Brookhaven National Lab head to step down

The director of Brookhaven National Lab is stepping down and returning to his research roots, the lab's board of directors announced Friday.

Samuel Aronson, who was appointed director in 2006 in the midst of a 30-year career at the federal lab, will continue to serve until a new director is announced.

In a message emailed Friday to the lab's 3,055 employees, Aronson, 69, said he always intended to return to research after helping determine the direction of the lab's growth.

"When I accepted a senior management role at the lab, I planned to serve for five years and then return to research," he wrote. "I willingly delayed my return to a scientific position for the chance to lead the lab in new directions and to oversee critical improvements to our operations."

As a researcher, he said he hopes to "contribute to the laboratory's mission in science and technology, discovery and innovation."

The lab, founded in 1947 for nuclear science research, is one of the 10 national laboratories under the Department of Energy's Office of Science. Its budget for 2010 was $665 million from DOE and $88 million from other agencies.

Aronson's background is in physics and he directed that lab department and led work on the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider before his appointment as director.

"We are proud of Dr. Aronson's leadership and his record of achievement during his tenure as lab director," Ronald Townsend, chairman of the Brookhaven Science Associates board, said in a statement.

One highlight of Aronson's tenure was the establishment of an Energy Frontier Research Center to explore the underlying nature of superconductivity.

The lab also launched partnerships with New York State and upstate utility companies to develop energy technology.

The BNL board said it will immediately launch an international search for a new director.