The Sudbury Neutrino Detector
Explanation:
Two thousand meters below the ground, a giant sphere
has begun to detect nearly invisible particles.
These particles,
neutrinos, are extremely abundant in the universe
but usually go right through just about everything.
By stocking
this 12-meter sphere with an unusual type of
heavy water and surrounding it with light detectors,
astrophysicists
hope to catch the occasional collision.
Since the
Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO) is
sensitive to all types of
neutrinos, future results
might hold clues to how much
neutrinos change types on the fly, how our own
Sun emits neutrinos, and even how
important neutrinos are to the composition of the
entire universe.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
