It is still a glimpse into the future: Astronauts could be put into artificial hibernation and in this state be better protected from cosmic radiation. At present, there are already promising approaches to follow up such considerations. An international research team led by the Biophysics Department of the GSI Helmholtzzentrum in Darmstadt now has found decisive indications of the possible benefits of artificial hibernation for radiation resistance.

Following the decision of the FAIR Council, the highest body of the FAIR GmbH’s shareholders, for an up-to-date review of the FAIR project, the international committee of experts appointed for the task has completed its final report. The decision was motivated by the challenging financial status of the project. The report has been presented at an extraordinary FAIR Council meeting on October 25th, 2022.

The European Union has awarded a total of 11.3 million euros over a period of six years to the HEAVYMETAL research project, which aims to investigate the synthesis of chemical elements in neutron star mergers. Privatdozent Dr. Andreas Bauswein, a researcher in the Theory Department of the GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung in Darmstadt, is part of the four-member international team that receives the funding as part of an ERC Synergy Grant. At GSI, currently the international…

An international research team has succeeded in gaining new insights into the chemical properties of the superheavy element flerovium — element 114 — at the accelerator facilities of the GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung in Darmstadt. The measurements show that flerovium is the most volatile metal in the periodic table. Flerovium is thus the heaviest element in the periodic table that has been chemically studied. With the results, published in the journal "Frontiers in Chemistry",…

The tumor therapy with charged particles is one of the most promising applications in the fight against cancer. At the existing research facility of the GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung, as well as with the FAIR accelerator facility currently under construction here, scientists are working to improve the method through new technologies and treatment procedures and make it even more effective. Thereby, the new FLASH method is a promising way. An important step has now been…

In the second half of 2022, the lecture series „Wissenschaft für Alle“ of GSI and FAIR will be continued as a hybrid format. Interested parties can either attend the event in the lecture hall of GSI/FAIR following a registration or dial into the broadcast of the event via video conference using an internet-enabled device such as a laptop, cell phone or tablet. The program will begin on Wednesday, September 14, 2022, with a presentation by Jörg Blaurock, the Technical Managing Director of…

GSI/FAIR is actively involved in the charity cycling event "Tour der Hoffnung" for the benefit of children suffering from cancer and leukemia. When the nationwide known fundraising event stops at the Bürgermeister-Pohl-Haus in Wixhausen on August 12, 2022 at 3 p.m., representatives of GSI/FAIR and the Association for the Promotion of Tumor Therapy with Heavy Ions will be there. They will inform about cancer therapy with ions and the current state of research, as well as about the activities of…

GSI and FAIR mourn the loss of one of their most prominent scientists. Prof. Dr. Sigurd Hofmann, one of the world leaders in the discovery of new elements, passed away on June 17, 2022 at the age of 78. During his time as head of the Heavy Elements Department, he succeeded in discovering the elements darmstadtium, roentgenium and copernicium. In the years before, he made significant contributions to the synthesis of the elements hassium, bohrium, and meitnerium. Equally remarkable in his…

Professor Marco Durante, head of the Biophysics Research Department at GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung in Darmstadt, has been elected president of the Particle Therapy Co-Operative Group (PTCOG). The international organization is active worldwide to promote particle therapy — tumor therapy with particle beams, as developed, among others, at GSI— and thus improve overall treatment options for cancer.