Nuclear
Sen. Edward J. Markey (D-MA) is lending full support to the Committee on Oversight and Reform’s effort to continue oversight of the U.S. / Saudi Arabia civil nuclear cooperation agreement.
Committee officials recently released a report calling for increased Congressional direction in the... Read More »
Extreme weather events, a CBRN incident, cyberthreats and infectious diseases having pandemic potential all put Americans on notice for 21st century health security hazards, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) says in its newly developed National Health Security Strategy... Read More »
The United States is backing out of the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF Treaty) with Russia citing Russia’s failure to comply with the treaty.
The INF Treaty was signed in 1987 in the waning days of the former Soviet Union by U.S. President Ronald Reagan and Soviet General... Read More »
Calling the United States nuclear strategy outdated, U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and U.S. Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA) introduced Wednesday bicameral legislation that would keep the nation from ever being the first to use nuclear weapons.
The No First Use Act would undo existing policy, which... Read More »
U.S. Sen. Ed Markey (D-MA) and Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) reintroduced legislation to prevent the president from launching a nuclear first strike without congressional approval.
Their bill, the Restricting First Use of Nuclear Weapons Act of 2019 (H.R.669/S.200), was also introduced in the 115th... Read More »
The Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is partnering with medical isotope producers to enhance nuclear explosion monitoring initiatives.
The collaboration involves monitor installation to lend greater insight regarding emission levels and timing. The endeavor... Read More »
The Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (DOE/NNSA) has awarded a pair of university consortia grants totaling $50 million as a means of bolstering nuclear security.
NNSA officials said the Georgia Institute of Technology-led Consortium for Enabling Technologies &... Read More »
Smiths Detection has secured a contract with the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction office (CWMD) to provide radiation portal monitors (RPM).
Officials said the indefinite-delivery-indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) agreement has a $291 million ceiling,... Read More »
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) held the largest training course on the creation and management of dosimetry labs last week, preparing more than ever in the measuring of radiation doses.
"In scope and reach, this training represents a milestone in our efforts to boost dosimetry... Read More »
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has awarded Argentum Medical — a company whose invention is widely-used by the military to treat wounds and burns — $8.4 million to continue research on their product to determine its efficacy on radiological injuries after... Read More »
Pointing to the wealth of data potential locked in the wrist watch-style health monitors developed by Israeli company Biobeat Technologies Ltd., the U.S. Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority’s (BARDA) Division of Research, Innovation, and Ventures (DRIVe) is fronting nearly... Read More »
A new report released by the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) and Moscow-based Center for Energy and Security Studies (CENESS) maintains that sustained regional dialogue is essential to addressing Central Asia's radioactive source security challenges.
“Largely as a result of poor... Read More »
Several U.S. senators have expressed concern with President Donald Trump expressed intention to pull the United States out of the Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty.
The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty is an arms control agreement between the United States and Russia, then... Read More »
The U.S. Air Force completed field testing last month of an improved chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) protective mask for crews on rotary wing aircraft.
The Joint Service Aircrew Mask – Rotary Wing replaces the Aircrew Eye and Respiratory Protection system on HH-60G Pave... Read More »
A group of U.S. Senators recently introduced legislation that would stop the United States from entering into a 21st Century nuclear arms race.
The Prevention of Arms Race Act of 2018 is sponsored by Sens. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Edward Markey... Read More »
The Accident Response Group (ARG), a group of technical experts within the Department of Energy (DOE) meant to respond to nuclear weapons accidents, has been regrouped into the Military Liaison Department, more closely aligning it with military interests.
Department officials hope that this will... Read More »
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is assisting the Departments of Defense and Energy in updating 10-year nuclear arsenal cost estimates and reporting them to Congress.
GAO officials said an essential element of the effort involves capturing fundamental programmatic changes in nuclear... Read More »
The Department of Energy (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) recently released its annual reports outlining its efforts to maintain the U.S. nuclear stockpile and prevent the spread of nuclear weapons.
