Fifth HAARP Open House is one for the books

More than 300 visitors came through the gates of HAARP, the High-frequency Active Auroral Research Program, on June 14 as part of the fifth public open house hosted by the facility since it became part of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute in 2015. That meant the open house was also celebrating the 10th anniversary of the GI being in charge of this world-class research instrument!

Participants could tour the HAARP array and generator room, talk to a graduate student who runs the array during HAARP research campaigns, listen to scientist lectures about HAARP and the aurora, visit the drone petting zoo or run a drone flight simulator hosted by the Alaska Center for Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration, buy tacos from local food truck vendor Ernesto's from Glenallen, enjoy special HAARP or GI cookies, or maybe even purchase a little HAARP merch. Each of the six programs offered throughout the day in the GI's portable planetarium were full, and the selfie station out in the array was all the rage.

HAARP Director Jessica Matthews extended appreciation to the more than 40 UAF faculty, staff, students and volunteers who contributed to the success of the open house.

“Supporting a remote public event ~250 miles from campus is challenging, and I want to recognize the individuals and groups who represented UAF research with professionalism, credibility, and enthusiasm. … I trust you’ll join me in extending sincere thanks to the exceptional UAF team of faculty, staff and students as well as community parters whose efforts made it happen,” Matthews said.