9 October 2001

Plainsboro, New Jersey -- In recognition of his influence on the course and content of the national fusion program and his effectiveness in communicating the value of fusion research to the U.S. Congress, Fusion Power Associates (FPA) gave Rob Goldston its Leadership Award for 2001. Goldston, Director of the U.S. Department of Energy's Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), is one of two recipients this year. The other is Ron Parker, former director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Plasma Fusion Center and former leader of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor Co-center in Garching, Germany. The awards were presented during FPA's annual meeting, held this year September 25 and 26 in Washington, D.C.

The citation for Goldston states, "You have provided forceful and effective guidance to a wide spectrum of fusion scientific topics and have helped put fusion back on the U.S. national political agenda."

In addition to lauding Goldston's influence on the course of the national fusion program, the FPA Board noted his "outstanding leadership of the Laboratory."

Goldston came to PPPL as a graduate student in 1972 after receiving his bachelor's degree, magna cum laude, from Harvard University. He served as a research assistant at the Lab for five years and earned his Ph.D. in astrophysics, Program in Plasma Physics, from Princeton University in 1977. Over the next 15 years, he advanced in progressively responsible positions on the PPPL research staff. He has had a distinguished career pursuing experimental and theoretical research on the high-temperature plasmas required for producing thermonuclear fusion.

Fusion, the joining of atomic nuclei, is the power source of the sun and the stars. In the interior of stars, matter is converted into energy by the fusion of the nuclei of light atoms to form heavier elements. At PPPL, physicists use a magnetic field to confine hot, ionized gas, known as plasma, for research on fusion. Scientists hope eventually to use the energy produced by fusion for the production of electricity.

Goldston is the author and coauthor of more than 200 scholarly articles, and is coauthor with Paul Rutherford of the textbook, Introduction to Plasma Physics.

He was named professor of astrophysical sciences at Princeton University in 1992, a position he continues to hold, and Associate Director for Research at PPPL in 1995. In 1997, he became the Laboratory's fifth Director.

FPA Awards are given annually for Leadership, Distinguished Career, and for Excellence in Fusion Engineering. Special Awards also are occasionally presented. Leadership awards have been presented annually since 1980 to individuals who have shown outstanding leadership qualities in accelerating the development of fusion. Other PPPL scientists to receive the FPA Leadership Award are Dale Meade (1999) and Harold Furth (1982).

PPPL, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and managed by Princeton University, is a collaborative national center for science and innovation leading to an attractive fusion energy source.

Fusion Power Associates is a nonprofit, tax-exempt research and educational foundation that provides timely information on the status of fusion development and other applications of plasma science and fusion research.

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 photo of Dr. Goldston. Resolution is 200 dpi, print size is approximately 2.7 inches wide by 3.45 inches high. File type is jpeg. File size is 246 kB. Photographer: Elle Starkman, PPPL.