Institutional visit to CERN marks 40 years of Portugal’s accession
"LIP took part in the institutional visit marking 40 years of Portugal as a CERN Member State."
On 26 January, an institutional visit took place at CERN, in Geneva, as part of the celebrations marking 40 years of Portugal’s accession to the European Organization for Nuclear Research.
LIP, as Portugal’s national partner to CERN since 1986, took part in the visit, which was attended by the Minister of Education, Science and Innovation, Fernando Alexandre, the Secretary of State for Science and Innovation, Helena Canhão, and national scientific and institutional representatives.
LIP was represented by its President, Patrícia Gonçalves, and members of its Board, as part of a delegation that also included Mário Pimenta, Portugal’s Scientific Delegate to the CERN Council, representatives from the main national higher education institutions active in particle physics and related technologies, as well as the Presidents of FCT - Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia and the Agency for Research and Innovation (AI²).
The programme of the visit included institutional meetings with CERN management and visits to experimental facilities, providing direct contact with the Portuguese scientific community at CERN and an overview of the main scientific and technological activities currently underway.
The programme of the visit included institutional meetings with CERN management and visits to experimental facilities, providing direct contact with the Portuguese scientific community at CERN and an overview of the main scientific and technological activities currently underway.
Portugal became a Member State of CERN in January 1986, with the hoisting of the national flag in Geneva. In that same year, LIP was established as CERN’s national partner, with the mission of coordinating Portugal’s participation and ensuring the link between the European laboratory and the national scientific community.
Over the past four decades, LIP has played a central role in Portugal’s participation in major international collaborations, such as ATLAS and CMS, contributing to fundamental advances in particle physics, the development of cutting-edge technologies, and the training of generations of researchers, engineers and students. LIP’s activities also extend to scientific and distributed computing and to research and development in preparation for future projects, such as the Future Circular Collider (FCC).
This visit thus represented a symbolic and strategic moment in the celebrations of 40 years of Portuguese participation at CERN, reinforcing the role of LIP as the national partner and highlighting the importance of international cooperation, science diplomacy and sustained investment in science.
The celebrations will continue throughout 2026, with a broad programme of scientific, institutional and outreach initiatives coordinated by LIP.