National Technical Nuclear Forensics Systems

Abstract

National Technical Nuclear Forensics (NTNF) is the only Department of Defense (DoD) program focused on advanced development of new capabilities that support the U.S. Government's ability to deter adversaries through our ability to attribute the use or attempted use of nuclear weapons or the source of any nuclear or radiological attack. The ability to identify the source of nuclear material from radioactive debris is critical to our national defense and security. Swift and accurate forensic and attribution (identification) capabilities are vital to supporting the President and Secretary of Defense in developing an appropriate national response to a nuclear event and to prevent future attacks in a timely manner. An effective attribution capability provides the United States (U.S.) Government deterrent against nations who may use proxies or other non-traditional delivery of nuclear weapons against the U.S., U.S. interests, or allies. Additionally, this program sustains perishable U.S. technical expertise at the operational DoD laboratories required to respond to a post-detonation NTNF event. DoD's laboratory capability is limited by capacity and technical expertise. In fiscal year (FY) 2018, Departments and Agencies began to shift research and development from NTNF to other mission areas. This resulted in degradation of the DoD's (and by default, the U.S. Government's) ability to execute the nuclear forensics mission and deter adversaries. Reemphasizing the importance of this mission is crucial to the success of this program. This PE can fund travel to support the requirements of this program.

Document Details

• Document Type: Project
• Publication Date: Oct 01, 2021
• Source ID: 040_0603161D8Z_4_0400_PB_2021

Tags

Readers

• Critical Infrastructure Protection in CBRN and WMD Threats.
• Defense Technology Research and Development.
• Nuclear Non-Proliferation and International Security