Endeavour update newsletter Spring 2026
17 Apr 2026
Endeavour will deliver transformative impact in three societal challenge areas: materials for the future, clean growth and life sciences.
Endeavour will deliver transformative impact in key societal challenge areas such as materials for the future, clean growth and life sciences. Super MuSR and HRPD-X are currently planned to be ready for the user programme in the first half of 2028. Wish-II, Mushroom and Sandals-2 are now in the detailed design phase, with Osiris+ and Tosca+ likely to follow during the next two years.
Continuing our series introducing the staff behind Endeavour, we speak to Abi Basham, the project engineer for Sandals-2, after the project passed its implementation readiness review.
Abi joined the ISIS Design Division on the graduate scheme in 2017, after finishing her Mechanical Engineering degree at the University of Southampton. After her project rotations as part of the scheme, she joined the instrument design group, working on the interim SANDALS and ALF front end upgrade and then the IMAT collimators project.
On returning from maternity leave, Abi began working full time on SANDALS-2 during its definition stage. A year later and the project has recently celebrated its implementation readiness review, clearing the way for the detailed design work to begin.
Super MuSR
As the pre-build progresses, there are many components about to be delivered, and the build of those being made on site is well underway. The team did ceramic testing to check the strength and suitability for moving the spin rotator vessels from the pre-build area in R106 to R55 for the install. Both vessels have now been delivered and successfully tested (as shown, right).
HRPD-X
The new instrument building is starting to take shape, with concrete poured and walls beginning to go up. In the next few weeks, the mezzanine tiles and final steel work will be installed. Then the next few months will see the delivery of key components such as such as the vacuum vessel, bank 2 argon tank and detector support structures, and the start of the pre-build.
The HRPD team have created a newsletter that features more detailed progress updates and images, sent out via the ISIS user community news.
You can read the latest issue online.
Wish-II and Mushroom
ISIS staff are working with the technology team at STFC’s Daresbury laboratory to develop the primary parts of these instruments.
