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September 10, 2008
See Large Hadron Collider in Google Earth
The Large Hadron Collider is in the news today after its first successful test. Below is a Google Earth file which lets you view the LHC in Google Earth with a 3D model suspended above ground so you can see the layout. There is also a diagram of the entire underground ring and even an animation showing two particles colliding.
The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is a particle accelerator and collider located at CERN, near Geneva, Switzerland. Large particle accelerators are built in circles to get particles up to very high speeds (near the speed of light). The LHC is nearly 27 km in circumference and is located 50 to 175 meters underground on the border between France and Switzerland. CERN is the European Organization for Nuclear Research. This massive underground structure is difficult to visualize since it is all underground.
Google Earth 3D modeling guru Joey Wade has posted a 3D diagram and models showing the LHC and floated it directly above its actual location so you can see how it looks in Google Earth. Download the LHC model 
. He has roughly modeled the 3D buildings on the surface so you can get a feel for the underlying structures and how deep they are underground. Zoom in to see the buildings and tilt your view. Joey has included a folder with YouTube videos in placemarks which provide some excellent information about the project. The large deep structure is the new ATLAS particle detector system. Nice work!
Just for fun, Joey also included a little animation showing two particles in opposite directions going around the collider. After loading the file above, just click on the play button to the right of the time slider to see it in action!
Posted by FrankTaylor at September 10, 2008 08:26 AM
Comments
Posted by: physco219 at September 11, 2008 07:55 AM
These are some really fascinating times we get to experience. Collisions might occur within a couple of weeks according to http://atlas.ch/news/2008/first-beam-and-event.html . Waiting with anticipation to see if someone/something gets flattened and turned inside out, this kind of stuff doesn’t happen every day ya know. The global effort of all involved is a huge accomplishment for humanity.
Posted by: jpwade at September 16, 2008 09:53 PM
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Awesome and hey look the earth is still here. :D