From The DOE’s Sandia National Laboratories
4.18.24
KENNY VIGIL
Sandia’s work is helping modernize the U.S. nuclear deterrent.
SIGNIFICANT MILESTONE — Sandia tests a prototype of the Mark 21 fuze to ensure it meets requirements and specifications. The first production unit of the fuze, which will be installed in a weapons system, was approved in March. (Photo courtesy of Sandia)
Sandia and the Kansas City National Security Campus completed a crucial weapons component development milestone, prior to full rate production.
The Mark 21 Replacement Fuze interfaces with the W87-0 warhead for deployment onto the Minuteman III and, eventually, the Sentinel Intercontinental Ballistic Missile.
The first production unit of the replacement fuze was approved through the NNSA’s rigorous Quality Assurance Inspection Procedure in March.
The Mark 21 fuze, an integrated assembly of Sandia-designed logic and sensing devices directs the warhead to initiate firing sequences at the correct point in targeting parameters. The Mark 21 Fuze Replacement Program is a partnership between the NNSA and the U.S. Air Force.
“Sandia’s role is to deliver a fuze that meets the Air Force’s requirements. Completing the first production unit is a visible milestone in maintaining a credible deterrent,” said Brad Boswell, a director in Sandia’s nuclear deterrence modernization program. “It demonstrates that we are providing the necessary capability for the U.S. nuclear deterrent into the future.”
Designing the fuze
COLLABORATIVE EFFORT — Sandia is the lead design agency for the Mark 21 Fuze. The program is a collaborative effort with NNSA, the Kansas City National Security Campus and the U.S. Air Force. (Photo courtesy of Sandia)
As the lead design agency of the Mark 21 Fuze, Sandia was responsible for incorporating Air Force requirements into a form, fit and functional package that interfaces with the Mk21 aeroshell, MMIII missile and W87-0 warhead. Work began in 2011.
“The early engineering work takes a lot of time. While some of it is done in parallel, much of the work must be sequential,” said Bob Oetken, a former program manager for the fuze program. “We’re doing a very specific job that requires, in many cases, custom parts.”
Sandia worked closely with the Kansas City National Security Campus to ensure the design was producible and delivered on schedule. While the Kansas City National Security Campus is producing and assembling the fuze, Sandia is manufacturing some of the parts.
Fuze qualification
Before production of the fuze began, a significant amount of time was spent qualifying the design, which ensures the design meets Air Force specifications. It includes analysis through testing and other engineering tools to ensure the fuze will function as intended.
“Qualification involves significant resources and time. We are in a very rigorous business. Some of the qualification is used to verify that we are meeting requirements and took as long as three years from concept to delivery,” Bob said.
The program has conducted numerous tests, including environmental, ground and flight tests, to ensure the fuze withstands multiple difficult environments, such as acceleration, vibration and thermal environments expected during missile launch and ballistic reentry.
Stockpile assessment
Now that the fuze is in full rate production, Sandia’s responsibilities shift. “As the design agency, Sandia is responsible for the component until the weapon is retired. Sandia is accountable for ensuring that the weapon with the fuze attached is safe, secure and reliable,” Brad said.
As part of the stockpile assessment, Sandia will conduct monitoring through processes such as modeling and simulation and flight and ground testing to ensure the fuze continues to work as intended.
Partnering for great results
Completing the first production unit of the Mark 21 fuze is the culmination of more than a decade of work and collaboration, not just at Sandia, but by NNSA and the DOD.
“This first production unit marks a significant milestone not just for Sandia but the broader nuclear security enterprise, particularly our partners at the Kansas City National Security Campus,” Brad said. “While we stop to recognize this achievement, we must also acknowledge this is the start of the next phase of our partnership as we work to meet key production milestones to deliver the quantity of fuzes needed to meet the needs of the stockpile.”
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Sandia National Laboratories managed and operated by the National Technology and Engineering Solutions of Sandia (a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International), is one of three National Nuclear Security Administration research and development laboratories in the United States. Their primary mission is to develop, engineer, and test the non-nuclear components of nuclear weapons and high technology. Headquartered in Central New Mexico near the Sandia Mountains, on Kirtland Air Force Base in Albuquerque, Sandia also has a campus in Livermore, California, next to DOE’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and a test facility in Waimea, Kauai, Hawai’i.
It is Sandia’s mission to maintain the reliability and surety of nuclear weapon systems, conduct research and development in arms control and nonproliferation technologies, and investigate methods for the disposal of the United States’ nuclear weapons program’s hazardous waste.
Other missions include research and development in energy and environmental programs, as well as the surety of critical national infrastructures. In addition, Sandia is home to a wide variety of research including computational biology; mathematics (through its Computer Science Research Institute); materials science; alternative energy; psychology; MEMS; and cognitive science initiatives.
Sandia formerly hosted ASCI Red, one of the world’s fastest supercomputers until its recent decommission, and now hosts ASCI Red Storm supercomputer, originally known as “Thor’s Hammer”.
Sandia is also home to the Z Machine.
The Z Machine is the largest X-ray generator in the world and is designed to test materials in conditions of extreme temperature and pressure. It is operated by Sandia National Laboratories to gather data to aid in computer modeling of nuclear guns. In December 2016, it was announced that National Technology and Engineering Solutions of Sandia, under the direction of Honeywell International, would take over the management of Sandia National Laboratories starting on May 1, 2017.
