Some BLOGs are getting attention

Anonymously reported: Ladies and Gentlemen, At my recent All Hands meeting, reviewed recent accomplishments of the NIC team, the status of the Program, and the role of the NIF as it formally becomes a national and international user facility. Several developments have occurred since then, and have received a number of questions and comments from you that deserve immediate conversation. In the All Hands, stressed three key points: • Together, we have built the NIF, a revolutionary scientific tool that is the world's premier High Energy Density (HED) science facility. NIF is now a user facility dedicated to carrying out the broad range of missions it was designed for in strategic security, fundamental science, and energy security. The NIF laser's power, precision and reproducibility, coupled with its outstanding diagnostic, target fabrication, and operational capabilities, enable us to take on missions no other facility in the world can. • Although the NlC campaign has ended, the goal of achieving ignition on the NIF remains and we are continuing this work even now. It is our intent to continue on the path to ignition while supporting all the NIF missions. • The nation is preparing for a leadership transition in our government and with a new administration and Congress; there are probable changes coming in the NNSA and DOE leadership as well This is clearly a time of change and transition. In times of transition, the pundits who criticize our work inevitably become active. Some of their remarks may not be pleasant and some that we have seen are inaccurate. Since my All Hands meeting, there have been a few negative articles and opinion pieces about the NIF in the New York Times and other papers, as well as in a few blogs. The authors tend to use the NIF as a platform to launch a debate around bigger issues, such as our country's nuclear deterrent, the role of big science in our society, and US energy policy. They do this because NIF is unique in that it sits at the nexus of these debates and because it plays such a major role in these policy questions. Influential people do not spend their time either criticizing or promoting insignificant efforts and I believe that these 'criticisms' speak to the strength and importance of our program and the successes we have accomplished together. For the first time, the United States has a scientific facility with the capability of participating in maintaining the nation's nuclear deterrent without underground testing, supporting non-proliferation and other national security missions, working on the most challenging basic science questions, and potentially setting humanity on the path to demonstrating the feasibility of producing safe, clean, carbon-free fusion energy. Confirmation of the national importance of NIF, and the success that we have achieved, comes from multiple sources: • NNSA Administrator Mr. Thomas D'Agostino stated that, "With NIF, the nation has a critically important asset that supports our national security priorities, pushes the frontiers of science and discovery, and carries the potential for critical advances in energy security." • On July 9, 2012, Dr. Alvin Trivel piece, former Director of the DOE Office of Energy Research, Director of Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and chairman of the NIF Technical Review Committee, reported that, "The Committee consensus is that the NIC team has made 'Extraordinary progress toward challenging goals!'" • On August 3, 2012, in a letter to Secretary Chu, one hundred members of Congress stated, "As you are undoubtedly aware, NIF recently achieved a major milestone: the world's first successful firing of a 500 terawatt laser." "Recent technical reviews by independent experts indicate that there are no fundamental technical reasons that would preclude eventually achieving ignition." • On August 7, 2012, Dr. John Holdren, the Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, compared operation of NIF to the landing of the Mars Rover Curiosity, calling both of them examples of "enormously complicated, advanced and sophisticated technology coming together in a system of absolutely daunting complexity."" Looking at (NIF), you could hardly believe that it would work," he said. "But it does work. The NIP works. ... And I'm among the many folks who wish it well." • On September 17, Professor Robert Byer of Stanford University and head of the international NIF Laser Performance Review Committee reported that, " ...the NIP laser is a unique facility and is likely to remain the only ICF facility in the world for the coming decade capable of meeting the driver requirements for ignition and the investigation HED physics at the inertial fusion energy scale. The NIF laser is a unique engine of discovery for the 21st century.'' • On October 3 Dr. Christopher Deeney, NNSA Assistant Deputy Administrator for Stockpile Stewardship, sent me a note saying, "The results for the NIC are impressive and the stewardship program has an extraordinary laser facility, diagnostic suite, target fabrication capability and, most importantly, an extremely talented team in place to continue to meet the challenges of supporting stewardship and achieving ignition. The NNSA headquarters team wants to thank you all for the excellent and hard work to date. Your passion for the work is evident and we appreciate all the sacrifices you have made. We look forward to even more great data from the NIF and we are all committed to continue the quest for ignition. Ignition, along with stewardship, and the grand scientific challenges that the NNSA community is well prepared to engage in and solve!" The quotes above highlight the strengths of our program in its multiple missions and are testament to the work that we have done. On the other hand, there are a couple of questions that need to be addressed again-'What about the ignition program?' and 'What is a user facility?' Pursuit of Ignition: Ignition science is a grand