(CUWS) Outreach Journal #1111
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
USAF Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies (CUWS) Outreach Journal Issue No. 1111, 18 April 2014 Welcome to the CUWS Outreach Journal! As part of the CUWS’ mission to develop Air Force, DoD, and other USG leaders to advance the state of knowledge, policy, and practices within strategic defense issues involving nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons, we offer the government and civilian community a source of contemporary discussions on unconventional weapons. These discussions include news articles, papers, and other information sources that address issues pertinent to the U.S. national security community. It is our hope that this information resources will help enhance the overall awareness of these important national security issues and lead to the further discussion of options for dealing with the potential use of unconventional weapons. The following news articles, papers, and other information sources do not necessarily reflect official endorsement of the Air University, U.S. Air Force, or Department of Defense. Reproduction for private use or commercial gain is subject to original copyright restrictions. All rights are reserved. FEATURE ITEM: “Ballistic Missile Defense: Actions Needed to Address Implementation Issues and Estimate Long- Term Cost for European Capabilities”. Report to Congressional Committees, by the Government Accountability Office; April 2014, 48 pages. http://www.gao.gov/assets/670/662492.pdf Since 2002, DOD has spent over $98 billion developing a ballistic missile defense system to protect the U.S., U.S. forces, and allies against inbound threat missiles. In December 2011, DOD deployed the initial phase of a revised approach for Europe, with increased capabilities to be deployed in later phases. GAO has reported on potential risks to DOD’s implementation caused by the lack of a coordinated management approach and the absence of life-cycle cost estimates. Outreach Journal Feedback or sign-up request: [email protected] Return to Top U.S. NUCLEAR WEAPONS 1. Wind Tunnel Tests Support Improved Aerodynamic Design of B61-12 Bomb 2. U.S. Sticks to Plan for Interoperable Nuclear Warheads, Despite Criticism 3. US Nuclear Weapons Proliferation: We’re no. 1! U.S. COUNTER-WMD 1. Pentagon Plans to Ax Missile-Interceptor Redesign Under Sequestration U.S. ARMS CONTROL 1. Flying Blind 2. Pentagon Moves to Block Russian Spy Plane in American Skies HOMELAND SECURITY/THE AMERICAS 1. Boston Debates Banning Deadliest Pathogens from New Biolab ASIA/PACIFIC 1. Putin Approves Sale of S-400 to China 2. S. Korea, U.S., Japan Lower Bar for Nuclear Talks with N. Korea 3. China Issues Rare Public Warning over N. Korea's Nuclear Threat 4. China Urges Countries to Abandon Nuclear Umbrella 5. PH Won’t Ban Nuke-Capable US Ships under Pact 6. Allies Discuss Ways to Counter N. Korea's Nuclear, Missile Threats Issue No.1111, 18 April 2014 United States Air Force Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies| Maxwell AFB, Alabama http://cpc.au.af.mil \ https://twitter.com/USAF_CUWS Phone: 334.953.7538 | Fax: 334.953.7226 USAF Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies CUWS Outreach Journal Maxwell AFB, Alabama EUROPE/RUSSIA 1. Russia's Space Defence Force Tests Launch Yars New Ballistic Missile 2. Russian Navy to Begin Sea Trials of 2 New Nuclear Subs in Summer 3. Scottish Independence: Trident Negotiations Not Ruled Out 4. Alex Salmond's Trident Plan 'Would Put UK Nuclear Deterrent in Jeopardy' 5. First Borey-Class Strategic Sub Ready for Combat Patrols - Russian Navy 6. 2,300 Tubes Containing SARS Virus Samples Missing in France 7. Putin: NATO Enlargement Pushed Russia to Annex Crimea 8. Britain's Missile Range More Important to NATO than Nuclear Submarine Fleet – Scottish Minister MIDDLE EAST 1. AEOI Chief: Iran Entitled to Enrich Uranium to 90% Grade 2. Israel Possesses at Least 300 Nuclear Warheads: Carter 3. Iran Official Concerned over Fate of Nuclear Power Plant 4. Syria Misses Deadline for Chemical Weapons Removal: OPCW-UN Mission 5. DM: Iran's Missile Capabilities No Subject for Nuclear Talks 6. Zarif: No Fear of Hardliners on Nuclear Deal 7. Syrian Activists Report New Poison Gas Attack 8. Iran Cuts Sensitive Nuclear Stockpile, Key Plant Delayed 9. Iran Will Not Close down Nuclear Facilities: Cleric INDIA/PAKISTAN 1. BJP Rules Out Major Change to Nuclear Policy 2. India to Conduct Complex Interceptor Missile Test COMMENTARY 1. ‘Level 4’ Disease Research Can Be Safe, Belongs in America’s Medical Capital 2. After Ukraine, Countries That Border Russia Start Thinking About Nuclear Deterrents 3. OPINION: NATO Poses No Credible Threat to Russia 4. How to Fix the President’s Ballistic Missile Defense policy Sandia National Labs – Albuquerque, NM Sandia Labs News Releases Wind