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Science and Ideas Group - Nuclear Nonproliferation – the Long Game
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About this event
RSVP: Joseph Evinger (jdevinger@comcast.net)
When: Thursday, November 13th, 3:00-4:30 pm
Where: Zoom (click "Zoom" to join event)
Meeting ID: 848 0146 1083
Passcode: science
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Meeting ID: 848 0146 1083
Open to: All
Science and Ideas:
Nuclear Nonproliferation – The Long Game
Presenter: Paul Rockett, PhD (retired)
Nuclear Nonproliferation is a long game, where patience and planning are the ultimate skills. Sometimes called Arms Control, and then Disarmament, Nonproliferation is the business of preventing growth in the number of nuclear weapons worldwide in order to maintain international political stability. Stability enables a reliable economic system, which improves quality of life. Secondarily, it’s goal is the elimination of nuclear weapons; however, to be realistic, that goal should be seen largely as aspirational. Agreements can only be reached when all signatories believe it is in THEIR best interests. Nonproliferation has become an integral part of many countries’ national defense plans, allowing good estimates of competitors’ nuclear war-making capabilities. We will examine the practical concerns of monitoring warheads and materials for treaty compliance, as practiced by various nuclear nations. We’ll also see the intricate local and international bureaucracy set up to make agreements and to monitor signed agreements. Lastly, we’ll try to look into the future to estimate the likely nonproliferation regimes that will still stand a decade from now.
Paul Rockett received his BS in Physics, his MS in Nuclear Engineering, and his PhD in Nuclear Science from the University of Michigan. His first twenty years of research were devoted to the national Laser Fusion and Magnetic Fusion programs, attempting to harness controlled fusion energy for commercial power production. After a diversion into Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography for chip fabrication, he entered the active area of international Nuclear Nonproliferation in 1996. The 1990s were a remarkable time of transparent interaction with the Russian nuclear establishment. The Cooperative Threat Reduction (CTR) program of 1991 initiated an intimate relationship between the US and Russian nuclear programs to contain the Russian program and limit testing. A separate program took 500 tons of Russian highly enriched uranium and down-blended it to low-enriched power reactor fuel, which was then purchased by the US government. Dr. Rockett worked on several CTR projects, taking him to the closed nuclear cities in Russia and to the Semipalatinsk nuclear site. He also contributed to several existing nuclear weapons treaties, directly interacting with representatives from Russia, Israel, and China. His past employers included Los Alamos National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratory in both Albuquerque and Livermore, and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), as well as an eight-year foray into private industry at KMS Fusion Inc. His last years at LLNL were focused upon warhead monitoring approaches for future versions of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty.
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