GLOSSARY
Access Control Office LANL office that monitors activities and controls access within TA-15.
aerosolize The process of converting a solid or a liquid into a gaseous suspension of fine particles (an aerosol).
air quality A measure of the quantity of pollutants in the air.
air quality standards The prescribed quantity of pollutants in the outside air that cannot be exceeded legally during a specified time in a specified area.
alluvium Clay, silt, sand, and/or gravel deposits found in a stream channel or in low parts of a stream valley that is subject to flooding.
ambient air The surrounding atmosphere, usually the outside air, as it exists around people, plants, and structures. It is not the air in immediate proximity to emission sources.
aquifer Geologic material that contains sufficient saturated permeable material to conduct ground water and to yield worthwhile quantities of ground water to wells and springs.
aqueous Containing or dissolved in water.
atmosphere The layer of air surrounding the earth.
background radiation Normal radiation present in the lower atmosphere from cosmic rays and earth sources. Background radiation varies with location, depending on altitude and natural radioactivity present in the surrounding geology.
beryllium (Be) A rare metal (average atomic mass of about 9 atomic mass units) used most commonly in the manufacture of beryllium-copper alloys for numerous industrial and scientific applications. It is on the EPA's list of priority metals for hazardous air pollutants.
bound, bounding A description of the evaluation process that provides a reasonable upper limit to potential consequences or impacts.
breccia A coarse-grained rock composed of angular broken rock fragments held together by a naturally occurring mineral cement.
ºC Degree Celsius. ºC = 5/9 x (ºF - 32).
cancer Any malignant new growth of abnormal cells or tissue.
capable (fault) A term defined by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to indicate that a fault is a hazard to be considered in safety analyses.
carcinogenic Adjective describing an agent that is capable of producing or inducing cancer.
cavate A hand-dug cavity in the tuff cliff face.
collective dose The sum of the individual doses to all members of a specific population.
community A group of people or a site within a spatial scope exposed to risks that potentially threaten health, ecology, or land values, or exposed to industry that stimulates unwanted noise, smell, industrial traffic, particulate matter, or other nonaesthetic impacts (environmental justice definition).
concentration The amount of a substance contained in a unit quantity (mass or volume) of a sample.
conglomerate A coarse-grained sedimentary rock composed of rounded fragments larger than 2 mm in diameter set in fine-grained sand or silt. It is commonly cemented naturally by a mineral cement.
control and accountability Continuing control and accountability, particularly of special nuclear materials such as plutonium and highly enriched uranium.
criteria pollutants Six pollutants (ozone, carbon monoxide, total suspended particulates, sulfur dioxide, lead, and nitrogen oxide) known to be hazardous to human health and for which the EPA sets National Ambient Air Quality Standards under the Clean Air Act.
criticality A state in which a self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction is achieved.
cumulative effects Additive environmental, health, and socioeconomic effects that result from a number of similar activities in an area or over time.
cumulative impacts The sum of environmental, health, and socioeconomic impacts that result from a number of activities in an area or over time.
curie (Ci) A unit of radioactivity equal to 37,000,000,000 (3.7 X 1010) decays per second.
dBA Decibel on the A-weighted scale (see also decibel and decibel, A-weighted).
decay, radioactive The spontaneous transformation of an unstable atom to a lower, more stable energy state, often with the emission of particulate or electromagnetic radiation (alpha, beta, gamma, or x-radiation).
decibel An expression of sound pressure level that is referenced to a pressure of 20 micropascals expressed on a logarithmic scale, 1 dB = 20 log10 (p/20) where p is the sound pressure in micropascals. Twenty micropascals approximates the minimum audible sound pressure level in humans (see also decibel, A-weighted).
decibel, A-weighted
(dBA) The A-weighted decibel (dBA) is an expression of adjusted pressure levels by frequency that accounts for human perception of loudness. Consequently, dBA is most often used when evaluating human noise disturbance. For example, at a frequency of 500 Hz, 60 dB are reduced by 3.2 dB to give an A-weighted pressure level of 56.8 dBA. Lower frequencies are reduced more because they are less of an annoyance to humans, and higher frequencies are reduced less because they are more of an annoyance (see also decibel).
decommissioning The removal from service of facilities such as processing plants, waste tanks, and burial grounds, and the reduction or stabilization of radioactive contamination, if present.
depleted uranium A mixture of uranium isotopes where uranium-235 represents less than 0.7 percent of the uranium by mass.
design life The estimated period of time that a component or system is expected to perform within specifications before the effects of aging result in performance deterioration or a requirement to replace the component or system.
detonation See explosion.
disablement A means to render a nuclear weapon so that it cannot be detonated.
dose rate The radiation dose delivered per unit time (e.g., rad/h).
dynamic experiment An experiment to provide information regarding changes in materials under conditions caused by the detonation of high explosives.
