George Flynn of SUNY Plattsburgh displays a sample from the Stardust mission, which collected samples of comet dust and returned them to the Earth. The sample was analyzed at the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne . Photo by George Joch.

March 13, 2006 -- Some of this week's stories:

Comet dust studied at Advanced Photon Source

By Donna Jones Pelkie

They came from outer space.

And now, particles of comet dust that traveled from the far reaches of the solar system to Earth are traveling the United States , including a stop at Argonne 's Advanced Photon Source (APS). Scientists there are studying the particles to learn more about comets and possibly the creation of our planet.

The particles are the first pieces of a comet to have ever been plucked from outer space and returned to Earth. The collection was part of NASA's Stardust sample return mission which launched in February 1999. The primary goal of Stardust was to collect dust and carbon-based samples during its closest encounter with Comet Wild 2. The Stardust sample-return canister parachuted onto the desert salt flats of Utah on Jan. 15, following a journey of nearly three million miles and bringing with it thousands of particles from the edge of the solar system.

Four of those samples recently spent a few days at Argonne , and almost that entire time they were bombarded by the high precision X-ray beams from APS. The samples are so small that several particles fit across the width of a single human hair. By using the APS to map the samples, researchers hope to determine their chemical makeup and to gain a better understanding of the composition of comets and other planetary bodies, including the Earth. The studies were done at GeoSoilEnviroCARS, a research facility at the APS operated by the University of Chicago .

Comets form far out in the solar system, explained researcher George Flynn of SUNY Plattsburgh who is working on the project with Steve Sutton and Matt Newville of the University of Chicago . They have trapped original parts of the solar system in ice for four and a half billion years. We have material that we think is the original dust that the solar system formed from. And if we want to understand the Earth, we need to understand what it's made of.

The particles were captured in aerogel, a special type of foamed glass, made so lightweight that it is barely visible and almost floats in air. Looking at the aerogel microscopically, Flynn said, it would resemble a spider web. The particles travel through it, hitting individual strands of the web, slowing with each impact, and eventually becoming embedded in the gel. The comet particles make carrot-shaped tunnels in the aerogel as they are stopped. At the pointed tip of each tunnel, a tiny particle will be found.

Researchers are analyzing the particles while they are still embedded in the aerogel. They use the APS to map the elements along the track left by the comet particles. The aerogel is abrasive, and as the particles travel through it, parts of them are scraped off and embedded in the track.

If we just remove the particle and analyze only that, Flynn said, it might not be a true representation of the particle composition. Researchers will map the elements along the path as well as the particle, and then we'll add them up and see what we get, Flynn said.

Flynn and his colleagues will also compare the data collected from these comet particles to data on particle samples that NASA routinely collects from the Earth's upper atmosphere. Researchers have long believed that some of those particles are, indeed, from comets, but without confirmed comet samples to compare to, there's been no way to know for sure. This project finally gives scientists the opportunity to determine the unique characteristics of a comet. Flynn says researchers hope that if a comet is sufficiently uniform, then by collecting such tiny pieces of it we can understand a lot.

Prior to landing at Argonne , the samples were analyzed at the Advanced Light Source at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the National Synchrotron Light Source at Brookhaven National Laboratory. Using the APS, the samples can be studied at much higher energies allowing researchers to detect heavier elements and map the samples at smaller scales.

After the samples leave Argonne, Flynn said, they will be returned to the Johnson Space Center in Houston where the particles will be extracted from the aerogel. Scientists there have the capability to extract particles down to about four microns in size. Researchers will slice the particles in half and analyze them. Some of the particles will then make a return trip to the APS where researchers will examine individual minerals in the particles at the submicron scale.

Once all research is finished, the samples will be housed at the Johnson Space Center and remain available for researchers around the world to study. Sutton pointed out that's why non-destructive studies such as this one are so valuable because the samples can be studied again in the future when even more refined methods become available.

Stardust is the first U.S. mission designed to return rock samples since the Apollo missions to the moon. Nobody would have imagined back when Apollo returned with the first space samples the types of studies that would be possible today, Flynn said. During the early years of space exploration samples needed to be much larger, and measurements could not be done with the sensitivity that is available today.

