US is building first new nuclear warhead in decades

The United States is buildingits first new nuclear warhead in decades but will do so without nuclear testing, according to energy department officials on Wednesday.

The warhead, known as the W93, is set to be used on ballistic missiles launched from submarines. It is being built using funds, $19.8bn, requested by the National Nuclear Security Agency (NNSA) for the 2025 fiscal year, energy secretary Jennifer Granholm and NNSA Administrator Jill Hruby told the Senate Armed Services Committee, according to The Washington Times.

The warhead is in its early design stages at the Los Alamos National Laboratory, the main site for the Manhattan Project which built the first nuclear bombs during World War II.

Production on the warhead is set to begin in the middle of the next decade, the officials testified.

The issue of updating its nuclear capabilities is a top priority for the Pentagon and the nuclear-armed submarines are central to the US nuclear forces. Other parts of the strategic capabilities include bombers and intercontinental ballistic missiles.

“The W93 is a new program of record being established to meet requirements set by the [Department of Defense],” the NNSA states on its site.

“The Navy’s ballistic missile submarine force is the most survivable leg of the Triad and is currently equipped with two warhead types: the W76 and W88. These warheads provide approximately two-thirds of the total U.S. deployed force. The W93 will reduce current over-reliance on the W76 system and will allow the US to keep pace with future adversary threats.”

“All W93 key nuclear components will be based on currently deployed and/or previously tested nuclear designs, as well as extensive stockpile component and materials experience,”