Scientists say they have succeeded in recreating conditions shortly after the Big Bang by switching the particles used for collisions from protons to much heavier lead ions.
This content was published on
1 minute
swissinfo.ch and agencies
A spokeswoman for the European Organization for Nuclear Research (Cern) outside Geneva says the Large Hadron Collider, the world’s largest atom smasher, recorded its first lead ion collisions on Sunday.
Barbara Warmbein said on Monday researchers were trying to detect a thick soup of matter called “quark-gluon plasma” in the hope of gaining a deeper insight into how the universe began.
Warmbein said it would likely be months, if not years, before scientists made significant new discoveries.
Popular Stories
More
Climate solutions
Switzerland turns train tracks into solar power plants
In Switzerland more people are being referred to electrical therapies or psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. Are there similar approaches where you live?
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
What does the “God particle” sound like?
This content was published on
The LHC Sound project aims to raise awareness about the work deep under the French-Swiss border and to develop a way for scientists to listen to the data and identify the Higgs particle, if and when they detect it. One of the widely publicised aims of the LHC, the world’s biggest atom smasher, is to…
This content was published on
Though it will probably be months before computers at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (Cern) can make sense of what exactly happened, researchers hailed the experiment as a real Star Trek moment. “We are going into new territory where no man has gone before,” Jean-Pierre Revol, head of heavy ion collisions, told swissinfo.ch. “Today…
This content was published on
Researchers from the European Organization for Nuclear Research (Cern) say the world’s biggest atom smasher may generate its first scientific breakthroughs later this year when they hope it can unlock secrets of modern physics such as dark matter. Tension was palpable early on Tuesday morning in the main Cern control room as two technical problems…
This content was published on
2009 also saw two important anniversaries for Darwin and the moon, as well as the uncovering of a red lake and rather surprising revelations about sex. Scientists at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (Cern) announced their groundbreaking results from the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) on November 23. “This is great news – the start…
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.