WASHINGTON—European scientists testifying before a House committee have thrown cold water on the prospect of international collaboration on the Superconducting Supercollider, a possibility that the Reagan administration has held out as a way to reduce the U.S. cost of the proposed multi-billion dollar project.

In three days of hearings last month by the Science, Technology and Space Committee, a stream of witnesses also expressed doubts about the value of recently discovered superconductive materials in the design of the project and concern about the short timetable for site selection and the massive project's impact on the rest of science and the federal deficit.

Herwig Schopper, director-general of CERN, provided a grim scenario for the SSC based on a scarcity of funds available for science in Europe. "If we would propose such a project of that size, it would not go through because the emphasis [in Europe] is on costefficiency and cost-effectiveness,"...

Interested in reading more?

Become a Member of

Receive full access to digital editions of The Scientist, as well as TS Digest, feature stories, more than 35 years of archives, and much more!