Our impact
The impact of Boulby Underground Laboratory science is felt locally, nationally and internationally – from answering fundamental questions about our universe to enhancing skills and education in the Tees Valley region.
Deep science with deep impact
Boulby Underground Laboratory drives world-class science with far-reaching impact.
From advancing our understanding of the universe to supporting multidisciplinary research in Earth sciences, astrobiology, and planetary exploration, Boulby Underground Laboratory enables discoveries that inspire innovation, inform policy, and contribute to society both locally and globally.
International reach of Boulby Underground Laboratory collaborations in 2025.
Inspiring the next generation
Our public engagement programme educates and inspires future scientists, engineers and technicians, while opening up the fascinating world of underground science to schools, communities and the wider public.
Boulby Underground Laboratory science has spread far and wide. Whether that be featuring prominently in science festivals all around the UK, bringing storytelling into primary schools in the Tees Valley, or virtually touring budding scientists around our underground lab.
Expanding science-enabling capabilities at Boulby
Plans are now underway for a major expansion and upgrade of the facilities at Boulby, to enable an expanded science and technology programme onsite from the early 2030s and beyond. The expansion of the facilities will establish Boulby Underground Laboratory as a truly world-leading multidisciplinary research facility in the North East of England, bringing substantial scientific, cultural, economic and skills / education benefit to the region and the UK as a whole.
Expansion plans include the excavation and outfitting of a new cavern at 1.1 km depth, providing greater than a factor five increase in space to support world-class, multidisciplinary, pure and applied deep underground research. This stage of expansion is underway now; the excavation for the new lab is complete and work towards full outfitting is currently underway.
With the creation of the new facility, Boulby Underground Laboratory will be delivering even greater impact to the Tees Valley and North Yorkshire regions through even more impactful science projects, increased national and international recognition, inward investment for new infrastructures, engineering and projects, the creation of skilled jobs in STEM and technical support, fostering partnerships with local industry, and delivering meaningful education and outreach with local schools and colleges.
FAQs
How many projects do you host in the underground lab?
Answering this question isn’t quite as straightforward as it might first seem. For starters, it depends on what you define as a project. Some of the experiments that we host are multi-national collaborations with installation phases that are due to last years, whereas others are more “proof of concept” -type studies. Also, our material assay suite contains two UltraLo-1800 XIAs, two radon emanation chambers, one ICP-MS, and eight germanium detectors. Does that all count as one project or multiple?
Secondly, projects don’t stay in the lab forever. As an experiment reaches the end of its life and it has taken all the data it needs, we will decommission it to make room for new science that needs the space. Therefore the number of projects that we host in the lab will change year-to-year or month-to-month.
That being said, we tend to say that we host roughly twenty different projects in our underground lab.
How can I work with Boulby Underground Laboratory?
Researchers interested in developing new experiments or proposals at Boulby Underground Laboratory are invited to contact us with an expression of interest. We welcome ideas across all scientific disciplines supported at the facility, and our team can advise on feasibility, infrastructure, and next steps for formal proposal submission. We also welcome proposals for collaboration on our public engagement programmes. Please use the contact form at the top of the website to get in touch.
For all press and media enquiries, please contact the STFC Press Office at pressoffice@stfc.ac.uk.
Can I visit the lab?
Unfortunately we are unable to host public visits due to the logistic complexities involved with working underground. If you would like to request a visit for a business or operational purpose, please enquire using the contact form at the top of our website.
Enquiries
Interested in working with us? Get in touch to explore how Boulby Underground Laboratory can provide access to world-class underground facilities to support your research and outreach.
