SPACE
Large Hadron Collider breaks new record
WORDS SCOTT DUTFIELD
After a three-year shutdown, the LHC is once again smashing atoms together
After a three-year hiatus, the world’s most powerful particle accelerator is back in business and already breaking records. The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) – which is operated by the European Council for Nuclear Research (CERN) – is the world’s largest particle accelerator and consists of a 17-mile ring of superconducting magnets buried between the border of France and Switzerland. The LHC uses these magnets to accelerate and smash together protons and ions to almost the speed of light, to help scientists understand particle physics, including the origin of mass, dark matter and antimatter. However, over the past three years, the LHC has been closed for maintenance and repairs.