7th August 2008. CERN has announced that the first attempt to circulate the beam in the LHC will be made on the 10th September. This news comes as the cool down phase of commissioning the accelerator reaches a successful conclusion.

The next phase is the synchronization of the LHC with the SPS accelerator, the last link in the LHC’s injector chain. A first synchronization test is scheduled for the 9th August, for the clockwise circulating beam, with the second to follow over the coming weeks.

Once stable circulating beams have been established in September they will be brought to collision, and the final step will be to commission the LHC’s acceleration system to boost the energy to 5 TeV, the target energy for 2008.

“We’re finishing a marathon with a sprint”, said LHC project leader Lyn Evans. “It’s been a long haul, and we’re all eager to get the LHC research programme underway.”

For more information, please see the recent press release at:
http://press.web.cern.ch/press/PressReleases/Releases2008/PR06.08E.html

For more information, please see the recent press release at:
http://press.web.cern.ch/press/PressReleases/Releases2008/PR06.08E.html