E/Q (E over Q) A measure of atmospheric dispersion for short-term (acute) atmospheric releases using Gaussian dispersion plume modeling, with units of s/m3. For a given point or location at some distance from the source, it represents the time-integrated air concentration (Ci·s/m3 ) divided by the total release from the source (Ci). Integrated air concentrations used are usually plume centerline values. E/Qs are typically used for release lasting no longer than 8 to 24 hours.
ecology The science dealing with the relationship of all living things with each other and with the environment.
ecosystem A complex of the community of living things and the environment forming a functioning whole in nature.
ecotone A transition zone that exists between two ecologic communities.
Ector An existing x-ray diagnostic machine scheduled to be moved to PHERMEX in mid-1995.
effective dose equivalent A concept used to estimate the biological effect of ionizing radiation. It is the sum over all body tissues of the product of absorbed dose, the quality factor (to account for the different penetrating abilities of the various types of radiation), and the tissue weighing factor (to account for the different radiosensitivity of the various tissues of the body).
effluent Liquid or airborne material released to the environment. In common usage, however, the term "effluent" implies liquid release.
effluent standards Defined limits of effluent in terms of volume, content of contaminants, temperature, etc.
EIS Environmental impact statement; a document required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, as amended, for proposed major Federal actions involving potentially significant environmental impacts.
electron accelerator A device which uses intense electrical and magnetic energy to increase the velocity of electrons, thereby increasing their energy.
element One of the known chemical substances that cannot be divided into simpler substances by chemical means. All isotopes of an element have the same atomic number (number of protons) but have a different number of neutrons, and thus different atomic weights.
emission standards Legally enforceable limits on the quantities and kinds of air contaminants that can be emitted into the atmosphere.
endangered species Plants and animals that are threatened with extinction, serious depletion, or destruction of critical habitat. Requirements for declaring a species endangered are contained in the Endangered Species Act.
energy The capacity to produce heat or do work.
enhanced radiography A radiography technique for producing extremely high-resolution, time-phased, photographic images of an opaque object (see also radiography).
environment The sum of all external conditions and influences affecting the life, development, and ultimately the survival of an organism.
environmental monitoring The act of measuring, either continuously or periodically, some quantity of interest, such as radioactive material in the air.
ephemeral stream A stream channel which carries water only during and immediately after periods of rainfall or snowmelt.
epicenter The point on the earth's surface directly above the focus of an earthquake.
equation-of-state A mathematical expression which defines the physical state of a homogeneous substance by relating volume to pressure and absolute temperature for a given mass of the material.
erosion A general term for the natural processes by which earth materials are loosened, dissolved, or worn away and moved from one place to another. Typical processes are wind and water as they carry away soil.
evapotranspiration Loss of water from the earth's surface to the atmosphere by evaporation from the soil, lakes, streams, and by transpiration from plants.
exclusion zone The area surrounding the firing point that is cleared of all personnel for a test shot. The radius of this area is determined by the size of the shot.
explosion An extremely fast chemical reaction producing high temperatures and a large amount of gas. The terms explosion and detonation (also explode and detonate) are used interchangeably here; but to a specialist, they are distinct terms and depend on reaction rates.
exposure to radiation The incidence of radiation on living or inanimate material by accident or intent. Background exposure is the exposure to natural background ionizing radiation. Occupational exposure is the exposure to ionizing radiation that occurs during a person's working hours. Population exposure is the exposure of a number of persons who inhabit an area.
ºF Degree Fahrenheit. F = (ºC x 9/5) + 32.
fallout Radioactive material that has been produced and distributed through the atmosphere as a result of aboveground testing of nuclear devices.
fault A fracture or a zone of fractures within a rock formation along which vertical, horizontal, or transverse slippage of the earth's crust has occurred in the past.
fissionable Atoms capable of being split or divided (fissioned) by the absorption of thermal neutrons. The most common fissionable materials are uranium-233, uranium-235, and plutonium-239.
fission The splitting of a heavy nucleus into two approximately equal parts, which are nuclei of lighter elements, accompanied by the release of energy and generally one or more neutrons. Fission can occur spontaneously or can be induced by nuclear bombardment.
forb A general term for a weed or broad leaf flowering plant as distinguished from grasses and sedges.
formation A body of rock identified by lithic characteristics and stratigraphic position. Formations may be combined into groups or subdivided into members.
fugitive emission Those emissions which could not reasonably pass through a stack, chimney, vent, or other fundamentally equivalent opening.
