Columbia School of Engineering and Applied Science - Facilities

Facilities

Columbia's Plasma Physics Laboratory is part of the School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS), in which the HBT and Columbia Non-Neutral Torus are housed.

The school also has two wind tunnels, a machine shop, a nanotechnology laboratory, a General Dynamics TRIGA Mk. II nuclear fission reactor, a large scale centrifuge for geotechnical testing, and an axial tester commonly used for testing New York City bridge cables. Each department has numerous laboratories on the Morningside Heights campus; however, other departments have holdings throughout the world. For example, the Applied Physics department has reactors at Nevis Labs in Irvington, NY and conducts work with CERN in Geneva.

Many students take their engineering classes in the Seeley W. Mudd building on the northeast side of the main Morningside campus. Mudd is the heart of the engineering school; department offices, labs, lecture rooms, and student spaces are located in this building.

Connected to this building is the Sherman Fairchild Center, which largely houses biology labs and sciences. To the left of Mudd facing north is the Shapiro Center for Engineering and Physical Science Research (CEPSR) where additional lecture halls, research offices, labs, and student space is available.

To the left of this is Pupin Hall, which houses the physics department; in this building, professors and affiliates (including Nobel Laureates) worked on the Manhattan Project. To the south of Pupin is Havemeyer and Chandler, which houses chemistry. Mathematics Hall, further south of Havemeyer, houses the math department.

Together, these buildings, Mudd, Fairchild, Shapiro CEPSR, Pupin, Chandler, Havemeyer, and Mathematics, is where the bulk of engineering students take their classes. Non-technical classes are taken in other buildings to the south of these buildings. All of the school's buildings are on the same campus and vicinity as Columbia College, Columbia Business School, Columbia Law School, School of Social Work, Teacher's College, Union Theological Seminary, Barnard, Jewish Theological Seminary, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and others on the beautiful Morningside Campus.

In close association with Columbia Engineering's Earth and Environmental Engineering department and the Earth Institute, the Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory center in Palisades, New York (40 minutes by Shuttle), is an earth-studies campus which welcomes a brand new research (the Gary C. Comer Geochemistry building) facility that has recently won 3 coveted architecture awards for design and sustainability.

While Mudd, nicknamed "the brick," is tucked behind the Fairchild Center, much of Columbia's buildings were designed by the famed McKim, Mead, and White architects. The campus is in keeping with Neo-classical design themes popular in the early 20th century. It retains old-world charm and originality not found at many of this nation's pseudo-gothic styled campuses.

The school is also awaiting the completion of a new Northwest Science and Engineering building. At fourteen stories, and designed by award-winning architect Rafael Moneo, the building will house new space to conduct research and lectures; it will be completed by 2010. In addition, this building will contain a new library, cafe, research labs, lecture hall, and other amenities. This building is situated between Havemeyer, Chandler and Pupin and will include many bridges to facilitate interdepartmental exchanges and access.

Alongside the completion of the Northwest Science building, the last available plot on the Morningside campus, the University looks ahead to Manhattanville. In this 17-acre (69,000 m2) area situated only 5 blocks Northwest from the School of Engineering and Applied Science, Manhattanville represents a growth opportunity for the engineering school as well as the University as a whole. The $7 billion project proceeds with the permission of neighboring residents, city officials, and business owners in the area. SEAS looks to expand an additional 500,000 square feet (46,000 m2) in this new area. Buildings are being designed by award winning Renzo Piano.