Concept
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) is a federally funded research and development center in Livermore, California, United States. Originally established in 1952, the laboratory now is sponsored by the United States Department of Energy and administered by Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC. The lab was originally established as the University of California Radiation Laboratory, Livermore Branch in 1952 in response to the detonation of the Soviet Union's first atomic bomb during the Cold War. It later became autonomous in 1971 and was designated a national laboratory in 1981. A federally funded research and development center, Lawrence Livermore Lab is primarily funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and it is managed privately and operated by Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC (a partnership of the University of California, Bechtel, BWX Technologies, AECOM, and Battelle Memorial Institute in affiliation with the Texas A&M University System). In 2012, the laboratory had the synthetic chemical element livermorium (element 116) named after it. LLNL is a research and development institution for science and technology applied to national security. Its principal responsibility is ensuring the safety, security and reliability of the nation's nuclear weapons through the application of advanced science, engineering, and technology. The laboratory also applies its special expertise and multidisciplinary capabilities towards preventing the proliferation and use of weapons of mass destruction, bolstering homeland security, and solving other nationally important problems, including energy and environmental needs, scientific research and outreach, and economic competitiveness. The laboratory is located on a 1 sq. mi.(2.6 km2) site at the eastern edge of Livermore. It also operates a remote experimental test site known as Site 300, situated about southeast of the main lab site. LLNL has an annual budget of about $2.7 billion and a staff of nearly 9,000 employees.