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Nuclear Modernization

Shifting Military Requirements Changed Design of New ICBM Pit; First Unit Delayed

Wednesday, February 15th, 2023

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Shifting Military Requirements Changed Design of New ICBM Pit; First Unit Delayed

The Air Force test launches a Minuteman III ICBM. Photo: Air Force.

The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) changed the design for the nuclear core of a planned intercontinental ballistic missile warhead late last year, a senior agency official said Tuesday. Altering the design of the W87-1 plutonium pit, being developed by the agency’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California for the Air Force’s planned Sentinel missile, will delay the first copy of the crucial weapon component by about a year, said Marvin Adams, deputy administrator for defense programs at NNSA. “The…

Budget

Hegseth Pushes For Reconciliation With At Least $350 Billion For Defense ‘Regardless’ Of Midterms Outcome

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Congress

Bipartisan Push in Senate to Hasten Export of 155 mm, GMLRS, HIMARS for Ukraine

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Congress

Rep. Himes Signals Increased Contractor Oversight, if Democrats Win House

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Congress

CBO Estimates Loss of One-Half to Two-Thirds of U.S. Missile Interceptors Since June Last Year

A new Congressional Budget Office report estimates the cost of the Iran war through Aug. 1 as $38 billion and says that the U.S. has likely depleted between one-half and […]