Lab, Former NIF Director Ed Moses, Part Ways
NS&D Monitor
9/5/2014
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and former National Ignition Facility Director Ed Moses are officially parting ways, with Moses accepting a job as the president of the Giant Magellan Telescope Organization. Moses was the director of NIF through its conception, construction and early operations, serving as the Principal Associate Director for NIF and Photon Science in 2012 after the facility failed to reach ignition. Last year, he was moved to a position to explore commercial prospects for laser inertial fusion energy as the lab revamped its approach to pursuing ignition. He will officially leave the lab Oct. 2.
The $1 billion Giant Magellan Telescope is a 25-meter telescope that will be housed at the Las Campanas Observatory in Chile. It is designed to search for extraterrestrial life, examining outer space in greater detail than ever before. “This is a tremendous opportunity to take part in a revolutionary telescope project that will change the nature of our understanding of the cosmos,” Moses said in a statement. “I am proud to have been a part of the LLNL community for 35 years and have been privileged to work with the greatest minds and personalities on the most challenging scientific and technical problems. I leave with the greatest admiration for the people and mission of the Lab.”
Under Moses, NIF was a lightning rod for controversy and the subject of considerable criticism from anti-nuclear activist groups. The facility was completed in 2009 for $3.5 billion, but its critics have noted that the project was initially billed as a $700 million endeavor and was later estimated to cost $2.1 billion before the project was re-baselined in 2000. NIF failed to achieve ignition in 2012 as planned, and the laboratory has rebalanced shots on the massive laser in favor of shots designed to improve knowledge for the Stockpile Stewardship Program while opening up the facility to outside users as well. At the same time, the lab has taken a more measured approach in the quest for ignition and has made several gains, including achieving a fuel gain greater than 1 for the first time.
