[en] The experimental research program consists of several interrelated parts: (1) Reactions of Very Heavy Ions with Complex Nuclei; (2) Studies of Compound Nucleus Reactions Induced by Heavy Ions; and (3) Recoil Studies of Heavy Ion Reactions. Using solid-state detector telescopes and gas-ionization detector telescopes we have studied the emission of ¹H, ²H, ³H, ⁴He and heavy fragments from the reactions of 720 MeV ⁸⁶Kr with ¹⁹⁷Au. Coincidence measurements between light charged particles and a heavy fragment indicate that most of the observed ⁴He particles are evaporated by equilibrated Kr*-like and Au*-like excited products from deep inelastic reactions, but a significant number of preequilibrium ⁴He particles seem to be emitted in directions normal to the separating fragments. Studies of angular correlations between two heavy fragments provide strong evidence for sequential fission of the Au*-like reaction fragments, and the probability of this process has been estimated as a function of Q, the energy damping in the primary collision. Parallel studies of charged particle emission, fission, and evaporation residues in compound nucleus reactions map out the de-excitation characteristics of highly excited heavy nuclei as functions of E* and J. Results are presented for the compound nucleus ¹⁹⁴Hg formed at matched excitation energies via different entrance channels