The US Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) has begun construction on a new nuclear monitoring facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in Tennessee.
The hub’s development is part of Washington’s broader effort to amplify “nuclear nonproliferation and counterterrorism capabilities,” according to the agency.
NNSA Administrator Brandon Williams attended the ceremony alongside Representative Chuck Fleischmann and ORNL Director Stephen Streiffer.
The Advanced Testbed and Operations Learning Laboratory
Called the Advanced Testbed and Operations Learning Laboratory (ATOLL), the future center will encompass 21,000 square feet (1,951 square meters) of space in the region.
It will house experts to observe foreign activities tied to weapons-grade uranium enrichment.
The site will also support and prepare specialists in nuclear detection and analysis, as well as advanced research and testing of associated technologies.
ATOLL will operate under the NNSA’s Nonproliferation Stewardship Program, which assists in the establishment of technical infrastructure and workforce programs aimed at countering nuclear threats.
The hub is scheduled for completion by 2028.
“It takes a weapons program to know a weapons program,” Williams said. “At NNSA, we deter adversaries by being experts in atomic science and weapons production, and the investment in ATOLL strengthens our understanding of both.”
