About PNNL
Contact: Media Relations, (509) 375-3776
The national laboratory system
The origins of the nine multiprogram national laboratories date back to the Manhattan Project and the years immediately following World War II. During this era, the Atomic Energy Commission (DOE's predecessor) established a system of national laboratories to augment America's existing academic and industrial research infrastructure.
Today, the nine multiprogram labs possess many of the world's top scientists and engineers, as well as superior laboratories and equipment. A large percentage of Nobel laureates and R&D 100 Award winners perform or have performed their research at America's national laboratories.
Research at the laboratories is conducted to meet national needs in the areas of energy, national defense, environment, health, medicine, manufacturing, high-performance computing, advanced materials and other areas.
The national multiprogram laboratories are:
- Argonne National Laboratory Argonne, IL
- Brookhaven National Laboratory Upton, NY
- Idaho National Laboratory Idaho Falls, ID
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Berkeley, CA
- Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory Livermore, CA
- Los Alamos National Laboratory Los Alamos, NM
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory Oak Ridge, TN
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Richland, WA
- Sandia National Laboratories Albuquerque, NM
