15 June 2004
15 June 2004
(To download print-quality photos of the Open House day, go to the end of this article.)
Plainsboro, New Jersey — The chance to tour a fusion machine and play with plasma — the fourth state of matter — drew about 2,000 visitors to the Open House at the U.S. Department of Energy's Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) on Saturday, June 12.
The Laboratory's visitors, ranging from tots to seniors, walked around the National Spherical Torus Experiment (NSTX), learned about the physics behind sports games, and participated in tabletop demonstrations about electromagnetism, thermodynamics, and common plasmas, as well as in hands-on safety activities.
"We had a great time showing our Laboratory to our neighbors, entertaining children with our science, and explaining fusion energy," said PPPL Director Rob Goldston.
Added John DeLooper, PPPL Associate Director of External Affairs, "An Open House lets us show the community what we do at PPPL and spread the message about fusion. Our staff, students, and guests all had a great time together on Saturday." DeLooper headed the Open House efforts.
Open House guests talked to PPPL researchers about fusion and the Laboratory's progress while taking self-guided tours of NSTX, smaller experimental areas, and the test cell where a new experimental facility, the National Compact Stellarator Experiment, will be built. The event also featured activities ranging from cryogenics shows that demonstrated how ordinary objects behave in strange ways when cooled to the temperature of liquid nitrogen (-320 degrees Fahrenheit) to tours of the Hall Thruster, a plasma-based propulsion system for space vehicles such as satellites. Other popular features included a lecture, "Lighting a Star on Earth," by PPPL Director Rob Goldston; fire extinguisher training; and computer-controlled milling machine demonstrations. Along the route, there were a variety of energy and plasma-related exhibits, as well as displays about PPPL departments and activities.
PPPL, funded by the DOE and managed by Princeton University, is a collaborative national center for science and innovation leading to an attractive fusion energy source. Fusion is the process that powers the sun and the stars. In the interior of stars, matter is converted into energy by the fusion, or joining, of the nuclei of light atoms to form heavier elements.
For further information, please contact:
Anthony R. DeMeo
Head, Information Services
Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory
(609) 243-2755
ademeo@pppl.gov
Patricia Wieser
Information Services
Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory
(609) 243-2757
pwieser@pppl.gov
Downloadable print-quality photos
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