The other option, reusing plutonium pits, is also being explored for the W88 and other weapons. He testified in May that the technique could be developed and proved within two to four years for the W88 warhead. The Energy Department, however, has criticized the Livermore design because it would have a lower yield than the original W88 warhead. Los Alamos National Laboratory also hopes to design a new W88 out of old pits-one that would reach the original yield. A congressional aide says the Los Alamos design might take three to five years to complete.
Older pits contain greater amounts of americium, a radioactive decay product of plutonium.
But workers would not necessarily be exposed to increased radiation, according to Richard Claytor, assistant secretary of energy for defense programs. A W89 short-range attack missile warhead with a reused pit was tested in Nevada last spring. With the traditional mission of Rocky Flats in doubt, some have suggested that the plant might serve other functions. Robert Nelson, head of Energy Department operations at Rocky Flats, said after President Bush's September announcement that he thought the plant should become a center for dismantling nuclear weapons. Warhead dismantlement will indeed be a major Energy Department activity in the future.