The real benefit of sample return, Flynn points out, is that the instruments used to study the material could not be taken into space. We could never send a synchrotron to the comet, he laughed.

Flynn and Sutton, who have been studying space particle samples together for nearly two decades, will present preliminary findings at NASA's lunar and planetary science conference this month. They hope to have their studies complete in six months.

Up to $500 awarded for IMPACT suggestions

Argonne's IMPACT program provides a way for all Argonne employees to express concerns or make suggestions to improve safety, productivity and operations at the laboratory.

Employees, union or non-union, are encouraged to participate in the IMPACT program and can be awarded up to $500 for a winning safety suggestion.

Employees who have immediate concerns about anything they feel is unsafe at the laboratory should immediately notify their supervisors. All employees have the right to refuse directives they feel are unsafe.

Suggestions can be submitted through the IMPACT program to enhance safety or express non-immediate concerns. Suggestions and concerns will be handled by the IMPACT coordinator, who will request the person most experienced and knowledgeable about the issue to review the suggestion. That person will provide a response or take the necessary action to correct the issue. IMPACT suggestions can be made anonymously.

Suggestions that save the laboratory money and time, improve the environment or identify safety and health issues are eligible for an award.

IMPACT pamphlets are available at all official laboratory bulletin boards or by calling ext. 2-9393.

Sattelberger named Associate Lab Director for Physical, Biological and Computing Sciences

Alfred P. Sattelberger has been named Associate Laboratory Director for Argonne 's Physical, Biological and Computing Sciences divisions. His appointment was effective March 1.

In this position, Sattelberger will oversee the mission and operation of Argonne scientific divisions that conduct research in nanoscale materials, materials science, bioscience, physics, chemistry, mathematics and computer science, and conduct the laboratory's educational programs.

Sattelberger is a senior laboratory fellow at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and a visiting research professor in the radiochemistry program at the Harry Reid Center , University of Nevada-Las Vegas . Prior to these assignments, he held several scientific and technical management positions at Los Alamos . From 1999-2004, he was director of LANL's Chemistry Division, an organization that grew to seven technical groups, a staff of roughly 450, and a budget in excess of $100M.

From 1994 to 1999, he was first deputy and then director of LANL's Science and Technology Base Programs Office, an office with primary responsibility for LANL's laboratory-directed research and development, externally funded science education programs, university outreach, technical assessment of the laboratory's science and engineering activities, and the postdoctoral program. From 1997-1999, he also served as the program director for Energy Research (now DOE's Office of Science) programs.

Earlier in his LANL career, Sattelberger served three years as the deputy division leader of the former Isotope and Nuclear Chemistry Division. Prior to that, he spent six years in the Inorganic and Structural Chemistry Group (INC-4). There he was a section leader for inorganic chemistry and principal investigator on several research projects dealing with actinide coordination and organometallic chemistry, organometallic chemical vapor deposition, and technetium-99 chemistry.

Link , Galicia receive QASR Award

Security Lt. Steven Link and Officer Edgar Galicia have received Quality and Safety Recognition (QASR) Awards for fast response and quick thinking in rendering first aid and assistance to an injured fellow officer.

The awards were presented during a recent management council meeting. Link and Galicia each received a certificate of recognition and lunch tickets for two at their choice of the Argonne Guest House or the Building 213 Cafeteria. Their names will also be added to the QASR Award Winners' plaque.

On Oct. 30, 2005, the Central Alarm Station at the Argonne firehouse received a call for immediate assistance from a Protective Force officer. While conducting a security patrol in Building 316, the officer tripped and fell into a door window, severely lacerating his left arm.

Link and Galicia were first to arrive at the scene, where they found the officer standing in a pool of blood, with shards of glass everywhere. Noticing the injured officer's slurred speech and disorientation, Link had him sit against a wall. He raised the officer's injured arm above the level of his heart and removed his own shirt to use as a compress to slow the bleeding. With assistance from Galicia , the bleeding was controlled until the Argonne Fire Department arrived. After basic treatment, the officer was taken to Good Samaritan Hospital in Downers Grove . He was treated and has fully recovered.

