Researchers say that the world’s largest superconducting magnet is ready for testing some of the most fundamental questions of science and has been powered up successfully on its first try. Weighing 110 tons (100 metric tons), the Barrel Toroid—seen here with all eight of its superconducting coils clearly visible in a photo released November 20—is 16 feet (5 meters) wide and 82 feet (25 meters) long, dwarfing the lone technician seen bottom center.
The instrument is a vital component of ATLAS, one of the particle detectors housed at the European Organization for Nuclear Research's (CERN's) Large Hadron Collider (LHC), a new, internationally funded particle accelerator scheduled to begin operation late next year in Geneva, Switzerland. Particle accelerators create and collide beams of speeding, highly energetic atomic or subatomic particles.
The LHC will smash two beams of protons together in some of the most energetic collisions ever created. The goal, physicists say, is to explore the fundamental nature of matter and energy by creating conditions similar to those of the early universe.
Link & Image: National Geographic
Tags: Superconducting Magnet | Large Hadron Collider | LHC | Science | Technology | Tech
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