The U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration has successfully conducted a subcritical experiment in Nevada. The experiment is aimed at collecting important data to maintain the safety and effectiveness of nuclear warheads. This is reported by the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), UNN reports.
Details
On the evening of May 14, the U.S. Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration announced the successful completion of a subcritical experiment at the Principal Underground Laboratory for Subcritical Experiments (PULSE) at the Nevada National Security Site. This experiment is the first in the Nimble series, which is conducted in cooperation with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and supported by Los Alamos National Laboratory.
The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) emphasizes the importance of subcritical experiments in gathering important information to maintain the safety, reliability, and effectiveness of U.S. nuclear warheads while avoiding nuclear explosion tests.
Deputy Defense Program Administrator Dr. Marvin Adams emphasized the significance of this achievement.
The success of this subcritical experiment was made possible by the collaboration between our company and our investment in science and technology. We plan to increase the frequency of these experiments to continue collecting important data on nuclear weapons materials without resorting to underground nuclear explosion tests
This step reaffirms the United States' commitment to the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, having observed a moratorium on such tests since 1992.