The QASR Award recognizes employees' contributions to safety and quality at the laboratory. Safety is vital to the laboratory's ability to conduct research and development on behalf of the nation, and that safety depends on the efforts of conscientious employees who find, report and fix potential hazards and who look out for the safety and well being of their colleagues.

Nominations for the QASR award can be sent to Audra Karalius (EQO) at karalius@anl.gov.

Foster to lead Computation Institute

Ian Foster (MCS) has been appointed director of the Computation Institute, a joint project between the University of Chicago and Argonne that addresses the most challenging computational and communications problems arising from a broad range of intellectual pursuits.

Foster succeeds Rick Stevens, director of the Mathematics and Computing Sciences Division at Argonne and professor in Computer Science at the university.

Also appointed, as associate director of the institute, is Jonathan Silverstein, assistant professor in Surgery at the university.

Ian Foster and Jonathan Silverstein are the perfect team to bring together university and Argonne scientists from across the disciplines to lead the Computation Institute to the fore in this grand challenge, said Thomas Rosenbaum, the University of Chicago's Vice President for Research and for Argonne National Laboratory.

A pioneer in grid computing, Foster is associate director of Argonne's Mathematics and Computer Science Division and the Arthur Holly Compton Distinguished Service Professor in Computer Science at the University of Chicago . The high-speed networking of grid computing provides access to both raw computer power and special data or instrument resources on demand, much the way an electric power grid provides electricity.

Computation plays an increasingly central role in many disciplines in the sciences, medicine and the humanities, Foster said. What we want to be about is not just doing bigger computations, but working out how to apply these computation tools in new ways and to new disciplines.

The Grid movement is largely supported by the Globus Project, which Foster co-founded in 1995 with Steve Tuecke, formerly of Argonne but now chief executive officer of Univa Corporation, and Carl Kesselman of the University of Southern California . Since then they have initiated a variety of commercial and academic enterprises based on their software package for building Grid systems and applications, the Globus Toolkit.

Globus underpins numerous projects, including TeraGrid, a national system of interconnected computers that scientists and engineers will use to solve some of their most challenging problems. TeraGrid, which is overseen by the Computation Institute, could potentially affect every major scientific discipline that requires intensive computing capabilities.

Foster, Kesselman and Tuecke founded Univa Corporation, based in Elmhurst , Ill. , to promote the commercial use of Globus technology. Foster also co-led the launch of the Grid Physics Network (GriPhyN), in 2000.

More than 120 researchers at Argonne and the university belong to the Computation Institute. Founded in 1999, the institute encompasses research in the biological, physical, social and financial sciences, medicine, law, the arts and the humanities.

DOE requests 14 percent increase in budget

The U.S. Department of Energy's fiscal year 2007 budget requests $4.1 billion for the Office of Science, a $505 million (14.1 percent) increase over FY 2006 funding. This budget puts DOE's Office of Science on the path to doubling its budget by FY 2016.

The budget request for Basic Energy Sciences was $1.42 billion, a $286.4 million increase over FY 2006. A large portion of this request enables the Office of Science to continue design and construction of the Linac Coherent Light Source ($105.9 million total).

Funding increases will also support nanoscale science research (up $51 million); the Hydrogen Fuel Initiative (up $17.5 million); the first full year of operations of the Spallation Neutron Source at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (up $99.7 million); and provides research and development and project engineering design for the National Synchrotron Light Source II project (an additional $45 million).

Other programs were also targeted for increases:

Biological and Environmental Research: $510.3 million, a $54.6 million increase over 2006.

High Energy Physics Program: $775.1 million, a $58.4 million increase over FY 2006.

Nuclear Physics Program: $454.1 million, an $87 million increase over FY 2006. The funding increase would restore operations at both the Thomas Jefferson National Accelerator Facility and the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider.

Advanced Scientific Computing Research Program: $318.7 million, an $84.0 million increase over FY 2006.

Details are online at the DOE Web site.

AST-NS reorganizes

Argonne management has reorganized Applied Science and Technology-National Security (AST-NS), under the direction of Associate Laboratory Director Alan Foley. The reorganization eliminates the Energy Technology Division and merges its functions into the remaining AST-NS divisions.

