Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory had another exceptional year pushing the frontiers of science and technology to strengthen national security in a rapidly changing world
FY 2024 was an extraordinary year for Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). We are delivering on our commitments to modernize the nation’s nuclear weapons stockpile and making remarkable progress in developing game-changing science and technology (S&T) capabilities. Our goal is to accelerate the pace of scientific discovery and our nation’s ability to anticipate and respond to emerging national security threats in a rapidly evolving environment. This goal builds on our heritage as a multidisciplinary “big ideas” laboratory, and it requires forging strong collaborations within the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and with strategic partners in other key government agencies, industry, and academia.
Modernizing the Stockpile
As our Annual Report describes, we are engaged in two programs to modernize stockpile systems: the W80-4 Life Extension Program, a warhead that will be carried on the all-new Long-Range Standoff missile, and the W87-1 Modification Program, a warhead for the Sentinel ballistic missile being developed by the U.S. Air Force. The W87-1 will be the first modern warhead that is 100 percent newly manufactured. Through close partnerships with the NNSA laboratories, plants, and sites, we are developing and applying new manufacturing technologies and business processes to improve efficiencies, lower costs, and increase NNSA’s agility. This work is a team effort within the NNSA’s Nuclear Security Enterprise (NSE). A key team success in FY 2024 was the production of the first “war reserve” W87-1 plutonium pit—designed by LLNL and manufactured at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), with work at both laboratories contributing to certification.
Certification of the new warheads depends on key capabilities, such as the National Ignition Facility (NIF) and El Capitan. NIF, which achieved a record- setting target gain > 2 by producing 5.2 megajoules (MJ) of energy in a fusion experiment, is providing data on the performance of materials and components including as they age and in nuclear threat environments. The facility is undergoing refurbishment to extend its lifetime into the 2040s and plans are moving forward for the NIF Enhanced Yield project to upgrade NIF laser energy and make fusion yields of 30 MJ possible. The arrival of El Capitan, the world’s most powerful supercomputer, increases NNSA’s high-performance computing (HPC) power by about a factor of twenty. Exascale computing (see Strategic Deterrence) enables multiple runs of high-fidelity 3D multi-physics simulation models to support certification and wide-ranging national security projects performed at the three NNSA laboratories. Importantly, the combination of exascale computing, advanced experimental capabilities, and rapidly advancing tools like AI coupled with precision additive manufacturing is revolutionizing how we design, engineer, and ultimately produce new capabilities.
Redefining Manufacturing with AI
In the 1950s, Johnny Foster, Jr., later to become Laboratory director, had a “big idea” for the Atomic Energy Commission: take the leap to precision engineering (see box bottom of page) to open new pathways for innovation. In today’s rapidly changing world, NNSA—and U.S. industry—has an urgent need to accelerate the concept-to-delivery cycle for complex systems. This year, LLNL demonstrated a leap in speed and agility with two innovative projects, DarkStar (see Science and Technology) and GUIDE (see Partnerships). The DarkStar research team focused on inverse design, wherein engineering design starts with the desired performance and AI-aided HPC simulations refine the design to optimize the outcome. The goal was to develop the capability to rapidly redesign and 3D-print the components of a linear shaped charge to mitigate the growth of instabilities that impede performance. Significantly, the team benefited from the encouragement and insights of Foster, who is now 102 years old. DarkStar was a success and provided the team valuable insights into the nature of the instability. Another game-changing endeavor is the multi-institutional GUIDE program for the Department of Defense. GUIDE uses AI and machine learning–enabled simulation tools to speed the development cycle for effective, safe, and manufacturable medical countermeasures from years to days-to-weeks. In an early test of the system, the GUIDE platform successfully redesigned an existing SARS-CoV-2 antibody to restore its effectiveness against emerging variants. Many other innovative, AI-assisted research activities in areas ranging from nuclear threat reduction and bioresilience to fundamental scientific discovery are highlighted in our Annual Report.
Transforming LLNL
Our Laboratory’s senior management team has identified four pillars crucial to LLNL’s future success and established long-term “NorthStars” for each, as well as annual goals and objectives to measure progress. As our Annual Report highlights, for the Mission & Program Delivery pillar, we are delivering innovative solutions in each mission area. In Science & Technology, we continue to build on our key strengths in AI-assisted HPC, high-energy-density science, and advanced materials and manufacturing. Many areas of research, such as energy security, will be taking full advantage of Tuolumne, a roughly one-tenth scale sibling system to El Capitan for unclassified computing.
In Operations & Infrastructure, LLNL is streamlining operations and providing leadership in acting on recommendations of NNSA’s Enhanced Mission Delivery Initiative. In FY 2024, five new facilities completed construction, including three new office buildings that welcomed employees from substandard accommodations. Construction is under way for a new facility that will provide an essential upgrade to LLNL’s networking and communications infrastructure. Plans are progressing for the NIF Enhanced Yield Capability project, the National Security Innovation Center, and an enclave dedicated to moving new material and manufacturing technologies to production scale. These projects are vital to future success.
For the fourth pillar, People & Culture, we are focused on addressing employees’ needs. Nearly half of our employees have been at LLNL less than five years. Our Laboratory is enhancing mentoring opportunities, upgrading training programs, and pursuing means to capture and transfer knowledge. We also launched an improved performance management system that emphasized regular feedback, clear goals, and emphasizes employee development. Newly constructed office facilities and laboratory space are improving the work experience, as are concerted efforts to streamline processes and procedures and improve efficiency. The satisfaction of employees is reflected in national recognition, such as 2024 Glassdoor’s Employees’ Choice Awards.
Our successes in FY 2024 and bright prospects for the future are a credit to our outstanding workforce and the innovative ideas, energy, and commitment that our many new employees are bringing to LLNL. Sustaining Laboratory values and our heritage of pursuing “big ideas” through innovation and teamwork are key to successful transformation of our Laboratory. We are taking on the grand challenges that LLNL missions demand. Translating innovation into impactful solutions in the national interest is “Science and Technology on a Mission.”
Advanced Manufacturing at the Laboratory
In the 1950s, the prevailing view was if close tolerances were required, it was a sign of poor engineering. Johnny Foster, Jr., thought “They’re wrong.” and acted on it. He pushed for tolerances better than a mil (one-thousandth of an inch) and tasked Jim Bryan in the metrology group to prove him right. Foster also took action to engage Y-12 and Bendix in the initiative. Breakthroughs by Bryan and the metrology group enabled machining at better than one mil within a decade. Livermore’s weapons designs took full advantage of the higher precision, and the Laser Program benefited from ready manufacture of parabolic mirrors. Machining to one-millionth of an inch accuracy won the Laboratory and collaborators across the NSE an “IR-100” award in 1977, and Bryan, among many honors, was named by Fortune Magazine in 2000 as one of their six “Heroes of U.S. Manufacturing.”
—Jim Bryan’s oral history, LLNL Archives
