News and Updates
Australia’s most high-tech CELLAR
The Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory (SUPL) congratulates researchers involved in the Cryogenic Experimental Laboratory for Low-background Australian Research (CELLAR).
The CELLAR will be a new facility within SUPL providing a high-tech cooling system called a dilution refrigerator. CELLAR introduces the potential to attract exciting new experiments and research collaborations that take advantage of the unique environment that SUPL provides, as well as the opportunity to further raise the STEM profile and local investment in regional Victoria.
The team behind SUPL
The Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory (SUPL) project has been supported by many university, government and community partners.
At the completion of Stage 1 construction works, the contribution of these partners was recognised.
Learn about the role each played in the development of SUPL.
SUPL unveiled
The Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory (SUPL) was officially unveiled in August, 2022.
ARC Centre of Excellence for Dark Matter Particle Physics Professor Elisabetta Barberio provides an introduction to the lab and an explanation of the search for dark matter.
Recent News:
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New milestone for Stawell dark matter laboratory
Professor Phillip Urquijo, of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Dark Matter Particle Physics, held a public lecture in Stawell as part of National Science Week.
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SUPL Facility Manager appointed
Kim Mintern-Lane has been appointed as the new Facility & Laboratory Manager for the Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory.
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The Dark Side of the Universe
An ABC Catalyst Special.
ABC Catalyst visited SUPL to meet the scientists leading the hunt for Dark Matter.
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Veritasium explores Dark Matter
Vertitasium visits SUPL to profile the exciting research into Dark Matter that our laboratory in Stawell will soon be hosting.
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Dr Sue Barrell appointed
Dr. Sue Barrell has been appointed as new chair for the Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory.
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Future Careers at SUPL
PhD student, Madeleine Zurowski, speaks with The Age about her plans to continue researching Dark Matter at SUPL as she embarks upon her research career.
SUPL in the media:
SUPL on the ABC
Over more than a year, the team from the ABC travelled to Stawell to see the works happening 1km beneath the ground at Stawell Gold Mines.
They produced a mini-documentary explaining our search for dark matter.
By Ben Knight, with Alexander Darling.
The Conversation.
Dark matter is believed to be five times more prevalent in the universe than ordinary matter. But it interacts so weakly with other matter – like the protons and electrons that make up the stuff around us – that, to date, it has defied our attempts to detect it directly.
By Prof. Anthony Williams.
Pursuit.
The 2020s will use increasingly complex technology to ramp up our efforts to understand more about the Universe.
By Clare Kenyon.
https://pursuit.unimelb.edu.au/articles/putting-the-universe-under-the-telescope
Darkness Visible Down Under:
“Decades of research have led astronomers to a staggering conclusion: there exists an invisible type of mass that outweighs everything we can see five times over.”
In this video, produced by the Royal Society of Victoria, Prof. Alan Duffy explains the scientific background of the underground physics laboratory.
News from our Partners:
ARC Centre of Excellence for Dark Matter
The Centre will construct and operate state-of-the-art dark matter direct detection experiments in Australia at the Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory (SUPL).
University of Melbourne
New photos show a breakthrough in the construction of the first underground physics laboratory in the Southern Hemisphere at the Stawell Gold Mine in Victoria.
https://about.unimelb.edu.au/newsroom/news/2019/november/breakthrough-in-dark-matter-underground-lab
Australian Research Council
“The Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory will be built deep underground at the Stawell Gold Mine in western Victoria to allow researchers to conduct experiments that rely on precise measurements using some of the world’s most sensitive scientific equipment.”
https://www.arc.gov.au/news-publications/media/media-releases/research-unlock-mysteries-universe
ANSTO
ANSTO welcomes the announcement of $5 million in matching capital funds from the Victorian Government for the construction of the Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory, which will house an ultra-sensitive instrument known as SABRE to detect dark matter.. The Commonwealth Government had previously committed $5 million to build the first facility of its type in the Southern Hemisphere.
Commonwealth Government of Australia
The Morrison Government is providing $5 million to build the Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory (SUPL) at the Stawell Gold Mine in Stawell, western Victoria, as part of the global effort to discover the answers to some of the biggest questions about our universe.
https://ministers.dese.gov.au/tehan/world-leading-physics-research
State Government of Victoria
Plans to turn Stawell into a global physics research hub are on track with the Andrews Labor Government today announcing support for the construction of the Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory.
https://www.rdv.vic.gov.au/news/green-light-for-stawell-underground-physics-lab
Stawell Community
A project that could unlock hidden secrets of the universe looks set to commence in Stawell this year.
Northern Grampians Shire Council
Northern Grampians Shire Council was pleased to join fellow stakeholders to celebrate the opening of the Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory (SUPL).
Stawell Gold Mines
SGM welcomes the exciting news of funding to proceed with the construction of the Stawell Underground Physics Laboratory (SUPL).