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Cryogenic Systems Enable SOFIA Space Project

An interview with Nans Kunz, Senior Engineer at NASA Ames Research Center, and former SOFIA Chief Engineer. The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) project is a telescope carried in a 747 aircraft up above the atmosphere. Kunz explains how cryogenics made the project more cost-effective and efficient.

Fermilab Director elected a fellow of the AAAS

Fermilab Director Pier Oddone as been elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a prestigious honorary society and independent policy research center. Oddone joins Fermilab scientists Bill Bardeen and Helen Edwards in receiving this honor.

ORNL’s beam reaches 310 kilowatts

Oak Ridge National Laboratory became the world's most powerful source of pulsed neutrons when its beam reached 310 kilowatts in late January.

Fermilab addresses growing goose population

Fermilab Today reported that, "A new posse in town has its sights set on Fermilab's feathery fowl.

US Postal Service honors Professor John Bardeen

A US postage stamp commemorating the late UI physics Professor John Bardeen, inventor of the transistor and a two-time Nobel Prize Winner, was officially issued at Postage Stamp Mega-Event in New York's Madison Square Garden.

Ganni Cycle saves BNL in weekly electric costs

The "Ganni Cycle", invented by engineers at Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility, has been saving Brookhaven National Laboratory approximately $50,000 a week in electric costs for the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC).

Latest in Defining Cryogenics

Dilution Refrigerators

Dilution refrigerators are a common technique for reaching temperatures below 1K, particularly where continuous cooling at these temperatures is required. Helium exists in two stable isotopes: 4He and 3He. Naturally occurring 3He is extremely rare, constituting less than 1 part per million of helium gas. However, 3He can be manufactured,...

Oxygen Deficiency Hazards

Oxygen Deficiency Hazards (ODH) are a significant safety issue in cryogenic facilities. ODH occurs when inert gases such as nitrogen, helium or argon displace room air and thus lower the percentage of oxygen in the space below that required for human life. OSHA defines an area as oxygen deficient if...

Kelvin Temperature Scale

The Kelvin temperature scale is the principal temperature scale used in cryogenics and science. The kelvin is also one of the seven base units in the Système International d’Unités (SI) and is the unit of thermodynamic temperature. Thermodynamic temperature is a fundamental physical quantity (like mass, length or electrical current)...

Latest in Cryo Central

Air Separation and Liquefaction

by Nils Tellier, PE, President, EPSIM Corporation (CSA CSM) nils@epsim.us All illustrations courtesy EPSIM Corporation Background History of Air Separation and Liquefaction This section builds on a rich history of methods to develop deep refrigeration and cryogenic liquefaction during the 19th Century. You are encouraged to read Cryo Central’s History...

Bose-Einstein Condensate

A Bose-Einstein condensate, first proposed in 1925 by Albert Einstein based on work done by Satyendra Nath Bose (the same Bose from whom the term boson is derived), is a super-cold state of matter in which almost all of the individual atoms have “condensed” down to the lowest possible quantum...

Cold Technology for Pest Control

While it does not reach temperatures cold enough to be called cryogenic, carbon dioxide snow is at the heart of a new way of dealing with unwanted pests. It utilizes a quick freezing process that takes advantage of the properties of carbon dioxide snow and has a number of benefits...

Cryogenic Finishing

The following 3 articles discuss the uses and procedures of various type of cryogenic finishing. 1) By Robin A. Rhodes, Cryogenic Institute of New England, Inc. rrhodes@nitrofreeze.com Cryogenic Deflashing is employed to remove undesired residual mold flash that remains on molded parts after they are removed or ejected from the...

Latest in Ask the Experts

What is the temperature range of cryogenics?

Could you please tell me what is the temperature range of cryogenics? In other words, is -100°F considered cryogenic, or does it start lower? Could I expect to see some extended life in D2 stamping dies? What would the recipe be to achieve the desired results using cryogenics?