Published: Sunday, September 21, 2008
Super collider could be out for 2 months
GENEVA -- The world's largest atom smasher -- which was launched with great fanfare earlier this month -- has been damaged twice and will be out of commission for at least two months, its operators said Saturday.
CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, said Saturday that a large amount of helium had leaked into the 17-mile circular tunnel deep under the Swiss-French border that houses the Large Hadron Collider.
The massive collider began operating Sept. 10 to the delight of physicists around the world, flinging protons around the circle at nearly the speed of light. But it had to be shut down only 36 hours later because of a failure of an electrical transformer.
That was repaired, but a CERN statement said a second failure took place midday Friday in the last section of the tunnel to undergo testing at high current, causing the large helium leak.
"Preliminary investigations indicate that the most likely cause of the (Friday) problem was a faulty electrical connection between two magnets, which probably melted at high current leading to mechanical failure," said the statement Saturday.
It said the sector will have to be warmed up for repairs to take place, which will require a minimum of two months down time for the collider.
The Large Hadron Collider operates at near absolute zero, colder than outer space, for maximum efficiency.
CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, said Saturday that a large amount of helium had leaked into the 17-mile circular tunnel deep under the Swiss-French border that houses the Large Hadron Collider.
The massive collider began operating Sept. 10 to the delight of physicists around the world, flinging protons around the circle at nearly the speed of light. But it had to be shut down only 36 hours later because of a failure of an electrical transformer.
That was repaired, but a CERN statement said a second failure took place midday Friday in the last section of the tunnel to undergo testing at high current, causing the large helium leak.
"Preliminary investigations indicate that the most likely cause of the (Friday) problem was a faulty electrical connection between two magnets, which probably melted at high current leading to mechanical failure," said the statement Saturday.
It said the sector will have to be warmed up for repairs to take place, which will require a minimum of two months down time for the collider.
The Large Hadron Collider operates at near absolute zero, colder than outer space, for maximum efficiency.
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