GENII A computer program used to estimate doses to individuals and populations from releases of radioactive materials.
geology The science that deals with the earth; the materials, processes, environments, and history of the planet, especially the lithosphere, including the rocks, their formation, and structure.
ground water All subsurface water, especially that part that is in the zone of saturation.
group The geological term for the rock layer next in rank above formation.
habitat The part of the physical environment in which a plant or animal lives.
half-life (radiological) The time in which half the atoms of a radioactive substance disintegrate to another nuclear form. Half-lives vary from millionths of a second to billions of years.
Hazard Index (HI) An indicator of the potential toxicological hazard from exposure to a particular substance. The HI is equal to an individual's estimated exposure divided by the U.S. EPA's substance-specific reference dose. An HI of 1.0 would indicate an expectation of the health effect upon which the reference dose is based. No toxicological effects would be expected where the HI is less than 1.0.
hazard zone A circular area in which personnel are not allowed outside the control rooms during tests involving high explosives. The area is centered on the firing point and its radius is determined from the amount of explosives to be used.
He-Ne Laser A device which uses a gaseous mixture of helium (He) and Neon (Ne) to produce an intense beam of light.
HEPA filter High-efficiency particulate air filter designed to remove greater than 99.9 percent of particles from a flowing air stream. Efficiency is determined at 0.3 µ; efficiency increases for particles larger and smaller than 0.3 µ.
historic resources The sites, districts, structures, and objects considered limited and nonrenewable because of their association with historic events, persons, or social or historic movements.
Horizon A (soil) The top-most layer of soil distinguishable by color, texture, or structure.
hydrodynamic test A dynamic integrated systems test of a mock-up nuclear package during which the high explosives are detonated and the resulting motions and reactions of materials and components are measured. The explosively generated high pressures and temperatures cause some of the materials to behave hydraulically (like a fluid).
hydrodynamic testing
facility A facility in which to conduct dynamic and hydrodynamic testing for nuclear and conventional weapons research and assessment. Fast diagnostic systems that are available include radiographic, electrical, optical, laser, and microwave.
hydronuclear experiment Very-low-yield experiment (less than a few pounds of nuclear energy released) to assess primary performance and safety with normal detonation.
intensity (earthquake) A numerical rating used to describe the effects of earthquake ground motion on people, structures, and the earth's surface. The numerical rating is based on an earthquake intensity scale such as the modified Mercalli Scale commonly used in the United States.
interbed A typically thin bed of one kind of rock material occurring between or alternating with beds of another material.
interfingers The combination of markedly different rocks through vertical succession of thin interlocking or overlapping of wedge-shaped layers.
interflow breccias A breccia that occurs in or between volcanic flows.
ion An atom or molecule that has gained or lost one or more electrons to become electrically charged.
ionization The process that creates ions. Nuclear radiation, x-rays, high temperatures, and electric discharges can cause ionization.
ionizing radiation Radiation capable of displacing electrons from atoms or molecules to produce ions.
irradiation The process of exposing a material to radiation.
ISC2 A computerized dispersion program used to calculate ground-level concentrations of air pollutants.
isotope An atom of a chemical element with a specific atomic number and atomic weight. Isotopes of the same element have the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons. Isotopes are identified by the name of the element and the total number of protons and neutrons in the nucleus. For example, uranium-238 is a uranium atom with 238 protons and neutrons.
laser An active electronic device that converts input power into a very narrow, intense beam of light.
latent cancer fatalities
(LCFs) Deaths that were ultimately caused by a radiation-induced cancer. The cancer became evident years after the radiation exposure. LCFs can be calculated for the public by using the risk conversion factor of 5 x 10-4 deaths per person-rem and for the worker by using the risk conversion factor of 4 x 10-4 deaths per person-rem.
lineament A geological term for straight or gently curved alignments of topographic features such as depressions, streams, or changes in surface slope.
linear accelerator A device in which atomic particles travel in a straight line as their velocity is increased. A particle accelerator that accelerates electrons, protons, or heavy ions in a straight line by the action of alternating voltages.
lithic The description of rocks on the basis of such characteristics as color, mineralogic composition, and grain size.
