Leading Higgs Boson Researchers Visit Korea
Experience Particle Collision Art, VR Tunnel Tours, and More
The heart of the world’s leading particle physics experiment, the CMS laboratory at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), hidden 100 meters underground, will be unveiled to the Korean public for the first time.
The National Gwacheon Science Museum, in collaboration with the international Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) research team at CERN, will host a special hands-on event on December 13, featuring local researchers participating in person. More than 10 researchers visiting Korea for the domestic CMS international workshop will introduce the forefront of CMS experiments and particle physics research to the public.
'CMS@CERN, European Underground Laboratory Tour' Event Poster. Courtesy of National Gwacheon Science Museum
The CMS experiment is a world-renowned collaborative research project that played a decisive role in the discovery of the Higgs boson in 2012, which led to the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2013. Korea has been an official participant since 2006. Currently, over 120 researchers from 11 universities in Korea are involved in the CMS research, actively contributing on the international stage.
Prior to the main event, the Gwacheon Science Museum will run a pre-experience program for families starting December 9. Activities include coloring the structure of the CMS detector, jigsaw puzzles, and commemorative photos wearing a CERN research helmet, offering content that can be enjoyed by both children and adults.
During the main event on December 13, an artist affiliated with CMS will present a performance creating an art piece representing 'particle collision patterns' using beads and small robots. There will also be hands-on experiences such as making a circular accelerator beam with a spinning disk and creating CMS image badges. In addition, visitors will be able to virtually explore the experimental tunnel located 100 meters underground using virtual reality (VR). From 4 to 5 p.m. on the same day, a live broadcast tour will connect to the European site in real time, introducing the CMS equipment and research spaces. Korean researchers currently participating in the CMS experiment will answer visitors' questions directly.
At 2 p.m. on the same day, Professor Yang Woonki of Seoul National University will give a lecture titled "Quantum Universe Where Virtual and Reality Fluctuate: Meeting the Big Bang Accelerator Hunters on Site." Interest is particularly high among students considering careers in science and engineering, and the 70 slots for science-focused high school students in the metropolitan area were filled on the day registration opened.
Han Hyungjoo, Director of the National Gwacheon Science Museum, stated, "It is a very rare opportunity for a CERN CMS researcher to visit Korea in person, meet the public, and broadcast the actual research site live," adding, "We have prepared a variety of programs tailored to different age groups and interests so that everyone, from children to science high school students, can gain a new scientific experience."
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