SUNGLASSES might have been useful when an Oxford family stepped inside a microscope 10 billion times brighter than the sun.

The Lindsay family from Headington were among more than 250 people who visited Harwell's Diamond Light Source laboratories on Saturday, November 5, and there are more open days coming up.

The visitors were able to look inside the synchrotron, tour the laboratories and speak to Diamond employees about their work.

Sally Hughes, from Headington, took her husband Tom Lindsay for his birthday.

She said: "He is a scientist – an ecologist – and passionate about any aspect of scientific endeavour.

"We hoped for an insight into entirely new areas of science and we were not disappointed.

"The enterprise is so impressive in concept, in the enthusiasm of the people we spoke to, and the results: it made me proud that it is funded partially by UK tax money.

"Above all, the people we met are a testament to the international nature of scientific endeavour. We had a great time, it was interesting and a lot of fun."

Mrs Hughes said the best thing about their visit was a guided tour where they got to admire the lab's powerful magnets.

She added: "Seeing the physical materials helped me understand how the electrons are generated, accelerated and guided to produce light."

Diamond Light Source is the UK’s national 'synchrotron' – essentially functioning as a giant microscope.

It does this by firing electrons around a giant ring: at enormous speeds the electrons give off a bright light 10 billion times brighter than the sun which scientists use to study anything from fossils and jet engines to viruses and vaccines in microscopic detail.

Diamond recently published its 5,000th research paper, with work undertaken there leading to a vast array of scientific advances and breakthroughs since it began operation just over ten years ago.

Some key breakthroughs that have taken place at Diamond include:

• Technology was developed at Diamond to help design a synthetic vaccine to combat foot and mouth disease. This technology is now being used by scientists from the UK and USA to target the virus that causes polio.

• A team of scientists from the University of Oxford used Diamond to map the structure of the deadly Ebola virus. This information can guide the design of more powerful anti-EBOV drugs.

• Diamond’s intense X-rays are helping researchers to refine their methods to preserve the famous Tudor warship known as the Mary Rose. Raised from the seabed in October 1982, 437 years after she capsized and sank, the Mary Rose is the only 16th century warship on display anywhere in the world.

The next Diamond open day will be held in March 2017. To receive a notifications of future events, register online at diamond.ac.uk