5 unbelievably cool research facilities [photos + links at url]
by deputydog ⋅ 04 / 01 / 2008
otherwordly structures, massive machines, surreal technology….
http://deputy-dog.com/2008/01/04/5-unbelievably-cool-research-facilities/
some incredible beasts have been constructed in the name of research and below
are 5 of the most immediately intriguing. there are plenty more out there which
will be highlighted in the near future as i’m making this a series of sorts.
let me know if you have any in mind for the next collection.
on to the brilliance…
1. super kamiokande detector, kamioka observatory, japan
an old favourite on the intertubes, this 50′000 ton cylindrical ‘ring-imaging
water cerenkov detector’ can be found at the kamioka mozumi mine in japan -
1′000m underground. clever people built the machine to detect neutrinos, proton
decay and cosmic rays: this is done using the 12′000-ish photomultiplier tubes
(extremely sensitive light detectors) visible on all walls of the
‘ultra-purified water-filled’ tank. to offer further explanation would reveal
my scientific ineptitude. instead, go here for a nicely simplified explanation
and here for some incredible hi-res photos large enough to incapacitate the
average pc.
2. benefield anechoic facility, california, usa
first of all (in case you don’t know) an anechoic chamber is a room which has
been filled with sound absorbing materials in order to minimise all reflections
from internal surfaces, thus making the space echo-less. more commonly these
rooms are used to test and research sound equipment due to the lack of any such
interference affecting the equipment’s output. the benefield anechoic facility
you see above is the largest anechoic chamber on earth and, rather than using
acoustically absorbent materials, is filled with radiation absorbent materials
in the form of 816′000 foam cones designed to minimise the reflection of radio
frequency signals. to read more, look here.
3. the z machine, sandia national laboratory, new mexico, usa
the z machine is the largest x-ray generator on earth and is believed by many
as the key to understanding controlled fusion.
‘the z machine uses a short burst of intense electricity - only a few 10
billionths of a second long - that forces an ionized gas to implode. the
process is called a z-pinch because the pulse creates a magnetic field that
squeezes particles in the vertical direction, which math books usually label as
the “z-axis.” at the center of the z-pinch, in the space of a small soup can,
gas particles race at each other at a million miles an hour. the collisions
result in X-rays and extremely high temperatures.’
in 2006 the machine unexpectedly produced plasmas with temperatures in excess
of 3.6 billion °f. that’s hotter than the core of our sun.
a very brief video tour…
4. very large array, new mexico, usa
arranged on an enormous y-shaped set of tracks on the plains of san augustin is
the ‘very large array’, a collection of 27 radio antennas used primarily by
astronomers around the world. each antenna weighs 230 tons and can be moved by
way of the 3 13 mile long tracks, giving a total of 4 different configurations,
the data from all 27 antenna can then be combined to give the resolution of an
antenna whopping 22 miles across. the 2nd picture, from google maps, gives you
some idea of the scale of the observatory.
the direct link to the vla on google maps is here. the vla website is here.
5. large hadron collider, cern, switzerland/france
the large hadron collider, when completed very soon, will be the largest
particle collider on earth, one of the intentions being to recreate the
slightly hot conditions that occured immediately after the big bang, in turn
resulting in the observation of the ‘god particle‘. the huge circle in the 1st
photo is the location of the lhc tunnel, located approximately 100m below
ground and measuring 27km in circumference. in the tunnel are 2 parallel tubes,
each carrying protons in opposite directions at near the speed of light using
the surrounding superconducting magnets. to carry on with this explanation
could take days and a lot of mistakes so you should continue reading about this
mammoth machine here.
© 2008 deputydog.
