What will be the India-based Neutrino Observatory’s impact? The Union Cabinet recently approved the India-based Neutrino Observatory project. Coming soon after the approval of the 30-metre telescope which will be located in Hawaii, this decision will cause India to step into big fundamental science. The three types of neutrinos, which were initially thought to be mass-less, are now believed to have a small mass. This was shown by observations of neutrino oscillation, which is a phenomenon by which one type of neutrino transforms into another. There is a hierarchy among the masses of these three types of neutrino and the experiments at the INO will study this mass ordering using a magnetised iron calorimeter (ICAL). The ICAL is a massive detector which will be made of iron — 50,000 tonnes of it. The project will be housed in the 63 acres of land, about 2 km away from the settlement, in the Bodi West Hills about 100 km from Madurai, Tamil Nadu. About the project: The India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO) Project is a multi-institutional effort aimed at building a world-class underground laboratory with a rock cover of approximately 1200 m for non- accelerator based high energy and nuclear physics research in India. It is anticipated to provide a precise measurement of neutrino mixing parameters. The project, expected to be completed in 2015 at an estimated cost of INR 1,500 crores, has been cleared by the Ministry of Environment for construction in the Bodi West Hills Reserved Forest in the Theni district of Tamil Nadu. When completed, the INO will house the world’s most massive magnet, four times larger than the 12,500-tonne magnet in the Compact Muon Solenoid detector at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland. The initial goal of INO is to study neutrinos. According to standard model of particle physics, they are mass less. However recent experiments indicate that these charge-neutral fundamental particles, have finite but small mass which is unknown. They oscillate between flavours as they propagate. Determination of neutrino masses and mixing parameters is one of the most important open problems in physics today. The ICAL detector is designed to address some of these key open problems in a unique way. Over the years this underground facility is expected to develop into a full- fledged underground science laboratory for other studies in physics, biology, geology, hydrology etc. Impact on surroundings: Experts say that it will not affect the stability of the surrounding hills. The impact will be mainly during construction period; after construction ends within a few years, the lab will be maintained by a small staff with some students and scientists and will have negligible environmental impact. The GOI has assured that all efforts will be made to minimise and manage the impact during construction. Need for such a massive detector and for drilling underground: The neutrinos interact very weakly with the surroundings. We are all being washed by a stream of neutrinos every passing minute as they just pass through us without leaving a trace. It is impossible to detect them on the surface of earth. Since they interact so weakly, detecting them over other interactions is impossible. So, there is a need to have a barrier of at least 1 km of earth to block out other radiation and particles, such as muons from cosmic rays. This is the reason scientists are going underground. They will construct a tunnel at a depth of 1,300 metres below the peak. What are the benefits to local people from this project? The construction contract will specify that local labour should be used, based on the skill levels, to the maximum extent possible. Furthermore, gainful employment will be there for a small number of people by way of sourcing of services and daily needs for the INO facility and for the upkeep of buildings and landscapes. A major benefit will be for schools and colleges in the region as the students interested in science can benefit from the outreach activities as well as doing projects at the lab. Efforts are being made to improve the infrastructure and academic standards of the surrounding schools as permitted by governing rules. Exhibitions and other similar facilities will be arranged to enhance the scientific spirit of the local youngsters, etc. What are neutrinos? Neutrinos are tiny, neutral, elementary particles which interact with matter via the weak force. The weakness of this force gives neutrinos the property that matter is almost trans- parent to them. The Sun, and all other stars, produce neutrinos copiously due to nuclear fusion and decay processes within their core. Since they rarely interact, these neutrinos pass through the Sun, and even the Earth, unhindered. There are many other natural sources of neutrinos including exploding stars (supernovae), relic neutrinos, natural radioactivity, and cosmic ray interactions in the atmosphere of the Earth. The neutrino was proposed by Wolfgang Pauli in 1930; but it took another 26 years for it to be actually detected. In 1956 Reines and Cowan found evidence of neutrino interactions by monitoring a volume of cadmium chloride with scintillating liquid near to a nuclear reactor. Reines was jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1995 in part for this revolutionary work. We now know that not just one but at least three types or flavours of neutrinos and their anti-particles exist in nature. They have a tiny mass whose value is still not known
Posted on: Thu, 08 Jan 2015 15:19:59 +0000
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