IMAGE-BASED VERIFICATION: SOME ADVANTAGES, CHALLENGES, AND ALGORITHM-DRIVEN REQUIREMENTS

ABSTRACT Imaging technologies may be a particularly useful technique that supports monitoring and verification of deployed and stockpiled nuclear weapons and dismantlement components. However, protecting the sensitive design information requires processing the image behind an information barrier and reporting only non-sensitive attributes related to the image. Reducing images to attributes may destroy some sensitive information, but the challenge remains. For example, reducing the measurement to an attribute such as defined shape and X-ray transmission of an edge might reveal sensitive information relating to shape, size, and material composition. If enough additional information is available to analyze with the attribute, it may still be possible to extract sensitive design information. In spite of these difficulties, the implementation of new treaty requirements may demand image technology as an option. Two fundamental questions are raised: What (minimal) information is needed from imaging to enable verification, and what imaging technologies are appropriate? PNNL is currently developing a suite of image analysis algorithms to define and extract attributes from images for dismantlement and warhead verification and counting scenarios. In this talk, we discuss imaging requirements from the perspective of algorithms operating behind information barriers, and review imaging technologies and their potential advantages for verification. Companionmore » talks will concentrate on the technical aspects of the algorithms.« less