“The Trump Administration’s 2018 Nuclear Posture Review sets a clear... Read More »
Triad National Security (Triad) recently began the management and operation of the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico.
In June, Triad signed a contract with the U.S. Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). The contract took effect Thursday and expires... Read More »
In the wake of recent developments in Saudi Arabia, several lawmakers are seeking suspension of civil nuclear cooperation talks with that nation's government.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee member Sen. Edward J. Markey (D-MA) has forwarded correspondence to President Donald Trump requesting... Read More »
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) recently met with waste management personnel to discuss safe, efficient disposal of high level radioactive waste (HLW) and spent nuclear fuel.
The session at the IAEA in Vienna included a delegation from the International Association for... Read More »
The West and Russia have increasingly different interpretations of strategic stability, according to a survey of U.S., Russian, and European experts conducted by the Nuclear Threat Initiative.
These differences increase the risk of miscalculation, nuclear competition, and escalation.... Read More »
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) launched a new training course on protecting nuclear facilities from cyberattacks.
The course, called Protecting Computer-Based Systems in Nuclear Security Regimes, brought together 37 participants from 13 countries for two weeks of training on best... Read More »
Department of Energy (DOE) officials said the agency has adopted national security measures designed to prevent China’s diversion of U.S. civil nuclear technology for military or other unauthorized purposes.
“The United States cannot ignore the national security implications of China’s... Read More »
The Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) announced this week that a strategic partnership between the department and Johnson & Johnson will seek to advance efforts against chemical, biological, radiation, nuclear, disease, and antimicrobial threats in the United States.
The two... Read More »
A recently released Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) report suggests nuclear weapons and related systems are increasingly vulnerable to cyberattacks and implores nuclear-armed states to take measures to prevent attacks.
“Nuclear Weapons in the New CyberAge: A Report of the Cyber-Nuclear Weapons... Read More »
The U.S. House of Representatives on Tuesday advanced bipartisan legislation sponsored by U.S. Rep. Susan Brooks (R-IN) to bolster America’s preparedness and response to public health emergencies, including biological threats like emerging infectious diseases, as well as chemical, bio or nuclear... Read More »
The bicameral Hold the Low-Yield Nuclear Explosive Act, or the Hold the LYNE Act, was introduced in Congress on Sept. 18, a measure that would prohibit the research, development, production and deployment of a low-yield nuclear warhead for submarine-launched ballistic missiles.
The legislation,... Read More »
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is recommending the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) provide funding estimates for its mandated nuclear proliferation plan.
A federal law introduced in 2015 and 2017 directed the President to submit a proliferation plan to Congress. A... Read More »
At a meeting of the International Partnership for Nuclear Disarmament Verification (IPNDV) Joint Working Group in Seoul earlier this summer, experts announced their intentions to take ideas for the nuclear dismantlement lifecycle into exercises and technology demonstrations.
This second phase is... Read More »
Eric Moore, director of the U.S. Army Research, Development and Engineering Command Chemical & Biological Center (RDECOM C&B) recently spoke at an industry conference about technology and innovation in development to bolster chemical and biological defense.
The CBRN (chemical, biological,... Read More »
An updated database released this week has identified more than 170 incidents of nuclear and radioactive material trafficking across 14 countries in 2017.
Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) officials said the Global Incidents and Trafficking Database, produced for NTI by the Center for... Read More »
Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) officials will be participating in several discussion panels presented at the Institute of Nuclear Materials Management’s (INMM) 59th annual meeting this week in Baltimore, Md.
NTI Vice President Corey Hinderstein provided opening remarks at the first plenary... Read More »
Following identification of the need to quickly share information across jurisdictions, the Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) of the Department of Homeland Security has been working with the RadResponder network on several national, radiation-focused tools.
This partnership has been in... Read More »
A comprehensive update to the nation’s soon-to-expire pandemic and all-hazards law has been unveiled in the U.S. House where Energy and Commerce Committee members have painstakingly produced a bipartisan reauthorization to bolster America’s defense against chemical, biological, radiological or... Read More »
