Page 113 - ILLS Annual Report 2018

MORE THAN SIMPLY NEUTRONS
108 -109
DARK MATTER DAY
This event, instigated on the initiative of the Laboratoire de Physique Subatomique et de Cosmologie (LPSC) and co-organised by the ILL, was held on October 31, 2018, at the Museum of Grenoble. Dark matter is the explanation often given for a number of mysterious phenomena—including the fact that galaxies rotate instead of flying apart— and is thought to account for approximately 85 %
of the matter in the universe and about 25 % of its total energy density. Researchers presume that dark matter exerts a strong influence on the structure and evolution of the universe.
The ILL has been studying dark matter, one of the biggest enigmas in science, for quite some time. Its neighbour on the Presqu’île, the LPSC, is a leader in the field. As the two institutes often collaborate, they decided to organise ‘Dark Matter Day’, an event designed to help families learn more about dark matter and how it is being studied. Attendees of all ages got to ask researchers all sorts of questions, and were then led on a virtual reality- driven Cosmic Tour.
SCIENCE FESTIVAL
The ILL was present at Grenoble’s version of France’s national Science Festival on Saturday 13 October, sharing a stand with the three other EPN Campus institutes. This is our main occasion, every year, to meet the public. We were happy to meet around
1 600 enthusiastic visitors that day. This year, there was a special focus on two recent studies carried out on the SALSA strain machine: one about new welding techniques in the car industry, and another on a mediaeval sword study.
Unravelling the secrets of dark matter during ‘Dark Matter Day’.
Explaining the magic of diffraction (©: C.Argoud).
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