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Restoring and Improving Nuclear Forensics to Support Attribution and Deterrence Public Summary (2021) / Chapter Skim
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1 Introduction
Pages 5-10

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From page 5...
... The committee made a distinction between pre-detonation nuclear forensics, which is analysis of found or interdicted nuclear material out of regulatory control or of found or captured nuclear devices; and post-detonation nuclear forensics, which is analysis of the signals and debris from a nuclear explosion. For post-detonation nuclear forensics, observations and measurements of the electromagnetic and acoustic signals from the detonation can be made using prompt diagnostics to complement the analysis of debris collected from the environment at and downwind from the detonation site.
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From page 6...
... . Policy and decision makers face difficult choices in weighing efforts to counter these infrequent and uncertain threats versus more familiar threats like seasonal flu, car crashes, or even mass shootings.
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From page 7...
... national security laboratories but also within the DoD, the Department of Justice Federal Bureau of 2 The 2019 Nuclear Defense Research and Development Roadmap states: "technical nuclear forensics capabilities and timely, high-confidence attribution contribute to deterring adversaries from contemplating covert nuclear attacks or enabling would-be nuclear terrorists or other non-state actors." (NDRD, 2019, p.
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From page 8...
... "establish[ed] , within the Domestic Nuclear Detection Office, the National Technical Nuclear Forensics Center to provide centralized stewardship, planning, assessment, gap analysis, exercises, improvement, and integration for all Federal nuclear forensics and attributions activities."
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From page 9...
... Any difficulty the committee experienced examining nuclear forensics operations and technical analysis capabilities was primarily a result of the broader ongoing reorganization and not the fault of dedicated federal and laboratory employees working under difficult circumstances. 5 A corresponding NSPM Implementation Plan is dated October 13, 2020 (NSPM-35 IP, 2020)
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From page 10...
... This document is the public summary of the committee's restricted report (see Box 1-2)
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Key Terms

  • technical nuclear
  • nuclear material
  • nuclear materials
  • forensics operations
  • technical analysis

  • nuclear forensic
  • nuclear devices
  • nuclear terrorism
  • national technical
  • forensics capabilities

  • technical analyses
  • law enforcement
  • national nuclear
  • attribution nuclear
  • domestic nuclear

  • nuclear detection
  • nuclear attacks
  • nuclear explosion
  • forensics program
  • forensics center

  • forensics mission
  • program undergoing
  • malevolent human
  • major power
  • undergoing significant

  • forensic analysis
  • human actors
  • close coordination
  • significant change
  • power conflicts


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