# South Dakota mine hunts cosmic secrets

> Scientists build underground neutrino detector in South Dakota to solve universe's matter-antimatter mystery.
- Title: South Dakota mine hunts cosmic secrets · the Guardian
- Summary: Scientists build underground neutrino detector in South Dakota to solve universe's matter-antimatter mystery. The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (Dune)…
- Keywords: south dakota, dune, neutrino, dark matter, antimatter, homestake mine, surf, neutrino physics, science, South, Dakota, mine
- Source: the Guardian — https://theguardian.com/science/2026/oct/31/south-dakota-mine-search-secrets-universe-dark-matter-antimatter
- Published: 2026-10-31T11:00:40+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: south dakota, dune, neutrino, dark matter, antimatter, homestake mine, surf, neutrino physics, science
## Lead mine's cosmic shift
A century of gold mining in South Dakota's Black Hills now hosts the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment.
## Dune construction begins
Engineers start assembling four giant detectors in the Homestake mine's caverns a mile underground.
## Neutrino detection
Detectors will capture ghostly neutrinos from the sun, supernovae, and a 800-mile beam from Chicago.
## Matter-antimatter mystery
Scientists aim to explain why the universe is made of matter, not antimatter, using neutrino oscillations.
## Neutrino physics
Neutrinos are abundant, barely interact with matter, and change types as they travel through space.
## Homestake's scientific legacy
The 1960s Homestake experiment detected solar neutrinos using a chlorine tank filled with dry-cleaning fluid.
## Dune's scale
Dune's detectors weigh 4,000 tonnes, hold 70,000 tonnes of liquid argon, and require -200c cooling.
## Dune's purpose
Dune will study neutrinos from space to understand stellar explosions and black hole formation.
## Key takeaway

The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (Dune) in South Dakota's Homestake mine will study neutrinos to explain why matter exists over antimatter.