation and Operational Weapon System Article ground assets,” DOD said in a statement. Sentinel will initially carry the W87-0 thermonuclear warhead, a refurbished version of the W87 from the Minuteman missiles it will replace. Later missiles will carry the W87-1, a newly manufactured copy of the Minuteman’s W78 warhead, but with a fresh plutonium pit. The National Nuclear Security Administration’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory will provide both warheads. The Los Alamos National Laboratory will provide the new pit.
Russia plans to forcibly evacuate about 2,700 Ukrainian staff from the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, Europe’s largest, causing concerns that a lack of qualified personnel could cause a catastrophic meltdown.
Artillery dueling and ground fighting near the plant has repeatedly threatened the plant’s external power supply, causing international observers to fear a nuclear accident that would rival the 1986 explosion at Chernobyl, The Guardian reports. That meltdown contaminated a huge swath of eastern Europe with radioactive material and remains the world’s worst nuclear accident.
The plant’s six reactors have been shut down for months as the war rages on, but they still require external power and staff to operate cooling and safety systems. International Atomic Energy Agency officials have visited the site several times, sometimes under fire, and have attempted to establish a permanent presence there.
Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, the managing and operating contractor at the National Nuclear Security Administration’s Savannah River Site in South Carolina, received a gold-level recognition by the American Heart Association for its commitment to employee health and well-being, according to the Aiken Standard.
The association evaluated factors such as mental health policies, organizational well-being strategies to address burnout, health equity measures and employee financial resources to provide a comprehensive assessment of an organization’s culture of health.
“SRNS prioritizes the physical and mental safety of each employee,” Sean Alford, executive vice president and chief administrative officer, was quoted as saying. “Our recent participation in this program and recognition of gold status validates this commitment and we are thankful.”
Two Los Alamos National Laboratory staff members, Marianne Francois and Michael Pettes were named fellows in the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, having been nominated by their society peers and based on their engineering achievements.
Francois, leader of the Theoretical division, was nominated for significant contributions in research and leadership. Francois is an expert in computational multiphase flow, heat transfer, materials processing and associated numerical methods, according to the lab.
Pettes is a scientist and deputy group leader at the Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies. He was recognized for his contributions to strain and defect engineering as well as service and leadership in mechanical engineering. His contributions focus on engineering materials to impart new functionalities relevant to applications in energy, optical communications and mechanical performance.
