Los Alamos Press Highlights

Roadrunner led the way for the lab

LANL’s Roadrunner supercomputer

The year was the best of times and the second best of times for Los Alamos National Laboratory’s high performance supercomputer, the Roadrunner. In May the Roadrunner was named the speediest supercomputer in the world for the third half-year in a row, a lifetime at the top, in terms of supercomputer years. Full Story.

(Roadrunner is one of LANL’s Top 10 Science Stories for 2009)



LANL project can help airport security

Michelle Espy, leads the LANL effort to develop MagViz. (LANL photo)

U.S. Rep. Ben Ray Luján is urging the Department of Homeland Security to help speed up the implementation of liquid scanning technology being developed at Los Alamos National Laboratory in light of a failed Christmas Day airline attack. Full Story.




Faster-than-light pulsar phenomena

Pulsar at the center of the Crab Nebula, imaged
by NASA’s Chandra spacecraft.

Andrea Schmidt and John Singleton of Los Alamos National Laboratory provide detailed analyses of several pieces of observational data that suggest that pulsars emit the electromagnetic equivalent of the well-known "sonic boom" from accelerating supersonic aircraft. Full Story.


Also covered by the Los Alamos Monitor:

Light slingers
LANL team presents “faster than light” analysis

Among the astonishing concepts coming into view at this year’s American Astronomical Society was a homegrown explanation for how pulsars sling light through the universe. John Singleton and Andrea Schmidt of Los Alamos National Laboratory have taken their observational analysis of a poorly understood cosmic phenomenon to the Marriott Wardman Park in Washington, D.C., as part of what is expected to be the largest gathering of astronomers in history. Full Story.

Covered as well in Universe Today:

Faster-than-light pulsar phenomena

Observational data from nine pulsars, including the Crab pulsar, suggest these rapidly spinning neutron stars emit the electromagnetic equivalent of a sonic boom, and a model created to understand this phenomenon shows that the source of the emissions could be traveling faster than the speed of light. Full Story.



Scientists study link between lightning in a hurricane and intensity of the storm

2005’s Hurricane Katrina. NASA image.

It turns out that lightning and nuclear bombs have a lot in common. Both release radio waves at different frequencies, which is why some scientists at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico are now turning their attention to hurricanes. Full Story.




Hand-held devices will detect infectious pathogens

A new high-tech device to detect dangerous pathogens in ordinary medical situations is being developed through a partnership between Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and Biomagnetics Diagnostics Corporation (BMCP). Full Story.



LANL details dealings with small businesses

In fiscal year 2009, Los Alamos National Laboratory committed to more than $1 billion of multi-year purchase orders/subcontracts to small businesses. Story in brief.



How would Manhattan Project historical park work?

Restored buildings at LANL’s WWII-era V Site. LANL photo.

With a Manhattan Project National Historical Park having taken its first steps toward becoming a reality, officials now must determine how the park could work within the Los Alamos community. Full Story.



NNSA, DoD partnership generates technologies to meet warfighting needs

The Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration and the Department of Defense today recognized the 25th anniversary of a joint program between NNSA and the Department of Defense that has contributed to the development of advanced technologies necessary to meet warfighting needs and improve non-nuclear munitions. Full Story.



Tech Management to pair students with Socorro businesses

The Management Department at New Mexico Tech and the national laboratories are partnering on a new project to pair management and engineering students with Socorro small businesses.

The Animal Haven project, funded by Los Alamos National Laboratory, is focused on developing an inexpensive technology solution to a manual recordkeeping problem. The project team’s task is to devise a stream-lined method of digitally tracking medications at the veterinary clinic. Full Story.


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