From the Guardian · · 1m 10s
South Dakota mine hunts cosmic secrets
Scientists build underground neutrino detector in South Dakota to solve universe's matter-antimatter mystery.
In brief
Scientists build underground neutrino detector in South Dakota to solve universe's matter-antimatter mystery. The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (Dune) in South Dakota's Homestake mine will study neutrinos to explain why matter exists over antimatter. Originally reported by the Guardian.
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.
In short
The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (Dune) in South Dakota's Homestake mine will study neutrinos to explain why matter exists over antimatter.