Division directors in AST-NS, the associate laboratory director's office and Human Resources have already started to work with Energy Technology to make this transition as smooth as possible.

Generally, entire sections will be transferred to other divisions -- probably to Nuclear Engineering, Energy Systems, Chemical Engineering and possibly Environmental Science. Not all functions fall neatly into existing organizations, and some adjustments will be made on an individual basis.

A voluntary Reduction in Force (RIF) has been offered.

Administratively, everyone will report to the new divisions as of Saturday, April 1. Responsibilities for experimental work will be transferred to the new divisions. This includes control of lab space, ownership of equipment and special materials, experimental safety review, Job Hazard Questionnaires, and Environment, Safety and Health training records. A number of documents will have to be revised, and in some cases approved, in order to reflect the new organizational structure.

Contact C&PA before talking to media

Argonne employees who receive media requests for information or interviews should contact Communications and Public Affairs for advice and guidance before responding. No official Argonne information may be issued in any form to the news media without the prior review and concurrence of C&PA.

Generating a news release to any outside entity is also the function of C&PA, which will work with the appropriate division and division director to release the information in a timely manner.

For details, see Laboratory Policy 6.27. C&PA personnel can answer procedural questions; contact C&PA Director Suraiya Farukhi at ext. 2-5581 or Deputy Director Cindy Wilkinson at ext. 2-5561.

No portion of the communications and public affairs policy applies to, or is intended to restrict in any way:

The free exchange of professional scientific information within the global scientific and technical community via any medium;

The right of any Argonne employee, when not representing the laboratory, to freely express personal opinions in public or to communicate with his or her elected officials;

Internal communications among the Argonne staff;

Normal business communications with agencies, organizations and individuals external to Argonne ;

Communications concerning legal, regulatory, or liability matters that are the responsibility of the Legal Department; and

Recruitment advertising or related employment activities.

Branding guide available online

A new document, Brand Identity Guidelines, which summarizes key aspects of the new Argonne brand and how it impacts Argonne communications, is now available online.

Argonne's new logo is the visual symbol of the new Argonne brand, announced by Laboratory Director Robert Rosner in his State of the Laboratory address Feb. 28.

Topics in “Brand Identity Guidelines” include brand positioning and personality, proper use of Argonne's name and logo, color palette, typography and examples of printed materials that properly reflect the Argonne brand.

Communications and Public Affairs and the Technical Services Division are working on new templates for business cards, letterhead, memos, PowerPoint and other documents. They will be announced as they become ready over the next few days.

Delta symbolizes change, diversity

The delta symbol, which makes up the colorful part of the new Argonne logo, symbolizes change. The colors on the three sides represent Argonne 's diversity, as reflected in the many talents, cultures and scientific disciplines of the laboratory's staff, as well as the variety of experimental facilities on site. The blended colors at the corners represent the way the multidisciplinary talents attracted to the laboratory combine to produce new ideas, discoveries and inventions.

Service Awards for March:

45 Years

Vernon F. Stipp (IPNS).

40 Years

Joseph L. Midlock (AOD).

35 Years

Jean C. Glover (PHY).

30 Years

Thomas E. Baldwin (DIS), Keith L. Derstine (NE), Ezzat Danial Doss (NE), Arne P. Olson (NE), Rosario Torres (SUF), Lawrence J. Wesley (PFS).

25 Years

Patric Den Hartog (XFD).

20 Years

John K. Basco (CMT), Bruce M. Biwer (EVS), Paula D. Mann (PFS).

15 Years

Conrad Bissonnette (PFS), Michael D. Borland (AOD), Mark S. Engbretson (XFD), Catherine Foster (C&PA), Calvin Jackson (PFS), Andrew Mosele (PFS), Michael Muscia (ASD), Kent Oikle (PME), Christopher Piatak (IPNS), James Stevens (ASD), John Weizeorick (AOD), Shenglan Xu (BIO).

10 Years

Roger L. Bergquist (PFS), Kevin A. Beyer (AOD), Karl D. Duke (OCF), Thomas Meier (ASD), Ilya A. Shkrob (CHM), Nancy Van Wermeskerken (CHM).

