News - SOLARIS National Synchrotron Radiation Centre - Jagiellonian University

Festival of Science and Arts in Krakow 2024

The Science and Art Festival returns to Krakow after five years of absence. From 16 to 18 May, the campuses of Krakow's universities, including the SOLARIS synchrotron facility, were opened to all those who wanted to see the legitimacy of the slogan "Krakow – a city of science and art", which accompanied the 20th edition of the event. This was possible thanks to the change of the location of the festival, which moved from the Main Market Square to the scientific headquarters of the campaign partners.

SOLARIS Centre opened its doors to Festival participants on 16 May. Thanks to an extensive system of audio guides, visitors learned the most important information about Poland's only synchrotron. Haptic screens depicting the interior of the circular and linear accelerator provided a deeper experience of the dimension of science being produced at our research infrastructure.

On 17 May, SOLARIS played host to the Festival Village at the Jagiellonian University's Faculty of Chemistry. Crowds of Kraków's inhabitants learned about methods for cleaning synchrotron mirrors using cold plasma, all thanks to a presentation of a plasma chamber made by our young scientists. The stand also talked about the formation of synchrotron light on the basis of a mock-up. There were also representatives of the SOLARIS Centre's electron cryomicroscopy. The method has become particularly valuable in biological and biochemical research, as it enables the visualisation of large protein complexes, viruses and other biological structures in their natural state, without the need for crystallisation. Festival attendees were able to pick up 3D printed models of protein structures and hear about how cryomicroscopy helps in biomedicine, among other things.

The Science and Arts Festival attracted a lot of people who were hungry for knowledge and new experiences after a five-year break!