An underground journey to unravel the universe

For the staff and scientists at SNOLAB, a 2-kilometre trek underground every day is the norm. The day starts in darkness as they head to Creighton Mine in the early morning hours. For the first leg of the journey, standard mining gear is used – headlamps and all! After travelling 6,800 feet underground, they arrive at the shaft station and head down the drift to the front door of SNOLAB. At this point, the staff and scientists start their cleanliness duties; boots are washed to remove the mine dust, and outside layers of mine gear are removed. The next step is a shower, to wash away all remaining traces of the mine dust, followed by a fresh change of clothes. All staff wear chemical resistant suits and clothing that are cleaned underground to prevent any contamination from travelling back to the surface. The entire facility is maintained as a “clean-room.”  This level of cleanliness is required for the ultra-low radiological backgrounds needed for the experiments.

SNOLAB is an underground science laboratory that specializes in astroparticle physics, the study of elementary particles of astronomical origin and their relation to the evolution of the universe. The project began many moons ago as the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO), built to solve the solar neutrino problem – the disagreement between the observed number of neutrinos coming from the Sun and the amount mathematically predicted. After ten years of data collection, SNO scientists were able to show that solar neutrinos can change from one type to another (called flavours) before they reach Earth, thus resolving a decades-old problem!

The tremendous success of SNO demonstrated the value of deep underground physics laboratories, and SNO’s results have led to more questions about the nature of neutrinos and the composition of the universe – questions that can only be answered in experiments sited underground.

SNOLAB will have 5,000m² of clean space (they already have 3,303m²) underground for experiments and supporting infrastructure.

Exotic objects in outer space produce energetic particles (like cosmic rays) in quantities and at energies that cannot be achieved in Earth-based experiments. So, SNOLAB scientists look out at the universe to study the properties of these particles. This tells us about the creation and evolution of stars, galaxies, and ultimately, the universe itself.

SNOLAB will have 5,000m² of clean space (they already have 3,303m²) underground for experiments and supporting infrastructure. On surface, there is a 3,100m² building constructed on the Creighton Mine site to support the underground experiments. At nearby Laurentian University, there is a supporting facility for radio-isotope measurements and water analysis.

The new experiments at SNOLAB explore the properties of neutrinos, expand our understanding of the energy production mechanisms in the Sun, search for dark matter – the “missing mass” in the universe – and are on the lookout for supernovas. Occupancy of the new laboratory has already begun with two dark matter experiments – PICASSO and DEAP-1 – housed in the existing SNO facilities. Construction for larger experiments, DEAP-3600, miniCLEAN and HALO (a supernovae detector) began this year. The detector used in the SNO experiment will be converted to a new project called SNO+, already in the active design stage with construction beginning in 2010. SNO+ will measure low energy neutrinos from the Sun, as well as “geo neutrinos” from the Earth’s core, and it will include a search for a rare process – neutrino-less double beta decay – which can give important information about neutrino properties.

To learn more, please visit the website: www.snolab.ca

Samantha Kuula is the Science Education & Outreach Officer for SNOLAB.

Photo courtesy of SNOLAB.

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