Excursions

Participants will be guided to the GKSS Research Centre in Geesthacht which is close to Hamburg. The GKSS is a member of Helmholtz Association and conducts coastal, polymer and materials research. During this excursion non-destructive material testing using neutron and x-ray beams, as well as pollutants at coasts and distribution of atmospheric pollutants will be introduced.

The GKSS operates a research reactor which uses low-enriched uranium. This kind of research is an example of the civil use of nuclear material, besides nuclear power plants and isotope production. The coastal research area includes the analysis of pollutants in coastal regions. Besides general information to the emerging of pollutants in the marine environment, the distribution of atmospheric pollutants over Europe derived by chemistry transport modeling is introduced. Pollutants in coastal regions can cause international conflicts. The waste producer is often unknown and contaminations, indeed, affect more countries.

In addition, atmospheric transport modeling plays an important role in the verification of international treaties like the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty by modeling the distribution of noble gas. The advancement and enhancement of an atmospheric transport model for the noble gas krypton-85 is one part of the research at the Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker Centre for Science and Peace Research. This is done to develop a new method to verify the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

  GKSS-Homepage


The second study visit will introduce our participants to the research activities of the famous Bernard-Nocht-Institute für Tropical Medicine, which is situated in Hamburg. BNI runs one of the two existing in Germany security laboratories. The aim of study visit to BNI is to offer participants with an information on protective measures from biological weapons, which constitutes the integral component of further discussions on mechanisms of the Biological Weapons Convention and also about a threat of potential terrorist activities. Meeting with the specialists from BNI will also provide an opportunity to learn about the spread of pathogens and epidemics as a consequence of climate change.

BNI-Homepage