As of last Friday in Switzerland, researchers at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) are firing up the Large Hadron Collider after three years of upgrades. The world’s largest particle collider may be the key to discovering “dark matter”, a substance has puzzled scientists for decades.
A decade ago, the world’s largest particle collider made history by discovering the Higgs Boson particle, a key to understanding the creation of the universe. The accelerator is collecting data again, hoping to prove the existence of another mysterious substance, dark matter. Dark matter was a topic of discussion for decades. It appears to make up a large part of the universe; studying it could provide details on how our universe was born.
Inside the collider, superconducting magnets are cooled to a freezing negative 456 degrees Fahrenheit, while two particle beams traveling nearly at the speed of light collide. Using advanced monitors and sensors, researchers can analyze the substance created by this collision, which replicate conditions similar to the Big Bang, allowing them to learn more about the earliest moments of the universe.
Though many scientists believe dark matter exists, no one has seen or created it. Data and power upgrades to the collider, Large Hadron Collider, could provide researchers one of the best chances to visualize and understand what dark matter is.
All the stars, planets, and galaxies in the universe only make up 5 percent of the matter in the universe. Roughly 27 percent of the universe consists of dark matter, which does not absorb, reflect, or emit light, making it extremely hard to detect. Researchers say it exists because they’ve seen its gravitational pull-on objects and have witnessed how it helps bend light.
For the past three years, engineers have upgraded the collider so it can process more data and run at higher speeds. “High-energy colliders remain the most powerful microscope at our disposal to explore nature at the smallest scales and to discover the fundamental laws that govern the universe,” said Gian Giudice, head of CERN’s theory department.
Once data starts coming out of the experiment, it will still be hard to determine whether it is dark matter. Researchers must assess whether the particle emits light and should show signs of existing for a long time and not decaying immediately. They also hope the particle in question behaves similarly to current theories of dark matter.
If CERN scientists do not discover dark matter, they have more upgrades in store. The upgrades will likely take three years after current experiments stop, leaving the fourth round of data collection to start in 2029. “This is hard,” Ruderman said, “and something that could take a whole lifetime of exploration.”
Link: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/07/08/cern-particle-accelerator/
A decade ago, the world’s largest particle collider made history by discovering the Higgs Boson particle, a key to understanding the creation of the universe. The accelerator is collecting data again, hoping to prove the existence of another mysterious substance, dark matter. Dark matter was a topic of discussion for decades. It appears to make up a large part of the universe; studying it could provide details on how our universe was born.
Inside the collider, superconducting magnets are cooled to a freezing negative 456 degrees Fahrenheit, while two particle beams traveling nearly at the speed of light collide. Using advanced monitors and sensors, researchers can analyze the substance created by this collision, which replicate conditions similar to the Big Bang, allowing them to learn more about the earliest moments of the universe.
Though many scientists believe dark matter exists, no one has seen or created it. Data and power upgrades to the collider, Large Hadron Collider, could provide researchers one of the best chances to visualize and understand what dark matter is.
All the stars, planets, and galaxies in the universe only make up 5 percent of the matter in the universe. Roughly 27 percent of the universe consists of dark matter, which does not absorb, reflect, or emit light, making it extremely hard to detect. Researchers say it exists because they’ve seen its gravitational pull-on objects and have witnessed how it helps bend light.
For the past three years, engineers have upgraded the collider so it can process more data and run at higher speeds. “High-energy colliders remain the most powerful microscope at our disposal to explore nature at the smallest scales and to discover the fundamental laws that govern the universe,” said Gian Giudice, head of CERN’s theory department.
Once data starts coming out of the experiment, it will still be hard to determine whether it is dark matter. Researchers must assess whether the particle emits light and should show signs of existing for a long time and not decaying immediately. They also hope the particle in question behaves similarly to current theories of dark matter.
If CERN scientists do not discover dark matter, they have more upgrades in store. The upgrades will likely take three years after current experiments stop, leaving the fourth round of data collection to start in 2029. “This is hard,” Ruderman said, “and something that could take a whole lifetime of exploration.”
Link: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/07/08/cern-particle-accelerator/
