BIG BANG - Visitor CentreBIG BANG - Visitor Centre
Rolf Landua
CERN
Goals of BIG BANGGoals of BIG BANG
Provide an exciting and authentic image of CERN
Make particle physics a visual and exciting experience
Make CERN known to a much wider public
Because we need to ...
- Improve the mediation of our goals and results
(CERN depends entirely on public funding)
- Offer an attractive guided tour to our visitors
(no visits to LHC experiments possible)
- Increase the public awareness of CERN
(which does not correspond to its leading role)
- Create a unique educational resource to create interest in fundamental physics
(useful for high schools and the broad public)
Relation of BIG BANG and CERNRelation of BIG BANG and CERN
1998 Small ad-hoc group* forms at CERN ( ‘PRISM’ ).
Goal: define a project replacing the present CERN visits in the LHC era;
financing by sponsorship
1999 DG allocates resources for project study with advisors from
‘Cite de la Science, La Villette, Paris’.
2000 Project study with content definition and site selection, to CERN Directorate.
2001 Directorate takes note of report.
Boundary condition: capital/operation cost covered by sponsoring.
Encourages ‘Business Plan’ and investigation of possible sponsors.
* M. Buhler-Broglin, S. Cittolin, J. Ellis, C. Fabjan, G. Hentsch, H.F. Hoffmann, R. Landua, E. Sanders + architects + administrators
Design (1) - CriteriaDesign (1) - Criteria
Visualize the meaning of these discoveries and create personal involvement by
- elevation above the realities of daily life (human adventure of Science; the Origin of the Universe, the Laws of Nature)
- intellectual stimulation(mysteries of the Universe, link between smallest and largest structures)
- emotional involvement(origin of matter = your origin; if the Laws of Nature were different ?)
- FUN
Link with CERN research by telling and displaying “Stories about Science”
Intellectual and emotional impact by focussing on one subject: the link between
Particle Physics - Big Bang - Evolution of Matter - Our cosmic origins
Design (2) - ConceptDesign (2) - Concept
Gateway
Voyage into Matter
Travel to the First Day
World of CERN
Beyond Human Perception
Virtual Travel Agency
1 - Gateway to the Universe1 - Gateway to the Universe
Our place in space and time
- You are part of the Universe
- See and hear the cosmos in action
(particle tracks, echo of Big Bang)
Entrance ‘dome’
- projection of stars and galaxies
- Spark chamber array
- A/V equipment for multilingual introduction
2. Voyage into Matter - At Large in the Small World2. Voyage into Matter - At Large in the Small World
Experience the smallest dimensions
- ‘See’ the small worlds (microchips, cells, DNA, molecules, atoms, nuclei, quarks, strings?)
- Only one Nature (but different disciplines of Science)
- Hierarchy of particles and forces
“Spiral into matter”
- succession of ‘landscapes’, changing scale
(x 1000) at each transition
- enter at scale of 1 m, finish at Planck scale
Satellites
- hands-on experiments at each level
- demonstration of effects relevant at this length/time scale
Milli-
Micro-
Nano-
Pico-
Femto-
Planck-
3. The Big World - Travel to the first day3. The Big World - Travel to the first day
Witness the Beginning
- Universe is in motion
- There was a beginning
- Evolution of matter and forces
- Cosmic evolution
Planetarium-like theatre
- high quality, entertaining film
- travel back 15 billion years
- witness all significant events in the creation of
‘our’ matter
Satellite stations: Link to the research done at CERN
Origin of mass (ATLAS, CMS)
Broken symmetries (LHCb)
Cosmic soup (ALICE)
Antimatter (AD)
Life - made in stars (ISOLDE)
4. The World of CERN4. The World of CERN
How Particle Physics works :
- Accelerator model with real components
- Real size detector
- CERN technology, applications, WWW
- History, Personalities
- R&D for the Future
Authentic environment
- Accelerator, Detector, Technology exhibits
- Hands-on experiments
SIMULATOR RIDE
- Visitor= proton, gets accelerated, collides
- Transformation into Higgs
- Decay, Tracking in detector
5. Beyond Human Perception (1)5. Beyond Human Perception (1)
Confront the reality ‘beyond human perception’
Experience old and new ‘mysteries’ of physics
- Relativity
- Quantum Physics
- Antimatter
- Vacuum Fluctuations
- Dark Matter, Higgs particle, Supersymmetry
- Higher Dimensions
Interactive Models
- visitor action plus computer simulation
Demonstration Experiments
Virtual reality display
5. Beyond Human Perception (2) - Example: Relativity5. Beyond Human Perception (2) - Example: Relativity
Interactive Model for Special Relativity
- Visitor on computer-controlled bicycle
- Computer displays virtual reality landscape
- Approaching the ‘speed of light’ :
- mass increases (not speed)
- difficulties in sharp bends
- difficult to accelerate more
- Lorentz contraction (landscape!)
- time dilatation
On return - twin brother has become ‘older’
5. Beyond Human Perception (3) - Example: Antimatter5. Beyond Human Perception (3) - Example: Antimatter
Demonstration Experiment: Antimatter
Antiprotons are captured at AD(unique place in the world)
Portable Penning trap brings captured antiprotons to BIG BANG
Annihilation of 100 antiprotons on demand
Visualized by optical (streamer) chamber
6. Virtual Travel Agency6. Virtual Travel Agency
Guided Tour to Virtual Worlds
Some examples:
- Particle Collisions in LHC
- In the first instants of the Big Bang
- Inside an Accelerator
- Inside an atom
- At the outskirts of a black hole
- Another Universe with different Laws of Nature
Virtual Reality environment
- for 30-40 persons plus one guide (teacher, scientist)
- visitor action allows interactive exploration of virtual world
- questions can be asked and answered without leaving the virtual world
BIG BANG - Fact Sheet (1)BIG BANG - Fact Sheet (1)
Location
BIG BANG - Fact Sheet (2)BIG BANG - Fact Sheet (2)
No. of visitors 250’000 per year (target)
Administrated by BIG BANG foundation (CERN + Sponsors)
Floor space 7’500 m2 + experimental area (former UA1)
External space 14’000 m2
Construction time 51 months
Fund raising 2001-2002
Inauguration March 2007
Capital Cost 69 MCHF
(9 MCHF = land, scientific input, administration)
Personnel 50 staff
Operational Cost 7.1 MCHF / year
Revenues 7.1 MCHF / year, through:
Admissions (20 CHF/adult, discount for schools, families, etc.)
Merchandizing, in-kind contributions CERN
Next steps Next steps
- Fundraising brochure and business plan (nearly) complete
- Find sponsors (60 MCHF)
- Decision by CERN to go ahead
- Creation of BIG BANG foundation
- Transform concept into detailed design (needs your help)
- Start construction end-2002