The annual certification of the nuclear weapons stockpile is Sandia’s most important responsibility, according to Labs Director Laura McGill. Sandia’s stockpile teams work throughout the year, conducting tests and analyses to verify that the weapons are safe, secure, reliable and effective.

“Our modernization programs are still critically important and get a lot of attention, but the deployed stockpile serves as the foundation for the U.S. national defense strategy,” Laura said, shortly after signing the annual stockpile assessment letter in her office Sept. 22.

The letter, which is sent to Secretary of Energy Chris Wright and ultimately to the president and Congress, provides a summary of the reliability of each system in the stockpile.

As part of the certification, at least one of each weapon system in the stockpile is brought through the Pantex Plant in Amarillo, Texas, to be tested and examined. Engineers and scientists perform a variety of nonnuclear testing, including detailed inspection of components and material samples.

Laura explained that Sandia has continued to expand testing capabilities to reflect more real-world combined environments.

“The superfuge allows us to test acceleration, spin, vibration and shock all at the same time,” she said. “The hardware reacts differently when you conduct these tests simultaneously. This also gives us better data to validate our models and simulations.”

In addition to testing, the yearlong process includes briefings and synthesizing data into a single report.

“A lot of work goes into this. We also have three independent teams that conduct their own assessments, bringing different perspectives and raising questions to make sure we have not missed something,” Laura said. “I’m grateful to the team of engineers and scientists for their critical thinking, rigor and level of detail that goes into this process.”

Sandia’s letter focuses on its area of responsibility for weapon systems and includes updates on modernization programs, since they will be part of the future stockpile.

Directors from Los Alamos and Lawrence Livermore national laboratories and the commander of U.S. Strategic Command also submit annual stockpile assessment letters for their areas of responsibility.

While Laura has spent her career working in defense, and the last four in nuclear deterrence, this is her first time signing the letter.

“There is a weight that comes with this responsibility,” she said. “I’m proud of Sandia’s work, and I am absolutely confident in the stockpile.”