WSU received a $10 million, five-year grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to create an Institute for Shock Physics. The institute is directed by WSU physics professor, Yogi Gupta. In 2001 the university held a ground-breaking for a new building to house WSU’s internationally recognized Institute for Shock Physics. In 2003, the new building housing WSU’s internationally recognized Institute for Shock Physics was inaugurated.