Big Science for a Small Country: The Early History of SCK•CEN 1952-1991

The research project is on the development of postwar nuclear energy research in the country of Belgium, centered around the doings of Belgium’s major nuclear research center SCK•CEN. The SCK•CEN was founded in 1952, at a time when the postwar reconstruction of European scientific infrastructure took place with active interference from the US. In the project, the history of the SCK•CEN is placed in a context of (inter)national nuclear politics, as well as the construction and subsequent development of typical ‘Big Science’ infrastructure, in close collaboration with industrial and political partners. Moreover, the role of scientific expertise and community building is explored.