网曝吃瓜

网曝吃瓜 senior physics major Tristen Olsson was awarded a fellowship in the prestigious . 

Olsson spent two months - September and October of 2023 - in Italy assisting in astrophysics research at in Rome and at the located 100 miles east of Rome. 

Gran Sasso is one of the largest underground laboratories in the world devoted to neutrino and astroparticle physics. 

Frank Strieder, Ph.D., associate head of the 网曝吃瓜 Department of Physics, said Olsson was one of just 11 students across the United States chosen for the fellowship. 鈥淚t's quite an accomplishment. He's a great student,鈥� he says of Olsson. 

Olsson, who is originally from Spearfish, said the experience was life-changing, both for the professional research piece and the opportunity to be immersed in another culture. 

鈥淚 was kind of on my own, which was a new experience having gone to school so close to home,鈥� he says. He was required to find his own housing and manage his day-to-day activities outside of his work at the university and lab. As someone who doesn't speak Italian, it was a challenge but Olsson says it was a wonderful experience he will cherish. 

As a student at 网曝吃瓜, Olsson has had the opportunity to participate in (SURF) in Lead. CASPAR, which stands for Compact Accelerator System for Performing Astrophysical Research, is a low-energy particle accelerator that allows researchers to study processes that occur inside stars. is the deepest underground laboratory in the United States and among the deepest in the world. Nearly a mile underground, SURF is home to experiments in physics, biology, geology and engineering.  

In Italy, Olsson participated in research that is the 鈥渟ister experiment to CASPAR鈥� happening at the (LUNA) at Gran Sasso National Laboratory.  

CASPAR and LUNA are two of only three deep underground accelerators in the world studying stellar environments. LUNA has been in existence for 25 years, and Strieder, who is a principal investigator for CASPAR, previously worked on LUNA for 22 years. 

Olsson spent time at both the Sapenzia University and the underground lab, assisting with data collection and analysis. 鈥淢y time in the lab was my favorite part of the whole thing,鈥� he says. 鈥淭he mountains (where the lab was located) were beautiful, the physics facilities amazing and even the food in the lab was good.鈥�

Olsson, who will graduate in May from Mines, is currently applying for graduate programs at universities in the United States. He hopes to have a career in physics research someday. 鈥淎strophysics research is kind of my dream career,鈥� he says. 

He also hopes to return to Europe someday, either in a professional capacity or as a visitor. 鈥淚'd love to go back to Italy and Europe,鈥� he says. 鈥淎nd I'd have no qualms about doing physics in Europe or elsewhere.鈥