Last week, Ph.D. candidate Karen Heymann, crop and soil sciences, presented her research on black carbon, one of the "dirtiest" specimen on Earth. Her research utilized the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source to detect and characterize this substance, which plays a role in soil and climate change.

Operators at the Wilson Synchrotron Laboratory are evaluating and replacing the old equipment that led to two small fires in the synchrotron’s main tunnel earlier this semester. The fires occurred in two small power supplies that provide energy for the synchrotron’s vacuum pumps. The damage done was minimal and localized, but it called attention to the aging machinery still used in parts of the synchrotron. The fires also brought up safety concerns about the accessibility of the tunnel in the event of an emergency.

A small fire broke out at the Wilson Synchrotron Laboratory yesterday afternoon around 2:47 p.m., marking the second fire in less than a month at the laboratory. An internal a power supply for a vacuum pump short-circuited and caused the fire, according to the Ithaca Fire Department.

Firefighters entered the synchrotron lab ring from the entrance off of Tower Road and quickly encountered smoke. Upon reaching the power supply, the firefighters discovered it was on fire. They quickly extinguished the flames and de-energized the supply unit, according to Assistant Chief Daniel Tier III, the incident commander. The fire forced Cornell officials to temporarily close Tower Road yesterday afternoon.

This is the second in a series examining Cornell’s underground hot spots.

Last week’s electrical fire brought unexpected attention to the Wilson Synchrotron Laboratory, making it quite literally an “underground hot spot”. The synchrotron itself, originally constructed in 1967, was the world’s largest electron synchrotron at its opening and was considered the largest single construction project at Cornell. But despite the prestige it held at its inception, Cornell students know little about its purpose or even its existence.