Neutrino Day 2022 across the map! Your guide to SURF’s free, citywide science festival
On Saturday, July 9, Neutrino Day takes over Lead, South Dakota
It’s official: Neutrino Day is coming back to Lead, South Dakota.
The free, citywide festival will take place Saturday, July 9, 2022, at locations across Lead, including the Sanford Lab Homestake Visitor Center, the Sanford Underground Research Facility, the Handley Recreation Center and the Historic Homestake Opera House. Throughout the day, attendees will find all their Neutrino Day favorites and discover new experiences, activities and speakers.
With so much to see and do, we know that planning your Neutrino Day experience can be a bit overwhelming. So, we created a guide with tips from our event planners to help you make the most of Neutrino Day this year.
Sanford Lab Homestake Visitor Center — Start here!
The Visitor Center is the best place to start your Neutrino Day experience. From the Visitor Center, trolleys take visitors to Hoistroom Tours and school busses shuttle guests to other locations throughout the day.
Tickets for the Yates Hoistroom tour are available at the Visitor Center. Tours are free, but there is limited availability.
Top tip: Hoistroom tours spots fill up quickly! We recommend arriving early to get your ticket, but no earlier than 8:30 a.m.
Learn about the history and legacy of Lead through exhibits and view a model of the underground, Davis Ring and the Open Cut. On the observation deck, peer into the sun through a solar telescope.
Chat with scientists underground through our livestream presentations in the Visitor Center classroom. Join particle physicist Dr. Brianna Mount from the Black Hills State University Underground Campus on the 4850 Level (10 a.m. at the Visitor Center). Then talk with geophysicists Dr. Paul Schwering and Dr. Hunter Knox from the EGS Collab’s geothermal test site on the 4100 Level (1 p.m. at the Visitor Center).
Historic Homestake Opera House
The Opera House will host three in-person science talks throughout the day.
Top tip: Most activities and demonstrations are ongoing throughout the day. But science talks and livestreams happen just once. View our schedule of events.
First, learn about the strangeness of neutrinos and the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment with Dr. Claire David (11 a.m. at the Opera House). Next, explore the science of the Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center with EROS acting director Dr. Pete Doucette (2 p.m. at the Opera House).
Don’t miss our Neutrino Day finale! Our headlining speaker is Dianna Cowern, creator and host of the viral “Physics Girl” YouTube series (4 p.m. at the Opera House). With over 2 million subscribers, “Physics Girl” invites everyone into the world of physics through experiments, demonstrations and cool new discoveries.
Handley Recreation Center
The Handley Center is your stop for hands-on activities for all ages.
Catapult your knowledge of physics by building your own pompom launcher. Explore the night sky constellations with an art activity. Detect invisible particles with a cosmic ray detector and cloud chamber. Build a DNA bracelet. Monitor the Earth’s rumblings with a raspberry shake seismometer. Test your archeology skills with a fossil-matching activity. Peer into the Universe with the Journey Museum’s immersive geodome or take a look inward with Monument Health’s giant inflatable heart and lungs.
Top tip: In July, Neutrino Day can get hot! Cool off at the South Dakota Mines nitrogen ice cream station at the Handley Center.
Outdoor Exhibition Area at Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF)
The Outdoor Exhibition Area at SURF will have safety demonstrations and will display state-of-the-art electric vehicles and heavy equipment used for underground excavation.
SURF’s Emergency Rescue Team will demonstrate rope techniques used during rescue operations and teach visitors how to use a fire extinguisher in the ERT demonstration truck.
Black Hills Energy’s outdoor display will include an bucket truck, a Ford-150 and Mustang Mach-E—all powered by electricity.
Top Tip: Don’t forget to pack sunscreen and extra water!
Education & Outreach Building at Sanford Underground Research Facility (SURF)
Come see Neutrino Day favorites at the SURF Education & Outreach Building!
Toilet paper flies, balloons pop, kids discover a fascination for science during scientific demonstrations by “Science Steve.” A South Dakota Public Broadcasting education specialist, Steve Rokusek makes science fun for audiences of all ages with humorous demonstrations that bring to life the laws of physics, chemistry, anatomy and more.
Then, talk with scientists who work deep underground at SURF. Researchers studying biology, geology, astrophysics and particle physics will be there to answer questions about the experiments.
Top tip: Need a break? Munch some popcorn while watching our favorite science videos in the E&O classroom!
Plan your unique experience at NeutrinoDay.com!
We are adding activities throughout the month, so there’s even more coming your way! To plan your complete Neutrino Day experience, visit www.neutrinoday.com.