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Retiring Director Bill Goldstein leaves behind a rich legacy of extraordinary growth, innovation for the Lab

Nearly a year into piloting a major scientific institution through one of the most taxing and disruptive global events in modern history, outgoing Livermore Lab Director Bill Goldstein is ready for a vacation. One of Goldstein’s first orders of business following his retirement on March 1 is returning to the lush slopes, coffee plantations and sandy beaches of Kona, Hawaii…

Tarver honored with American Physical Society award

Craig Tarver, a Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) retiree and consultant to the Lab’s Energetic Materials Center, has been honored with the American Physical Society’s (APS) 2021 George E. Duvall Shock Compression Science Award for “theoretical advancement of the understanding of shock-driven reactions and detonation in condensed phase explosives.” Since 1987,…

Physics of particle dispersion may lend insight into reducing the airborne spread of COVID-19 virus

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientists are leveraging their extensive experience studying the movement of airborne hazards to better understand the movement of virus-like particles through the air and to identify effective countermeasures. DNATrax released in a conference room.While the burden of airborne diseases is known to be large, its true scope is…

Moving to carbon neutrality: one year later

One year after publishing the groundbreaking "Getting to Neutral: Options for Negative Carbon Emissions in California," Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) has become a trusted adviser in the discussion of how to remove carbon dioxide from the air. In the report, LLNL scientists identified a robust suite of technologies to help California clear the last hurdle…

What Hollywood gets wrong, and right, about asteroids

Meet Kirsten Howley, the real-life astrophysicist working to prevent an asteroid “Armageddon” In the 1998 movie “Armageddon,” an asteroid the width of Texas is about to hit Earth. The heroes who stop it in the nick of time are a group of orange-suited Americans, all men. Life isn’t always like the movies. Not that an asteroid couldn’t slam into Earth, mind you. Asteroids —…

Lab team uses giant lasers to compress iron oxide, revealing the secret interior of rocky exoplanets

Advances in astronomical observations have resulted in the discovery of an extraordinary number of extrasolar planets, some of which are believed to have a rocky composition similar to Earth. Learning more about their interior structure could provide important clues about their potential habitability. Led by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), a team of…

Lab develops new method for probing material strength

In an effort to better understand how materials deform under extreme conditions, researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) have developed a new experimental method for probing large-strain and high-rate material strength. In a paper recently published in Acta Materialia, Jonathan Lind, LLNL physicist and lead author, said results of the work aid in…

Lab 3D-prints microbes to enhance biomaterials

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) scientists have developed a new method for 3D printing living microbes in controlled patterns, expanding the potential for using engineered bacteria to recover rare-earth metals, clean wastewater, detect uranium and more. Through a novel technique that uses light and bacteria-infused resin to produce 3D-patterned microbes, the…

Lab publishes fourth ‘Strategic Latency Unleashed’ book

The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's (LLNL) Center for Global Security Research (CGSR) has published the fourth book in its Strategic Latency series — "Strategic Latency Unleashed: The Role of Technology in a Revisionist Global Order and the Implications for Special Operations Forces." Previous volumes in the Latency series have examined the effects of emerging…

Anup Singh selected as new leader for Lab’s Engineering

Anup Singh has been selected as associate director for Engineering at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). Director Bill Goldstein announced the selection Feb. 1. Singh will assume leadership of the directorate beginning Feb. 22. His selection follows a nationwide search launched after previous Associate Director Anantha Krishnan retired in October. As the leader…

Lawrence Livermore’s popular lecture series goes virtual to cover COVID-19

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's (LLNL) popular lecture series, "Science on Saturday," is going virtual in 2021 with the theme “Combating COVID-19.” The series, targeted to middle and high school students, runs Saturdays at 10 a.m. Feb. 6 through Feb. 27. Each Saturday will feature a different lecture presented by leading Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory…

Kim Budil selected as director of Lawrence Livermore

Kim Budil has been named director of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). Charlene Zettel, chair of Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC (LLNS), which manages the Laboratory for the Department of Energy's (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), made the announcement to Laboratory employees Jan. 28. Budil will begin her new role on March 2…

Media advisory: LLNS Board Chair, UC Regent Charlene Zettel to introduce new Lab director

WHO: Charlene Zettel, chair of Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC (LLNS), and a University of California regent, will introduce the 13th director of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. LLNS manages the Laboratory for the U.S. Department of Energy/National Nuclear Security Administration. The new director will replace Director Bill Goldstein, who announced his…

Lab teams earn DOE Secretary Achievement Awards

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) employees, participating in 10 project teams, recently earned Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Achievement Awards. Representing some of the highest internal, non-monetary recognition that DOE employees and contractors can receive, these awards recognize DOE employees and contractors for their service and contributions to…

NIF conducts first-ever shot with explosives

The first-ever shot to study a high explosive sample was recently conducted at the National Ignition Facility (NIF), the world’s most energetic laser. The results from the shot included novel data that will help researchers unlock the mysteries of high-explosive (HE) chemistry and position Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) to continue its legacy as a leader in…

Lab will co-lead NASA mission to study stars, planets

NASA has selected Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) to serve as lead institutions for the Pandora scientific mission that will study 20 stars and their 39 exoplanets. The goal of the Pandora mission is to learn about starspots (akin to sunspots) and identify which of these exoplanets are hydrogen- or water-dominated and…

LLNL and United Kingdom company to collaborate on development of universal coronavirus vaccine

ConserV Bioscience Limited (CBL) and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) have agreed to collaborate on the development of a broad-spectrum or “universal” coronavirus vaccine. This collaboration brings together CBL’s expertise in identifying antigens and LLNL’s nanolipoprotein delivery system. The vaccine has been designed to provide broad-spectrum protection…

Lawrence Livermore's '2020 Year in Review'

Though 2020 was dominated by events surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic — whether it was adapting to social distancing and the need to telecommute, safeguarding employees as they returned to conduct mission-essential work or engaging in COVID-related research — Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) managed an exceptional year in all facets of science and technology…

Lab's ACT-UP awards focus on collaborative research

With a focus on increasing joint research efforts between Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and universities, the Lab’s Weapon Physics and Design (WPD) Academic Collaboration Team (ACT) University Program has awarded this year’s ACT-UP awards. Now in its second year, the ACT-UP awards were created to encourage and advance strategic partnerships among…

Lab's ACT-UP awards focus on collaborative research

With a focus on increasing joint research efforts between Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) and universities, the Lab’s Weapon Physics and Design (WPD) Academic Collaboration Team (ACT) University Program has awarded this year’s ACT-UP awards. Now in its second year, the ACT-UP awards were created to encourage and advance strategic partnerships among…