SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory

We’re back baby. Our X-ray Pump Probe instrument has returned to normal operations following a year-long rebuild! All in preparation for the high-energy upgrade to the world’s most powerful X-ray laser: stanford.io/491Ihl2

We all need some space once in a while... Get lost in this wide-field view featuring 10 million galaxies captured by the NSF-DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory. #NationalSpaceDay

April showers brought...more exciting science! 🌧️ From the debut of our newly rebuilt X-ray Pump Probe instrument to light-controlled cardiovascular drugs, get the latest news from the lab in the May edition of our monthly newsletter: bit.ly/3OTPJIg

@Fermilab 👏

Fermilab sent its final contribution for the high-energy upgrade of the superconducting accelerator for @SLAClab's X-ray laser! news.fnal.gov/2026/04/fermil…

ooooo burn… X-ray sensitive plastic cards show the 'first beam burn mark' that commemorates first light of our X-ray Pump Probe instrument. Now these serve as a keepsake to mark the occasion!

“You spin me right round, baby, right round” - electrons 🎵 Inside our synchrotron. To generate hard X-ray light. Learn how: stanford.io/3QKH0Zl

Join us Wed. May 6 at 7pm PDT for our public lecture with Dr. Agnès Ferté (SLAC/KIPAC): “Cosmology in Overdrive” and learn about how galaxy surveys like DES and Rubin are helping us probe dark energy, cosmic acceleration, and gravity itself! RSVP: eventbrite.com/e/public-lectu…

Electron trees 🌳 Their intricate design is made by bombarding clear plastic with a defocused low-energy electron beam traveling at almost the velocity of light. At SLAC, “beamtrees” have historically been given as gifts and awards.

Upgrading the superconducting accelerator for the world's most powerful X-ray laser brought together the strengths of three @ENERGY national labs: Fermilab, @JLab_News, and @SLAClab.

How will @VRubinObs #CaptureTheCosmos? Collecting about 10 TeraBytes of raw data every night, over 10 years. That’s more than all previous astronomical surveys combined. Learn more with the full video data story: bit.ly/4sZxAr1

Near, far, wherever you are… 🎵 Our 2-mile long accelerator has a Near Experimental Hall and a Far Experimental Hall, both used for science experiments year-round.

@USFusionEnergy @Livermore_Lab @lasers_llnl 👀

Register now for a virtual #NIF tour during #FusionEnergyWeek2026! Fusion Technology at @Livermore_Lab is hosting a virtual tour of the National Ignition Facility (@lasers_llnl), where researchers achieved the first laboratory fusion ignition! Info at fusionenergyweek.org.

The Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument’s completed map of the universe, accumulated over 5 years. Earth is at its center. Every dot is a galaxy: bit.ly/4tliyfO

Congratulations to all the winners of @ENERGY's 2026 National Lab Research SLAM! 🎉 An extra special congratulations goes to our own Jenny Smith, who is bringing home the well-deserved People's Choice Award! What a SLAM-dunk #NLResearchSLAM. 🏀 👏

And one more congratulations to the winner of the People’s Choice Award!

Congratulations to our long-time collaborator, Tony Tyson, recognized by @TIME as one of the 100 most influential people of 2026! He has led our quest to hashtag#CaptureTheCosmos with @VRubinObs for almost 20 years. More: www6.slac.stanford.edu/news/2025-04-2…

@ENERGY @INL @NETL_DOE @NatLabRockies @ORNL @LosAlamosNatLab @PNNLab @SRNLab The third round of finalists @BrookhavenLab's Preetha Sarkar, @Fermilab's Byungchul Yu, @JLab_News' Tyler Hague, @BerkeleyLab's Yashwanth Balaji and @SLAClab's Jenny Smith in the Scientific Discovery category of #NLSLAM26 begin their presentations: livermorelab.info/4cqC0jX

Arsenic, X-rays, and Renaissance art 🎨 #DYK synchrotron X-rays can reveal the causes of color degradation in historical paintings? Learn how this can lead to the development of new preservation techniques this #WorldArtDay: stanford.io/43b5efT

What in the world of quantum? ⚛️ There is so much to explore when it comes to quantum science. Check out some of the research at SLAC this #WorldQuantumDay: qis.slac.stanford.edu