LANL sets registration date for ‘behind the fence’ tours at Manhattan Project park

Jonathan Fjeld | KOB

LOS ALAMOS, N.M. — Los Alamos National Laboratory officials set the registration date for its “behind the fence” tours of the Manhattan Project National Historical Park.

The tours will take place June 11-13 this year. Each tour is four hours long and takes participants to places otherwise not always open to the public. Among the sites are:

  • The original Pond Cabin where physicist Emilio Segrè’s team discovered the Thin Man plutonium bomb design would not work
  • A bunker where experiments helped determine whether the Trinity nuclear test would succeed
  • Slotin Building where a fatal criticality accident changed the safety culture of LANL

To take the tour, you must be at least 18 years old and a U.S. citizen who can provide proof of citizenship (e.g., U.S. passport, birth certificate) at tour check-in. You can’t bring your phone or a camera with and there are other restrictions since it is on LANL grounds.

These tours aren’t open to LANL employees.

While the tours are free, there are only 180 spots available on a first-come, first-served basis. Registration opens May 1 at 11 a.m. MT. You can click here to access the registration page.

If you miss out on this, other opportunities will be posted on the Manhattan Project National Historical Project page.