The Facility for Rare Isotope Beams and the National Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory provided 4,000 tours to members of the public during the FRIB and NSCL Open House on 18 August.

The event included activities, demonstrations, presentations, and tours that allowed attendees to learn more about a world-leading science facility in operation (NSCL) and one in the making (FRIB).

The six-hour open house, made possible by 150 volunteers, offered an array of experiences for all ages. Tours were held in the currently operational experimental areas in NSCL that will be used in FRIB experiments, and visitors could tour the FRIB linear accelerator currently under construction.

Several hands-on activities and demonstrations showed the fields of FRIB and NSCL research, including a 3D model of the FRIB facility under construction, the “Isotopolis” video game, coloring pages and activity sheets related to nuclear astrophysics, safety equipment to wear, magnetic marbles to practice “smashing nuclei,” and much more. Additionally, scientists were on-hand to talk about their work on the frontiers of rare-isotope research, and several educational videos were shown in the "FRIB Theater."

In the lecture hall, speakers gave presentations that gave a behind-the-scenes look at the FRIB Laboratory, the science being explored, and career opportunities for young people.

Michigan State University is establishing FRIB as a scientific user facility for the Office of Nuclear Physics in the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science. Operation of NSCL as a national user facility is supported by the Physics Division of the U.S. National Science Foundation.