Tunnel Tests Support Improved Aerodynamic Design of B61-12 Bomb April 14, 2014 ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Sandia National Laboratories has finished eight days of testing a full-scale mock unit representing the aerodynamic characteristics of the B61-12 gravity bomb in a wind tunnel. The tests on the mock-up were done to establish the configuration that will deliver the necessary spin motion of the bomb during freefall and are an important milestone in the Life Extension Program to deliver a new version of the aging system, the B61-12. The B61 must spin during flight — spin that is controlled by a combination of rocket motors and canted fins on the tail. Engineers determined from flight tests in the 1990s that plumes from the rocket motors worked against the fin performance, counteracting the torque from the motors and reducing the vehicle spin rate. Sandia engineers termed that phenomenon “counter torque.” But data from a 2002 wind tunnel test to characterize counter torque were not fully applicable since the B61-12 uses a significantly different tail design than earlier versions. Engineers needed another series of wind tunnel tests Issue No.1111, 18 April 2014 United States Air Force Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies | Maxwell AFB, Alabama http://cpc.au.af.mil \ https://twitter.com/USAF_CUWS Phone: 334.953.7538 | Fax: 334.953.7226 2 USAF Center for Unconventional Weapons Studies CUWS Outreach Journal Maxwell AFB, Alabama to characterize counter torque on the new configuration to give them confidence the new system will meet the required spin environment in flight, said Vicki Ragsdale, a B61-12 technical basis test engineer at Sandia. The complex test required a wind tunnel big enough for a full-size mock B61. Most wind tunnel tests use models smaller than the actual flight hardware, but the physics of the B61 rocket motors cannot be replicated on a reduced scale. Sandia turned to the Air Force’s Arnold Engineering and Development Center on Arnold Air Force Base in Tennessee, which has the nation’s largest wind tunnel capable of the required air speeds, as well as considerable experience in testing jet interactions similar to those on the B61. The 2002 test was conducted in the same wind tunnel. The new test, which took three years to plan, was designed to explore the chaotic behavior of the counter torque and its implications for B61 aerodynamics. Test improves understanding of previously uncharacterized phenomenon When the data began rolling up on computer screens in the wind tunnel control room during February’s test, Sandia researchers were on hand to analyze the information immediately. They crunched numbers and debated physics for several days, and determined that the test had uncovered a previously uncharacterized physical phenomenon. Sandia researchers believe this arises uniquely because of the unusual shape of the rocket motors and from other features. The theory they had been using was based on a simpler configuration. The Sandia team revised the remainder of the wind tunnel tests to provide fresh data to unravel the complex physics of the behavior observed at near-sonic flow conditions. The improved understanding will inform the design of the B61-12 and provide an additional technical basis for the well-characterized performance of the versions of the B61 in the current U.S. stockpile. “We were able to come up with a theory for where this effect is coming from,” Ragsdale said. “It’s not a wind tunnel effect and it is something we will see in flight, so we have to account for it.” https://share.sandia.gov/news/resources/news_releases/wind_tunnel/#.U06p1yzjhDx Return to Top National Journal U.S. Sticks to Plan for Interoperable Nuclear Warheads, Despite Criticism By Douglas P. Guarino, Global Security Newswire April 16, 2014 The Obama administration is sticking to a plan to develop controversial new warheads for the U.S. nuclear arsenal, but opponents of the project are holding out hope that officials could still change course. When it rolled out its fiscal 2014 budget request last year, the administration included a 25-year plan that it said could ultimately reduce the number of warheads in the stockpile by creating weapons suited for multiple tasks. The first such warhead, to be called the "IW-1," would replace both the existing W-78 warhead currently fitted on Air Force ground-based missiles, as well as the W-88 warhead currently used on Navy submarine-based missiles. The proposal prompted concerns from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, in part due to a dramatic projected cost surge starting around the year 2018, and continuing through 2024 and perhaps beyond. At its peak in the early 2020s, this spending "bubble" would reach a level of nearly $3 billion per year -- more than double what the United States currently spends on warhead