Daily News Briefs

"Plasma Table," by Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) staff photographer Elle Starkman and Andrew Post-Zwicker, head of PPPL's science education program, won first place in the "Art of Science" contest, held this spring by Princeton students and faculty to inspire those who use imagery as part of their research to become more involved in the arts. Winning

FIRST PLACE: "Plasma Table," Elle Starkman and Andrew Post-Zwicker, Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory. A dust cloud of silicon microspheres that was illuminated by laser light scattering from the cloud is suspended in a plasma. The dust cloud is approximately 0.5" high and floats in a conical shape between the dust tray and an electrode as long as the plasma is maintained. Fundamental dust cloud properties and dynamics have applications from plasma processing to space plasmas. (Image courtesy of Princeton University)

entries and submissions are being exhibited at Princeton University Friend Center this month; visit the online gallery at www.princeton.edu/artofscience/gallery. . . . Infrared (IR) detectors made by Grenoble, France-based Sofradir are being used in the European military space satellite Helios IIA, part of the Helios II defense program supported by France, Belgium and Spain. Sofradir supplied its IR detectors to Alcatel Space for integration in high-resolution (HR) imaging instruments used in Helios IIA. In addition to improving the quality of images captured by Helios IIA, Sofradir's IR detector provides users with night imagery, a first in the Helios program. Helios IIA was launched in December 2004; Sofradir began working on its Helios IIA IR detector in 1994. The company demonstrated its long-wave and mid-wave IR detectors Scorpio (320x256) and Venus (384-288) last week at the International Paris Air Show.