Evidence from the nuclear testing program that helps us understand how long the plutonium pits in the stockpile will last is the focus of a Classified Director's Colloquium by a noted weapon designer on Thursday.
Laboratory Fellow John Pedicini of Primary Design and Assessment (X-4) will speak on "Aging: The View from the Nevada Test Site," at 1:10 p.m., in the Administration Building Auditorium at Technical Area 3.
All attendees must be U.S nationals who hold "Q" clearances and have sigmas 1-10 assigned by line management. For more information, click here.
"Pit lifetimes are of great concern to national security," Pedicini said. "If the lifetimes are estimated too short, the nation will spend billions on unnecessary replacement pits. If the lifetimes are estimated too long, then the nuclear deterrent is placed at risk."
The best data to accurately estimate pit lifetimes estimates comes from nuclear testing, he said, adding that he will explore in his talk the most relevant tests and how he and other designers use that data to estimate pit lifetimes.
Such estimates are crucial to the Department of Energy's plans for a Modern Pit Facility and to the success of the Reliable Replacement Warhead program, Pedicini added.
Pedicini joined the Laboratory in 1981 as a nuclear weapon designer. He played key roles in 13 nuclear tests, and was lead designer on five of those. He is known for creating several new concept designs and has authored major publications in nuclear intelligence and nuclear proliferation.
During his career at Los Alamos, Pedicini has held various management posts, including leadership of the advanced nuclear weapons design team. He has earned numerous DOE Nuclear Weapons awards of Excellence and Los Alamos Distinguished Performance awards, and was named a Laboratory Fellow in 1996.
Pedicini currently works on plutonium aging research and design concepts for robust replacement warheads. Both projects are outgrowths of original work he proposed in 1995.
Pedicini holds a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from Purdue University and a doctorate in nuclear engineering from the University of Illinois.
The goal for the director's classified colloquium series is to disseminate important and interesting information on classified scientific topics to Los Alamos technical staff. The talks are planned to help inform a wide audience of Los Alamos' major classified scientific research and to stimulate discussions within an appropriate, secure environment, ultimately leading to future ideas and initiatives that will advance classified programs.
Transportation is available by calling 7-TAXI (7-8294) and indicating that you are attending the Classified Colloquium.
