-
Work Toward a Cleaner Way to Purify Critical Metals
Rare-earth elements are everywhere in modern life. However, purifying these critical metals from ores with complex mixtures is a nasty business involving strong acids and hazardous solvents, and is primarily conducted in China. Sandia team studies selective sponges for rare-earth elements.
-
-
SARCOP: One Team. One Mission. One Map.
The Search and Rescue Common Operating Platform (SARCOP) aggregates multiple emergency management applications and advanced geospatial analytics into a single dashboard, giving response agencies enhanced situational awareness when every second counts.
-
-
Pagers and Walkie-talkies Over Cellphones – a Security Expert Explains Why Hezbollah Went Low-Tech for Communications
In general, I believe the adversary in an asymmetric conflict using low-tech techniques, tactics and technology will almost always be able to operate successfully against a more powerful and well-funded opponent. But from a cybersecurity perspective, Israel’s attack on Hezbollah’s pagers shows that any device in your life can be tampered with by an adversary at points along the supply chain – long before you even receive it.
-
-
AI Safety Research, Testing and Evaluation with Anthropic and OpenAI
First-of-their-kind agreements between the U.S. government and industry will help advance safe and trustworthy AI innovation for all.
-
-
Study: AI Could Lead to Inconsistent Outcomes in Home Surveillance
Researchers find large language models make inconsistent decisions about whether to call the police when analyzing surveillance videos.
-
-
Why Experts Are Calling for a New Strategy to Improve U.S. Access to Semiconductors ― The Technology that Underpins Artificial Intelligence
While the U.S. first developed semiconductors and led globally in semiconductor development and manufacturing in the last century, today it produces just 12% of all semiconductors. A new report from the National Academies recommends actions for the U.S. Department of Defense ― coordinating with the commercial sector, universities, and other parts of government ― to secure its access to this critical technology.
-
-
Planning the Future of America’s Vast Electric Grid
America’s electric grid is one of the largest and most complicated pieces of infrastructure ever built. It is intended to deliver electricity nearly 100% of the time in any situation. And it will soon be called upon to accommodate renewables and more electric demand.
-
-
New Method for Fingerprint Analysis Holds Great Promise
Overlapping and weak fingerprints pose challenges in criminal cases. A new study offers a solution and brings hope for using chemical residues in fingerprints for personal profiling.
-
-
Dams Built to Prevent Coastal Flooding Can Worsen It
The common practice of building dams to prevent flooding can actually contribute to more intense coastal flood events, according to a new study. Those massive infrastructure projects are surging in popularity globally, in part to help offset intensifying storms, salt intrusion and sea-level rise fueled by climate change.
-
-
The Gulf Coast Is Sinking, Making Hurricanes Like Francine Even More Dangerous
Hurricane Francine hits low-lying Louisiana. Subsidence could make the storm surge worse: Because so much of southern Louisiana sits at or below sea level, the surge could race inland unimpeded.
-
-
Cybersecurity Suite Now on Duty Defending the Nation
For the better part of a decade, dozens of Sandia engineers, each working on pieces of a new national security tool alongside federal partners, have revolutionized cybersecurity forensics with the Thorium platform and tool suite.
-
-
NASA, Partners Conduct Fifth Asteroid Impact Exercise
Although there are no known significant asteroid impact threats for the foreseeable future, hypothetical exercises provide valuable insights by exploring the risks, response options, and opportunities for collaboration posed by varying scenarios, from minor regional damage with little warning to potential global catastrophes predicted years or even decades in the future.
-
-
Longer-Lasting EV Batteries, Hasten Energy Transition
Batteries lose capacity over time, which is why older cellphones run out of power more quickly. This common phenomenon, however, is not completely understood. Now, researchers have revealed the underlying mechanism behind such battery degradation.
-
-
Argonne Leads the Way in Hydropower
As governments invest in renewable energy sources to help speed towards the goal of decarbonization, hydropower offers a promising complement to wind and solar, and Argonne is at the forefront of this research.
-
-
Missile Test Helps Launch Mk21 Fuze into U.S. Nuclear Stockpile
The June test launch of a Minuteman III from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California was the last in a series of planned activities designed to demonstrate the operational effectiveness of the Mk21 Fuze, providing proof to the U.S. Air Force that it is ready to be accepted into the U.S. nuclear stockpile.
-
The long view
Nuclear Has Changed. Will the U.S. Change with It?
Fueled by artificial intelligence, cloud service providers, and ambitious new climate regulations, U.S. demand for carbon-free electricity is on the rise. In response, analysts and lawmakers are taking a fresh look at a controversial energy source: nuclear power.
Huge Areas May Face Possibly Fatal Heat Waves if Warming Continues
A new assessment warns that if Earth’s average temperature reaches 2 degrees C over the preindustrial average, widespread areas may become too hot during extreme heat events for many people to survive without artificial cooling.
Exploring the New Nuclear Energy Landscape
In the last few years, the U.S. has seen a resurgence of interest in nuclear energy and its potential for helping meet the nation’s growing demands for clean electricity and energy security. Meanwhile, nuclear energy technologies themselves have advanced, opening up new possibilities for their use.