low-income communities A community where 25 percent or more of the population is identified as living in poverty.
low-level waste Radioactive waste not classified as high-level waste or TRU waste; for DARHT and PHERMEX it would consist mainly of solid material contaminated with low levels of depleted uranium.
lystric fault The fault that is steep at the ground surface and becomes less and less steep as its depth increases. It eventually becomes horizontal or nearly horizontal.
mass balance error The difference between two estimates of the change in water stored; the difference between influent and effluent, and the difference between initial and final stored water.
maximum contaminant
levels (MCLs) The maximum permissible level of a contaminant in water that is delivered to a user of a public water system.
maximally exposed
individual (MEI) A real or hypothetical person located to receive the maximum possible dose from a given hazardous material release.
member A geological term for a layer of rock that includes some specially developed part of a formation.
MEPAS Computer code used to estimate the toxicological hazards resulting from releases of hazardous materials.
migration The movement of a material through the soil or ground water.
mitigate To take practicable means to avoid or minimize environmental harm from a selected alternative.
National Register
of Historic Places A list maintained by the National Park Service of architectural, historic, archeological, and cultural sites of local, State, or national importance.
natural background
radiation Radiation that is ubiquitous and generated in naturally occurring materials or through naturally occurring processes. Principal sources of background radiation are primordial radionuclides such as uranium, thorium, and potassium-40 and cosmic radiation. In contrast, radiation may be produced or enhanced by man-made means such as activation or nuclear fission.
noninvolved worker For this EIS, a worker who is not involved in the operation of a facility when a radioactive release occurs, and who is assumed to be 2,500 ft (750 m) or 1,300 ft (400 m) from the point of release, depending on the exposure scenario and alternative.
NEPA National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 as amended; it requires the preparation of an EIS for Federal projects that could present significant impacts to the environment.
nonproliferation The restriction of ability to easily access fissile material in concentrations sufficient to assemble a nuclear weapon.
NOx Oxides of nitrogen, primarily nitrogen oxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2). These are produced in the combustion of fossil fuels, and can constitute an air pollution problem.
nuclear radiation See radiation.
nuclear reaction An interaction between a photon, particle, or nucleus and a target nucleus, leading to the emission of one or more particles and photons.
nuclear stockpile The total aggregation of the Nation's nuclear weapons that are in the custody of the Department of Defense. This quantity is defined in the nuclear weapons stockpile memorandum.
nuclear weapon The general name given to any weapon in which an explosion can result from the energy released by reactions involving atomic nuclei, either fission, fusion, or both.
nuclear weapons primaries Those components of a nuclear weapon involved in the reaction up to the point where nuclear criticality is achieved.
nuclide A species of atom, characterized by its nuclear constitution (number of protons and number of neutrons).
organic compounds Carbon compounds which are, or are similar to, compounds produced by living organisms.
outfall Place where liquid effluents enter the environment and are monitored.
oxide A compound in which an element chemically combines with oxygen.
ozone A molecule of oxygen in which three oxygen atoms are chemically attached to each other.
particulates Solid particles and liquid droplets small enough to become airborne.
passive safety system A system that provides safety features requiring no human intervention or adverse condition to actuate.
perennial stream A stream that contains water at all times except during extreme drought.
perched aquifer A body of ground water separated from an underlying body of ground water by an unsaturated zone.
people of color communities A population classified by the U.S. Bureau of the Census as Black, Hispanic, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian, Eskimo, Aleut, and other nonwhite persons, the composition of which is at least equal to or greater than the state minority average of a defined area or jurisdiction.
permeability Ability of liquid to flow through rock, ground water, soil, or other substance.
person-rem Unit of radiation dose to a given population; the sum of the individual doses received by a collection of individuals.
pH A measure of the hydrogen ion concentration in aqueous solution. Pure water has a pH of 7, acidic solutions have a pH less than 7, and basic solutions have a pH greater than 7.
physiographic Pertaining to the physical features of the earth's surface, such as land forms or bodies of water.
plutonium (Pu) A transuranic, heavy (average atomic mass ranging from about 237-244 atomic mass units), silvery metallic element with 15 isotopes that is produced by the neutron irradiation of natural uranium.
PM10 Particulate matter with a 10 micron or less aerodynamic diameter.
pollution The addition of an undesirable agent to the environment in excess of the rate at which natural processes can degrade, assimilate, or disperse it.
progeny Stable or radioactive elements formed by the radioactive decay of another nuclide, which is the "parent."
pulse width The duration of a brief burst of energy, such as x-rays or direct current electricity.
