Weapon program meets safety, design requirements
Sandia has successfully completed another milestone in the B61-12 gravity bomb refurbishment program, demonstrating that the Labs is meeting important nuclear safety and use-control requirements. Sandia is the design and engineering lab for non-nuclear components of the U.S. nuclear stockpile, including the B61-12, and is the technical integrator for the complete weapon, assuring that the system meets requirements as a unit.
A Sandian’s experience with COVID-19
Following his recovery from COVID-19 in March, Sandian Don Lifke describes his experience with the disease and his path to get tested for antibodies. He has donated convalescent plasma and is encouraging anyone who has recovered from COVID-19 to do the same.
NM Capstone Challenge
Three university teams from New Mexico experienced firsthand what it might be like to tackle a national security project at Sandia through the NM Capstone Challenge. The teams had six months to develop an integrated sensing device capable of monitoring multiple environmental conditions during ground transportation of an asset or payload.
Aloha from Mount Haleakalā
After nearly 60 years of service to DOE, NNSA and Sandia, a facility atop Mount Haleakalā on the island of Maui, Hawaii, has been retired. Crews completed demolition and clean-up activities at the facility in March. The site, which sits at an elevation of 10,300 feet above sea level, was used for telemetry operations that provided high-altitude tracking for tests conducted from Sandia’s Kauai Test Facility.
Chuck Loeber’s legacy
Chuck Loeber spent 50 years working in the nuclear weapons complex, with the last 20 as an employee and consultant at Sandia. He helped stand up neutron generator manufacturing in the 1990s and oriented a generation of new hires to Sandia and its responsibilities, teaching the popular History of the Nuclear Weapons Complex courses at the Labs and writing a well-known book on the subject. He died on May 10.
Mission forward
Sandia is using a phased approach to return to normal operations over the coming months, while continuing maximum telework as much as possible.
B61-12 compatible with F-15E Strike Eagle
In early March at Sandia’s Tonopah Test Range, two flight tests were part of a full-weapon system demonstration to verify that the refurbished B61-12 nuclear gravity bomb is compatible with the U.S. Air Force’s F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jet. The final compatibility test was a culmination of years of work that included ground testing and computer simulations as well as flight tests.
Ken Gillen earns lifetime achievement award
Sandia chemist Ken Gillen (retired) recently received the prestigious 2020 Melvin Mooney Distinguished Technology Award, in part for his contributions to Sandia’s polymer aging project. The award honors recipients for their “exceptional technical competence by making significant and repeated contributions to rubber technology.”
American Indian Outreach Committee delivers
Between May 2-9, more than 200 pounds of beans, 150 pounds of rice and nearly 300 rolls of toilet paper were delivered to Zuni Pueblo by Sandia’s American Indian Outreach Committee. The group also delivered canned goods, facemasks, cases of water and prayers.
Sew many masks
In between Skype meetings and other daily work, many employees at Sandia’s Albuquerque campus are helping the community with homemade masks at a time when personal protective equipment is in short supply and reserved primarily for medical staff.