It is exciting to watch the LHC operations team slowly switch the machine back on step by step, encountering problems, solving them, encountering new ones and still breaking records while getting the machine running again. It is also educational. When the linear collider goes into operation it won’t be at the push of one button […]
Directorate on the road
Recently the Linear Collider Collaboration (LCC) Directorate visited the proposed location of the International Linear Collider in the Kitakami mountains located in Iwate and Miyagi prefectures, north of Sendai city, Japan. LCC members have visited the candidate site several times already, and the purpose of this visit was to evaluate the conditions of transportation of […]
Voice your dream for the ILC!
As you probably know, the International Linear Collider is under discussion in Japan. Expert panels are evaluating whether Japan should host the project. The panel is seeking compelling and articulate arguments to justify a project of this scale. Of course, the scientific case and technical and social value of the ILC are important, however, the […]
ILC: What’s happening in Japan
This article contains more detailed information and updates concerning the on-going ILC decision process in Japan. The main components of this process were already introduced by Hitoshi Yamamoto in the 24-July issue of LC NewsLine. In September 2013, the Science Council of Japan (SCJ) published a report on the ILC. This report contains two key […]
From shutdown to cooldown: the LHC is preparing to get back online
Former LHC project leader looks back at his developing project and ahead towards the future
The LHC has been shut down for consolidation since the beginning of 2013. This break is called Long Shutdown 1 or LS1. One of the biggest jobs has been the opening and inspection of all the 1695 magnet-magnet interconnects. They had to be carefully checked and sometimes repaired to make sure that they can take […]
Dishing out experience
First of all let me wish you all a Happy New Year. I hope that we will see real progress towards the realisation of the ILC in 2014, starting with the approval process in Japan and other countries. Now let me share a unique experience with you that provided me with a different perspective on […]
Doors open wide
Every few years, CERN opens its doors to the general public. The last “Open Days” took place in 2008 before the LHC startup. The present long shutdown of the CERN facilities provides an ideal opportunity to continue this tradition, which is essential in establishing trust in the local communities as well as giving the public […]
Moving from emotions to negotiations
We particle physicists have lived through some exciting times recently. A few years ago, the world witnessed live when the LHC was switched on for the first time (to my countdown). A few days later, one of the interconnects broke, and it took us more than a year to get the LHC back into shape. […]
From technology to diplomacy
Let me take this opportunity to acknowledge the enormous achievement of the very small GDE team, led by Barry Barish. They have produced the Technical Design Report, which has been favourably reviewed by an independent expert committee. The TDR also contains a detailed cost estimate which has also been independently reviewed and has proved to […]
A time of transition, or When men and mountains meet
The past few years, we have made a great deal of progress in developing and demonstrating the enabling technologies needed for a linear collider for the two concepts that are being pursued: the International Linear Collider (ILC), based on Superconducting RF acceleration; and a potentially higher-energy option, the Compact Linear Collider study (CLIC), based on […]