Los Alamos news stories on Newser

Los Alamos Officials Still Confident Lab Is Safe

Thu, 30 Jun 2011 12:14:15 CDT

Los Alamos nuclear laboratory officials say it could be a few days before they'll know the extent of how experiments at the facility that created the first atomic bomb have been affected by a shutdown caused by a 125-square-mile wildfire . The lab has been shut down since Monday, when all...

Wildfire Races to Los Alamos Plutonium

Mary Papenfuss — Wed, 29 Jun 2011 01:20:04 CDT

Desperate firefighters scrambled today to keep a raging New Mexico wildfire from thousands of drums of spent plutonium on the grounds of the Los Alamos nuclear weapons facility. The potential danger has already forced the evacuation of the entire town of Los Alamos and the surrounding area. Officials insisted that...

New Mexico Governor: Let's Skip the Fireworks

John Johnson — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 18:04:37 CDT

With a wildfire burning up her state and threatening the Los Alamos nuclear lab, Gov. Susana Martinez thinks this would be a terrific year to skip the Fourth of July fireworks. She doesn't have the authority to order a statewide ban, so she's merely making an appeal to common sense....

Wildfire Reaches Los Alamos

Rob Quinn — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 02:25:00 CDT

A wildfire raging in New Mexico jumped a highway and set fire to an acre at the edge of the Los Alamos National Laboratory property, triggering the evacuation of thousands of nearby residents. The fire, which hit an area once used for underground tests of radioactive explosives, was extinguished safely...

Wildfire Threatens Los Alamos Nuclear Lab

Evann Gastaldo — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 07:01:09 CDT

It's not a good day to live near a nuclear facility : In New Mexico, a wildfire is edging dangerously close to the Los Alamos National Laboratory, where the world's first nuclear weapons were developed during WWII. "It's a very, very big concern, not only locally but nationally and globally," says...

Accused Los Alamos Physicist Now Under House Arrest

Nick McMaster — Mon, 20 Sep 2010 15:21:46 CDT

The Los Alamos physicist and his wife accused of trying to peddle nuclear secrets to Venezuela were released to house arrest today, the AP reports. While under the impression that he was in touch with agents of Hugo Chavez's government, Pedro Leonardo Mascheroni is charged with offering to help Venezuela...

Feds: We Won't Nuke Gulf Spill

Rob Quinn — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 05:40:00 CDT

The federal government is definitely not considering nuking its way out of the Gulf oil spill crisis, despite some people's belief that it may be the best remaining option, officials said. The Soviet Union has successfully used nuclear blasts to seal off several runaway gas wells, supporters of the nuclear...

Building Explodes in Los Alamos Blunder

Rob Quinn — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 04:17:57 CST

Nuclear researchers at Los Alamos National Laboratory accidentally blew up part of a building this week while testing a gun that acts like a Civil War cannon, according to documents obtained by the Project on Government Oversight. Nobody was injured in the incident, but sources say the bill for the...

Supercomputers Supercharge Research

Katherine Thompson — Fri, 01 May 2009 11:17:59 CDT

It's easier than ever before to get some quality time with one of the most powerful computers on Earth. The Department of Energy has increased the performance of two of its supercomputers more than fivefold, making 900 million processor-hours available to scientists, reports Wired. Expect that boost to lead to...