The situation in Europe is getting more complicated every day. The escalation of energy prices has already had a devastating impact on all levels, from private homes to large industrial facilities, the price of a kilowatt hour has become one of the most relevant data in the daily life of our lives, in one of the most restrictive data. factors of our activity and in the greatest danger in the short and medium term practically for the entire continent, which may face the most complicated winter in its modern history.

Russia announcement supplies to Europe restricted until sanctions against Russia are lifted It further complicates the situation and pushes a large part of the old continent into a scenario of more than predictable restrictions, which will be added to the prices, which without direct intervention of the European authorities in the energy market, promise to be a nightmare. In other words, there won’t be enough energy to meet demand and it will be more expensive than ever.

Under these circumstances, CERN was forced to prepare for a probable total or partial interruption of the electricity supply. Let us remind you that its supplier is the company EDF (Électricité de France), which will play a key role in the coming months in terms of the application of restrictions in our neighboring country. CERN is negotiating with EDF so that the power company informs the scientific institution as soon as possible about the moments in which it is necessary to reduce its level of consumption.

Although when most people think of CERN, the first thing that comes to mind is the LHC (Large Hadron Collider), the hadron collider that made the facility world famous. there are a total of eight complex accelerators in the complex to be added to two particle retarders which allow scientists to study antimatter. Contingency plans therefore suggest shutting down these accelerators and decelerators in an effort to keep the LHC running whenever possible.

Shutting down these other accelerators could reduce installation consumption by around 25%, a consumption comparable to that of the LHC, which adds another 25%. The problem with turning it off, however, is that the accelerator relies on superconducting magnets cooled to -456 degrees Fahrenheit to bend the particle beam, which requires a significant amount of energy even when the beam is turned off. Heating up the magnets could delay the LHC experiments by weeks.

But that’s not the only problem. The research done with the LHC is very expensive and has been funded by all kinds of institutions, public and private. A) Yes, a hypothetical shutdown of the LHC would indicate that some of these investments could be lost or at least that these research projects would require additional investment. CERN will thus have to deal with a possible shutdown of the accelerator with great diplomacy.

With information from The Wall Street Journal