NNSA serves as the premier technical leader in responding to and successfully resolving nuclear and radiological threats worldwide. When the need arises, NNSA is prepared to respond immediately to any type of nuclear or radiological accident or incident.
Part of NNSA's mission is to protect the public, environment, and emergency responders from both terrorist and non-terrorist events by providing a responsive, flexible, efficient, and effective radiological emergency response framework and capability for the nation. This mission is accomplished by applying NNSA’s unique technical expertise residing within the Department of Energy's national laboratories.
NNSA's core competencies include concrete knowledge of U.S. nuclear weapons, radiological dispersal devices, improvised nuclear devices, and specific specialties in spectroscopy, device modeling, radiography, and device assessment technology. Additional core competencies include attribution, weapon effects, technical evaluation of consequence management radiological data, medical care, and advice for individuals exposed to ionizing radiation.
Our emergency response efforts include:
NNSA also has a variety of emergency response assets. These assets encompass four core competencies: core knowledge of U.S. nuclear weapons, “dirty bombs” and crude nuclear devices; core knowledge of use and interpretation of specialized radiation detection equipment; core technical operations; and core technical support requirements. The assets are: