Underground science facilities

At the Sanford Underground Research Facility, hovercraft technology is being used to efficiently move massive steel beams for the Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility/Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment. Named after a beloved workhorse at the former gold mine that now contains the science facility, “Maggie II” is an innovative solution for the challenges of transporting heavy, awkwardly shaped beams underground to construct one of the largest physics experiments in the world.

Sowjanya Gollapinni has been elected as the new co-spokesperson for the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment, succeeding Mary Bishai. Gollapinni is a senior scientist and the Neutrino Group Leader at Los Alamos National Laboratory and has been involved with DUNE since 2015. Now, she will co-lead the project to its next stages of development.

President Biden recently signed a bicameral resolution that changes the name of Fermilab’s Integrated Engineering Research Center to the Helen Edwards Engineering Research Center. The building’s new name honors the late Dr. Helen Edwards, a renowned particle physicist at Fermilab.