Philosophy
BERKELEY, California — What was once the world's biggest atom smasher will soon be nothing more than a collection of old photos and the dust beneath the next big science machine.
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s Bevatron, built by the Atomic Energy Commission for $9 million in the early '50s, is slowly being demolished in the hills overlooking San Francisco Bay. In a few years, all traces of it will be gone.
The Bevatron was a marvel, that, when compared to the rest of the human world drew ridiculous comparisons. Popular Science called it a "10,000-Ton Cracker for Invisible Nuts" and rapturously listed its dimensions. For boys of all ages, the Bevatron's stats were the 36-24-36 of physics.
"It is 135 feet across, cost $9,500,000 and contains more than 9,500 tons of iron, 225 miles of wire, and 2,400 vacuum tubes," wrote Darrell Huff in Popular Science. "This is the bevatron, just completed, the most powerful atom-smasher yet built."
The Bevatron occupied 125,000 square feet of land at the center of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. It was once the crown jewel of the lab, of the National Lab system and of the particle physics world.
Read the rest of the article and view the many photographs
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Columbia's cyclotron--gone
- Deceased--john Jungerman
John JungermanDecember 28th, 1921 to March 28th, 2014 "UC Davis nuclear physics lab founder, John Jungerman, dies" by Jillian Sullivan May 5th, 2014 SFGate John Jungerman, founding director of the nuclear physics research laboratory at UC Davis...
- Deceased--andrew Sessler
Andrew Sessler December 11th, 1928 to April 17th, 2014 "Former director of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory dies at 85" by Chris Tril April 27th, 2014 The Daily Californian Andrew Sessler, a former director of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,...
- An Old Atom Smasher...the Atomic Physics Observatory In Washington Dc
"There's a derelict atom smasher nestled in the middle of suburban Washington DC. The old Atomic Physics Observatory sits in the middle of the Carnegie Institution's Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, a scientific research campus in the city's...
- Deceased--stuart Freedman
Stuart Freedman January 13th, 1944 to November 9th, 2012 "Stuart Freedman - renowned physicist - dies" by David Perlman November 21st, 2012 San Francisco Chronicle Stuart Jay Freedman, a Berkeley nuclear physicist renowned for his pathbreaking investigations...
- "and In This Corner...fermi National Accelerator Laboratory"
One begins to wonder if blood letting will occur? The Higgs boson [God Particle] is the prize and the race between Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory and the LHC is on. One problem...the LHC is down for maintenance thus FermiLabs has currently an...
Philosophy
Death of an "atom smasher"
"Historic Atom Smasher Reduced to Rubble and Revelry"
by
Alexis Madrigal
July 8th, 2009
Wired Science
by
Alexis Madrigal
July 8th, 2009
Wired Science
BERKELEY, California — What was once the world's biggest atom smasher will soon be nothing more than a collection of old photos and the dust beneath the next big science machine.
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory’s Bevatron, built by the Atomic Energy Commission for $9 million in the early '50s, is slowly being demolished in the hills overlooking San Francisco Bay. In a few years, all traces of it will be gone.
The Bevatron was a marvel, that, when compared to the rest of the human world drew ridiculous comparisons. Popular Science called it a "10,000-Ton Cracker for Invisible Nuts" and rapturously listed its dimensions. For boys of all ages, the Bevatron's stats were the 36-24-36 of physics.
"It is 135 feet across, cost $9,500,000 and contains more than 9,500 tons of iron, 225 miles of wire, and 2,400 vacuum tubes," wrote Darrell Huff in Popular Science. "This is the bevatron, just completed, the most powerful atom-smasher yet built."
The Bevatron occupied 125,000 square feet of land at the center of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. It was once the crown jewel of the lab, of the National Lab system and of the particle physics world.
Read the rest of the article and view the many photographs
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Columbia's cyclotron--gone
- Deceased--john Jungerman
John JungermanDecember 28th, 1921 to March 28th, 2014 "UC Davis nuclear physics lab founder, John Jungerman, dies" by Jillian Sullivan May 5th, 2014 SFGate John Jungerman, founding director of the nuclear physics research laboratory at UC Davis...
- Deceased--andrew Sessler
Andrew Sessler December 11th, 1928 to April 17th, 2014 "Former director of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory dies at 85" by Chris Tril April 27th, 2014 The Daily Californian Andrew Sessler, a former director of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,...
- An Old Atom Smasher...the Atomic Physics Observatory In Washington Dc
"There's a derelict atom smasher nestled in the middle of suburban Washington DC. The old Atomic Physics Observatory sits in the middle of the Carnegie Institution's Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, a scientific research campus in the city's...
- Deceased--stuart Freedman
Stuart Freedman January 13th, 1944 to November 9th, 2012 "Stuart Freedman - renowned physicist - dies" by David Perlman November 21st, 2012 San Francisco Chronicle Stuart Jay Freedman, a Berkeley nuclear physicist renowned for his pathbreaking investigations...
- "and In This Corner...fermi National Accelerator Laboratory"
One begins to wonder if blood letting will occur? The Higgs boson [God Particle] is the prize and the race between Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory and the LHC is on. One problem...the LHC is down for maintenance thus FermiLabs has currently an...