National Ignition Facility

  • The Starship Enterprise’s Dark Nuclear Past

    Co-authored by Paul Carroll and Ben Loehrke

    Star Trek: Into Darkness is the latest in the decades-old Star Trek franchise. To date the film has grossed nearly $160 million at the box office. Not bad for its first week. After all, it cost about $190 million to make, so it seems poised to break even very soon.

    May 28, 2013 - By Paul Carroll

  • Too Big to Succeed? Huge Laser for Weapons Tests Fails to Perform

    Although the United States has not tested a nuclear weapon for twenty years, we still spend billions each year on an array of machines that conduct all kinds of diagnostic experiments to mimic nuclear explosions. One of the most expensive is called the National Ignition Facility (NIF).

    October 31, 2012 - By Paul Carroll