First 3D Simulations of Complete Nuclear Detonations

jhiv writes: "The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) reports that 'Los Alamos and Lawrence Livermore national laboratories have completed the first full-system three-dimensional simulations of a nuclear weapon's explosion'. The simulations are two of the largest computer simulations ever attempted, each taking weeks to complete on the ASCI White supercomputer. The Los Alamos team used the ASCI Blue Mountain supercomputer to visualize the results. Additional coverage can be found in this story in the Albuquerque Journal."

Comments

Sorry - you're wrong.

[Werelock]

I actually did a paper a year ago on the need for a science court in US governmental decision making. One of the key points I kept running into in my research was that nothing science related a first year president pushes for, or even gets through, will be seen before he leaves office - even if he does two turns. Each project gets re-evaluated by the president, committees, congress, etc repeatedly throughout it's life. Usually the next president either downsizes it, kills it, upsizes it, or ignores it. They rarely say "that's cool as it is, just give them the same amount this year." Most science required 3 or 4 terms before results were truly seen.

So, in all actuallity, Clinton either started this or continued it on from his predecessor. GWB had jack to do with it other than to see the results and maybe a final bill.

-JD

Re:What exacly are they trying to learn?

[Bistromat]

They're trying to learn how to improve the efficiency of the weapons. Early nukes, such as the infamous two dropped on Japan, fissioned only about 2% of the nuclear material they contained. By using different detonator explosive configurations, different neutron sources, and different case materials and arrangements scientists can improve the yield of these weapons without increasing the amount of fissionable material going into them. It's on the bleeding edge of physics, so testing is the only way to verify that the new technologies they use will actually work if, say, they need to drop these things on someone.

That said, the early nuclear tests were conducted in such an irresponsible and criminally negligent manner that hundreds of thousands of Americans were radiologically poisoned by iodine fallout from the atmospheric blasts in Nevada. The government sometimes has its own agenda, and that agenda need not involve the people.