A publication of the Advanced Simulation & Computing Division, NA-121.2, NNSA Defense Programs
December 2008
NA-ASC-500-08—Issue 9
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Change Is in the Air
Editorial by Bob Meisner
Change is in the air in Washington, as it is across the nation…
It is risky to speculate on the next Administration’s expectations for NNSA and to what level the new team will support our efforts in the service of stockpile stewardship, but the early indications are certainly positive. Secretary Gates, who has agreed to remain a part of the President-elect Obama’s cabinet for at least a year, said at a speech in Minot Air Force Base in North Dakota that America's security depends on a reliable and credible nuclear deterrent. “As long as others have nuclear weapons, we must maintain some level of these weapons ourselves to deter potential adversaries and to reassure over two dozen allies and partners who rely on our nuclear umbrella for their own security, making it unnecessary for them to develop their own.” Clearly, the Secretary of Defense understands our mission, and all indications are that he will support it energetically. For the position of Secretary of Energy, President-elect Obama has nominated a world-renowned physicist, the Director of Lawrence Berkeley labs, Stephen Chu. We know from public statements that a major priority for him will be alternate forms of energy production, and we believe that he will be an effective spokesperson for the scientific underpinnings and the necessity for a deep understanding of the performance of nuclear weapons as well as the avoidance of technological surprise from our potential adversaries. Who better to serve as a champion for science than a Nobel Prize winner in Physics who has been director of a premier science lab in the Department.
Although we look forward to strong support from the next Administration, resources will most certainly be tight. NNSA has put together a proposed 2010 budget for the transition team so that this next budget cycle can be developed on an accelerated time scale. I can tell you that this proposed budget does not reverse the negative trajectory that the ASC program has experienced over the past couple of years, and it can only be made to work by making some hard choices. We are currently being challenged to determine the appropriate level of funding needed to sustain a viable computing and simulation capability for the nuclear weapons program.
To that end, we have initiated an effort, with full involvement and support of the three Defense Program laboratories to understand in detail the specific capabilities that must be preserved in computing and simulation to ensure that the Administration and legislators can make informed decisions about what is required to maintain our nuclear deterrent. I recognize that an essential ingredient of our program is to enable our scientific and engineering staff to think deeply and creatively about the problems that may affect our understanding of the issues facing the stockpile and also about the wider spectrum of threats to our national security and I am committed to ensuring that this component is supported into the future.
I will need all of your help in making the case for the long-term viability of the ASC program. We will need to mount a concerted effort to tell our compelling story to the new team that will take office on January 20th, 2009 about the importance of maintaining a viable capability in support of our nation’s security. We will have a new slate of people who we must inform and educate about what we do and our level of accomplishment in national defense. We have a record to be proud of in our service to the nuclear security of our country, which has enabled the continuance of the testing moratorium. It is the proud achievement of the Defense Program laboratories to have maintained the essential capabilities for 18 years beyond testing, recruiting the best and motivating them to contribute to this national challenge. I am counting on our working together with the Labs to get out our message regarding the crucial nature of our mission and to be sure that it is heard.
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