5 Years

Jesus D. Almocera (PFS), Geralyn M. Becker (HR), Thomas G. Benjamin (CMT), Eddie Johnson, Jr. (PFS), YuPo Lin (ES), Gregory W. Matteson (PFS), William D. Pointer (NE), Steven J. Potempa (AOD), Noel Rivera (ASD), Georganne M. Rohder (MCS), Cristen J. Sarne (ASD), Mariana Varotto (ASD), Caryn Warsaw (NE).

Retirees

Michael V. Bertnik (PFS-US) retired February 14 with 16 years of service.

John J. Devenney (PME-CR) retired February 14 with 28 years of service.

Ronald E. Harris (PFS-US) retired February 14 with 22 years of service.

Judy Knox (HR) retired February 1 with 15 years of service.

Martin R. Kraimer (ASD) retired February 1 with 39 years of service.

Marie C. Larson (AOD) retired February 1 with 28 years of service.

Thomas E. North (PME) retired February 14 with 28 years of service.

Richard Prien (ASD) retired February 1 with 40 years of service.

Lovely Pruitt (AOD) retired February 1 with 26 years of service.

James M. Radke (PFS) retired February 14 with 11 years of service.

Roy A. Seglem (ASD) retired February 1 with 39 years of service.

Gary Sprau (ASD) retired February 1 with 41 years of service.

New online collection spans 6 decades of DOE research

Argonne researchers can now access approximately four million bibliographic records and more than 140,000 full-text documents spanning more than six decades of U.S. Department of Energy research through the online Science Research Connection (SRC).

SRC was developed exclusively for the DOE community and is intended for scientists and information specialists as a way to enhance research on behalf of DOE. SRC requires registration, but access is free of charge.

Many documents previously not widely accessible are now available electronically and more are being added. Special features include search result manipulation, save search capability, alerts, shopping cart, field sorting and downloadable bibliographic data to EndNote. Basic search is available, as well as sophisticated search options including wild card, proximity, full text, author and taxonomy.

To register, visit www.osti.gov/src and fill out the registration form. An e-mail notification will signal that the registration has been submitted. A second e-mail notification will arrive when the registration has been processed and approved.

Rock named to sports hall of fame

Northwestern Oklahoma State University (NWOSU) has inducted Cindy Rock (PFS-WMO) into its Sports Hall of Fame.

Rock played point guard for the Lady Rangers basketball team for two and half seasons and currently holds five basketball records. She owns the record for best three-point percentage in a season Ñ 54.8 percent Ñ leading NWOSU and the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) during her senior year (1987-1988). Rock played on the NAIA District IX team and was named the Oklahoma Intercollegiate Conference Scholar Athlete of the Year during the 1987-88 basketball season. That same season she helped lead the Lady Rangers to the Oklahoma Intercollegiate Co-Conference championship with a 22-5 overall record.

Physics Division to host RIA theory workshop

Argonne 's Physics Division is organizing the 3rd Rare Isotope Accelerator Theory Workshop April 4-7. The workshop, a joint Argonne , Michigan State University, Institute for Nuclear Theory and Joint Institute for Nuclear Astrophysics meeting, will be held in the Building 203 Auditorium.

Participants will take a broad look at the new physics questions that can be addressed with rare isotope beams, such as clustering phenomena, diffuse systems, dynamic symmetries and model predictions for nuclei far from stability.

Detailed information is online.

Golf league readies for new season

The Double Eagles Golf League will hold its pre-season kick-off meeting Wednesday, March 22, from noon to 1 p.m. in Building 402, A1100 (near the Auditorium). The new season begins April 5.

The meeting is an opportunity to meet fellow golfers and discuss league rules and season activities. Attendees qualify for the early-bird registration fee of $15 (a $5 savings) and a prize determined by a raffle.

The Double Eagles Golf League is a nine-hole league that plays Wednesday afternoons at the Village Greens of Woodridge Golf Course ( 75th Street west of Lemont Road ). The league is open to all Argonne employees and contractors, and their families and friends. For more information, contact Richard Rosenberg (XFD) at ext. 2-6112 or rar@aps.anl.gov.