Daresbury Laboratory <strong>50</strong> <strong>Years</strong>
<strong>50</strong> <strong>Years</strong> Daresbury Laboratory Foreword Daresbury Laboratory has been in existence for <strong>50</strong> years, and during which time the staff and scientist associated with the Laboratory have undertaken a huge variety of activities, which have shaped the Laboratory of today and delivered both scientific and societal impact. This book provides a pictorial chronicle containing highlights of the journey of challenge, inspiration and endeavour across five decades. The journey began in 1960 when, with the backing of strong research interests from Northern based universities, a high level science advisory committee chaired by Sir John Cockcroft recommended to the National Institute for Research in Nuclear <strong>Science</strong> a design study for an electron synchrotron at a new laboratory. The project was approved in July 1962, and Professor Alec Merrison was officially appointed as Director of the Laboratory. A site was eventually identified near Daresbury in Cheshire which offered an exceptionally stable foundation for the proposed accelerator. Under the dynamic leadership of Professor Merrison the first scientific facility, a 5 GeV electron synchrotron accelerator named NINA (National Institute’s Northern Accelerator) was completed. In 1967 Prime Minister Harold Wilson formally opened the Laboratory. The 1970s saw Professor Alick Ashmore take over as Director and on securing funding for both the Nuclear Structure Facility (NSF) and the Synchrotron Radiation Source (SRS) he was credited with leading the transformation of Daresbury from a high energy physics laboratory to an international centre for nuclear physics and synchrotron radiation. A new Director, Professor Leslie Green, arrived in 1981 and the SRS came on line as the world’s first dedicated X-ray synchrotron radiation source. This facility was hugely successful, it was developed and upgraded over the following 28 years and by the time it was switched off in 2008, it had delivered over 2 million hours of science and had served many thousands of researchers. It was credited with influencing cleaner fuel, safer aircraft and new medicines, and contributing to a Nobel Prize or two! Director Professor Alan Leadbetter arrived in 1988 to lead Daresbury with an open and active style which was inspiring to the staff but even he could not prevent the premature closure of the NSF in 1993, due to a national crisis in science funding. However the multidisciplinary strengths built on the delivery and operation of three major facilities gave the Laboratory resilience. Developments were made to improve the capabilities of SRS on a number of fronts and areas such as computational science and engineering grew in strength. It was at the end of the millennium that the Laboratory faced the biggest test when, despite a vigorous campaign led by Laboratory staff, the government announced that DIAMOND, the 3rd generation synchrotron replacement for the SRS, would be built on the Rutherford site. Never the less a new millennium dawned, there was a real optimism that exploiting the Laboratory’s strengths in accelerator science and technology, high performance computing, nuclear physics, engineering and instrumentation would lead to further involvement in world-leading science. Opportunities beckoned. This optimism proved well founded and the last ten years has seen Daresbury delivering to projects at the highest level across all these areas. With the relevance of the Laboratory’s activities to industry and society growing in importance, Dr. Hywel Price initiated the processes which led to the formation of the Daresbury <strong>Science</strong> and Innovation Campus, now Sci-Tech Daresbury. Professor Colin Whitehouse’s drive and enthusiasm were fundamental in developing these processes and building the sustainable partnerships which have created an exciting productive mix of science and innovation on campus, attracting over 120 small high-tech companies. The <strong>50</strong>th anniversary finds an energetic laboratory developing forefront science, supporting industry and delivering solutions to grand challenges. This innovative and inspiring environment is shared with an increasingly diverse community, including a growing number of research centres and a rapidly expanding cohort of successful hightech businesses. Building on the strengths of our outstanding achievements in the last <strong>50</strong> years, the Laboratory has a bright future as a beacon to light up opportunities for UK science and industry while providing an immense and solid base for further enterprise, development and growth at Sci-Tech Daresbury. Professor Susan Smith Head of Daresbury Laboratory 2
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