WELLINGTON, Aug. 31 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand will invest 11.9 million U.S. dollars in a program to construct several new beamlines at the Australian Synchrotron in Melbourne and secure long-term access for Kiwi scientists.
New Zealand Science and Innovation Minister Paul Goldsmith said on Thursday that the Synchrotron is "a powerful experimental tool that plays an important role in lifting the quality and impact of New Zealand research."
Accelerating charged particles such as electrons to near the speed of light, the Synchrotron enables fields of study that are "diverse and far-reaching," Goldsmith said.
The new Bio-SAXS beamline will be used to study things like proteins and viruses and will be a priority beamline for New Zealand researchers, the minister said, adding that it will give them access to new specialized techniques needed for high quality research and innovation.
The research outcomes from the Bio-SAXS beamline will cover national research priorities ranging from the development of advanced biomaterials and biotechnologies through to breakthroughs in medical research.
"Recently the Synchrotron helped New Zealand scientists develop a drug that could be used to treat multiple diseases such as cancer, stroke and hypertension. It has also been used for research into volcanic activity in New Zealand to help researchers better recognize any warning signs of an eruption," Goldsmith said.
"This is a prime example of successful collaboration between Australia and New Zealand under the Science, Research and Innovation Cooperation Agreement signed earlier this year," he said.
The design of the new beamlines is planned to start in 2018 with two beamlines becoming operational by the end of the year. In the second year two more complex beamlines will be developed, he added. Enditem
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