The chain of foundries, uranium enrichment plants, reactors , chemical separation plants, factories, laboratories, assembly plants, and test sites that produced nuclear weapons. There were 16 major facilities in the U.S. nuclear weapons complex, located in 12 states. The group of protons and neutrons at the center of an atom that determines its identity and chemical and nuclear properties. The central core of a nuclear weapon consisting of a fissile materials surrounded by a sealed metal shell. A man-made fissile element.
Pure plutonium is a silvery metal that is heavier than lead.
Material rich in the plutonium-239 isotope is preferred for manufacturing nuclear weapons, although almost any plutonium can be used. Material left over from the processing of plutonium that contains too much plutonium to be disposed of as transuranic waste . A nuclear reactor that is designed to produce man-made isotopes . Tritium and plutonium are made in production reactors. Some research reactors are used to produce isotopes .