Locals gather for Neutrino Day

BY WENDY PITLICK, Black Hills Pioneer
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LEAD - Anxiously awaiting news about the National Science Foundation's choice for a national lab site, Lead residents remained optimistic Friday as they gathered to celebrate the sixth annual Neutrino Day.

Neutrino Day is held every year on Feb. 23 to commemorate the first scientists' visits to the Homestake Mine. It is an opportunity for residents to get together and celebrate Lead's future. This year the event was held at the Lead YMCA, with an assortment of snacks, healthy drinks, a display of sixth-grade artwork, and, of course, a visit from Miss Neutrino.

Though many Lead residents tell a slightly different version of the story, all agree that legend says Miss Neutrino lives at the 4,850-foot level of the Homestake Mine where she anxiously awaits the emergence of scientists there to conduct experiments. Miss Neutrino, also known as Lead chamber board member Tracy Thacker, dons her red, white and blue attire and makes two appearances in town every year - once for the Fourth of July celebration and again for Neutrino Day.

One of the attractions at the celebration was artwork created by students from the Lead-Deadwood School District. The students attempted to illustrate what a neutrino looks like, and many pieces showed a great understanding of the tiny particles that normally pass through the earth's core without being noticed. After winners of the art contest are announced Monday the artwork will be moved to the S.D. Science and Technology administrative offices, where NSF officials will view them when they arrive in Lead for the site visit next month.

Several residents and lab supporters gathered in the YMCA lobby all discussing Lead's chances for the Deep Underground Science and Engineering Laboratory.

The evening's highlight was when S.D. Science and Technology Authority Executive Director Dave Snyder gave a short update about activity at the mine. The site selection process with the National Science Foundation, Snyder said, is continuing expeditiously. He continued to explain that especially with a past claim that the NSF unfairly excluded some sites in its last round of selections, a claim which ultimately lead to the foundation opening up bids nationwide a second time, the organization is being very careful to be fair and proper during this final selection process. Authority or state officials, as well as the NSF he said, can't even discuss the interim lab at the 4,850-foot level before the site selection is made, as it could be construed as an unfair advantage. However, developing a lab at the 4,850-foot level is in the authority's strategy to get the NSF's ultimate approval.

While there has been little news about the NSF site selection timeline or process, Snyder encouraged his attentive audience to consider all the other national labs that have developed throughout the country. The NSF process works, he said, and it is just a matter of time before a DUSEL will be operating.

"The process is progressing as it should," Snyder said.

Currently the Homestake Mine is competing with sites in Minnesota, Washington and Colorado. However, Snyder said he is still extremely confident that Homestake, which was once chosen as the NSF's preferred site for the lab, will be chosen.

"All I know is that our proposal meets the criteria point for point," he said.

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