The "Atomic egg" in Garching
The topping-out ceremony for the research reactor in Garching, the construction of which was started by Wayss & Freytag AG in 1956, was celebrated on January 12, 1957. The reactor, which is under monument protection today, was shut down on July 28, 2000, however, the aluminium cased cupola still graces the coat of arms of the town of Garching (Gouvirihhinga), which was founded in 915.
W&F concentrated their best permanent employees from all parts of Germany and even called back a highly specialised employee from a contract in Iraq to build the ellipsoid which is both 30 m high and 30 m in diameter and with a thickness of only 10 cm (!) comparatively much thinner than an eggshell. A total of 85 skilled workers used 250 m³ of concrete and 38 tons of reinforcing steel. During the cold winter of 1956/57 the concrete had to be permanently warmed.
The first person in charge of the research reactor was Prof. Dr. Maier-Leibnitz. He put the first German reactor into operation on October 31, 1957, whereby through neutron bombardment of uranium the first chain reactions were produced. On February 3, the plant was handed over to the Technical University of Munich in a ceremonial act. In the course of the following years the „Atomic egg“ made a name for itself with numerous innovative research works in the fields of chemistry, physics and biology.