Puye Formation A stratigraphic unit composed of basalts, interflow breccias, conglomerates, sandstones, and siltstones that underlies Los Alamos National Laboratory.
radiation The emitted particles or photons from radioactive atoms.
radioactive waste Materials from nuclear operations that are radioactive or are contaminated with radioactive materials and for which there is no practical use or for which recovery is impractical (see low-level waste).
radioactivity The process of radioactive decay (see decay, radioactive)
radiography The technique of producing a photographic image of an opaque specimen by transmitting a beam of x-rays or gamma rays through it onto an adjacent photographic film; the image results from variations in thickness, density, and chemical composition of the specimen.
radionuclide A nuclide that emits radiation.
reach A continuous and unbroken expanse or surface of water (used in hydrologic contexts).
recharge The processes involved in the absorption and addition of water to an aquifer.
rem The unit of effective dose equivalent.
render safe A means to make a nuclear weapon secure from unwanted detonation.
Richter Scale A numerical scale of earthquake magnitude that represents the size of an earthquake at its source.
risk In accident analysis, the probability weighted consequence of an accident, defined as the accident frequency per year multiplied by the dose. The term "risk" is also used commonly to describe the probability of an event occurring.
runoff The portion of rainfall, melted snow, or irrigation water that flows across the ground surface and eventually returns to streams.
Santa Fe Group The name applied to a sequence of geologic formations that have been deposited mostly in the Rio Grande rift. These deposits are primarily sediments with some limestones, volcanic tuffs, and basalts.
Stockpile Stewardship and
Management Program The DOE program to develop a new approach, based on scientific understanding and expert judgement, to ensure continued confidence in the safety, performance, and reliability of the nuclear weapons stockpile.
seismicity The way earthquakes of various sizes occur geographically and temporally.
shield Material used to reduce the intensity of radiation that would irradiate personnel or equipment.
short-lived A designation for radionuclides with relatively short half-lives.
solid state laser A device which uses a semiconductor to produce an intense beam of light. This term is often used to distinguish a device from gas lasers.
spallation products Products that result from a nuclear reaction in which the energy of the incident particle is so high that more than two or three particles are ejected from the target nucleus, and both its mass number and atomic number are changed.
stabilization The action of making a nuclear material more stable by converting its physical or chemical form or placing it in a more stable environment.
static testing Using radiographic equipment to make an x-ray image of a test assembly before other testing is done.
stockpile management Maintenance, evaluation, repair, or replacement of weapons in the existing stockpile.
stockpile stewardship A program of activities to maintain the technical competence and capability for the Nation to continue to have confidence in the safety, reliability, and performance of our nuclear weapons.
strata Layers of rock usually in a sequence.
stratum A single layer of rock, usually one of a sequence.
stratigraphy The science of rock strata, or the characteristics of a particular set of rock strata.
surface water All bodies of water on the Earth's surface (e.g., streams, lakes, reservoirs), as distinguished from ground water.
threatened species Any species which is likely to become an endangered species within the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range.
transuranic elements Elements that have atomic numbers greater than 92; all are radioactive, and are products of artificial nuclear changes.
tritium A radioactive isotope of hydrogen; its nucleus contains one proton and two neutrons.
TRU waste Material contaminated by alpha-emitting radionuclides, which are heavier than uranium, with half-lives greater than 20 years and in concentrations greater than 100 nCi/g of material.
Tshirege member Layer of volcanic rock that is a member of the Bandelier tuff. It is composed of multiple flow units of tuff.
tuff A type of rock formed of compacted volcanic fragments.
uranium (U) A heavy (average atomic mass of about 238 atomic mass units), silvery-white metal with 14 radioactive isotopes.
welding Consolidation of sediments by pressure resulting from weight of material or from earth movement.
__/Q´ (Chi-bar over Q-prime) A measure of the average atmospheric dispersion for long-term (chronic) atmospheric releases using gaussian dispersion plume modeling, with units of s/m3. For a given point or location at some distance from the source, it represents the average air concentration in Ci/m3 divided by the release rate in Ci/s. Typically the concentration used __/Q´ is the average centerline value for individuals and is averaged over a specific sector of a polar grid surrounding the release point for populations. is used for long-term (chronic) releases, often on the order of months or years.
x-ray A penetrating electromagnetic radiation, which may be generated by accelerating electrons to high velocity and suddenly stopping them by collision with a target material.
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