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ATLAS Measures Key Higgs Boson Interaction with High Precision

The ATLAS Collaboration has released new measurements of the Higgs-boson decay probability to tau leptons in its four major production modes: gluon fusion (ggF), vector-boson fusion (VBF), the associated production with a W or Z boson (WH, ZH), and the associated production with a top-quark pair (ttH).

Purdue-Designed Heat Transfer Experiment Arrives at International Space Station

On August 10, an Antares rocket launched from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on Wallops Island VA. Atop the rocket was a Northrop-Grumman Cygnus spacecraft carrying 3,000 pounds of supplies for the astronauts aboard ISS, as well as the Flow Boiling and Condensation Experiment (FBCE) and three other science experiments. Cygnus...

Plug Power Breaks Ground on Green Hydrogen Production Plant in Georgia

On August 10, Plug Power Inc., a leading provider of turnkey hydrogen solutions for the global green hydrogen economy, broke ground on the site of a green hydrogen production plant in Camden County GA, where 15 tons of green liquid hydrogen will be produced per day.

Helion Energy Breaks Ground on Next-Generation Fusion Facility Site in Washington

Helion Energy (Helion), a clean energy company committed to creating a new era of zero-carbon electricity through fusion, broke ground on the next iteration of its fusion facility in Everett WA on July 27. The new facility will accelerate Helion’s efforts to build the world’s first commercially viable fusion power...

James Webb Passes Critical Mission Review for 2021 Launch, Final Testing Nearing Completion

The joint NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has passed its critical final mission analysis review — clearing the way for a late 2021 launch from the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou, French Guiana on an Arianespace Ariane 5 rocket.

CryoWorks Names New CEO, Timothy Mast, Jr.

On June 1, California-based CryoWorks, Inc. announced that the company’s board of directors has named Timothy Mast, Jr. as chief executive officer and president, effective immediately. Mr. Mast, Jr. has worked at CryoWorks since 2011 and has served as vice president of operations since February 2019. He succeeds Timothy Mast,...

Latest in Defining Cryogenics

Helium II

Helium II (He II) refers to the second liquid phase of the most abundant helium isotope (4He). Helium II is also referred to as superfluid helium. Helium II occurs once the temperature of the liquid helium drops below 2.17K. The phase transition between the first liquid phase of Helium (referred...

Latest in Cryo Central

Magnets

From “Superconductivity: Present and Future Applications” by the Coalition for the Commercial Application of Superconductors. Particle physics uses accelerators to recreate the conditions of the early universe in an attempt to piece together the complex puzzle of how we got to where we are today. These huge machines are used...

Energy Storage

From “Superconductivity: Present and Future Applications” by the Coalition for the Commercial Application of Superconductors. With power lines increasingly congested and prone to instability, strategic injection of brief bursts of real power can play a crucial role in maintaining grid reliability. Small-scale Superconducting Magnetic Energy Storage (SMES) systems, based on...

Astronomy

ASTRONOMY IN SPACE by Peter V. Mason, retired, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and Visiting Associate, California Institute of Technology. Pmason@alumni.caltech.edu In thinking about the reasons to perform astronomy in space, we first consider the effect of the earth’s atmosphere. On a scale of decreasing energy, gamma rays, cosmic rays, X-rays and...

Cryocoolers

What is a Cryocooler? A mechanism that can extract heat from an object (cooler) and by doing so draw its temperature down below approximately 150 Kelvin (cryo). — (Courtesy Dr. Willy Gully) What is the difference between a Cryocooler and a Cryostat? A cryostat is any device designed to maintain...

Latest in Ask the Experts

An Issue of Pressure and Flow Rate in a Supply Tank

Please help solve this problem: A supply tank requires a vaporizer to generate sufficient pressure to pump stored fluid up into a vehicle or tank. The available head is limited as the tank level falls and it is important to minimize the system pressure drop to maintain the desired flow...

Using MLI on VJ Line Joints or Cryo Storage Tanks

When installing Multi Layer Insulation (MLI) blankets on VJ line joints or cryo storage tanks should they be wrapped and tied down tight or loose? These are usually pre-cut to size. Also should they have an access hole at the point of where the molecular sieve is installed to help...

Separated layers of ice over a pipe

I want to know that why there are different layers of ice over a pipe carrying a cryogenic fluid, each layer separated with clear marks / lines? What do these layers signify?

Using nitrogen as a cryogen

Is it possible to achieve -200˚C using nitrogen as a cryogen?

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