The Year End Technical Stop or for the LHC experts YETS is in effect as of today (October 30, 2023). The year has finished with an exciting Heavy Ion run which started slow but eventually picked up the pace and some very good data was delivered to our Heavy Ion colleagues here at MIT. We broke a bunch of processing and data transfer records on the way.
The year overall was a bit of a mixed bag. Some good phases with rapid accumulation of pp data, but then a big quench and a corresponding leak which lead to a technical stop which lasted over a month. The PPC though is happy, because with our new triggers we have by now already collected significant amount of data that will allow us to put out some nice new results… Stay tuned! And expect 2024 to be a big year for the LHC.
PS — you might wonder why is LHC closed down during the wintertime. The answer is quite simple: electricity is more expensive during winter in the area. Given that the majority of houses in the area do not use air conditioning the main use of electricity is for heating in the winter. In the last years this general trend has started to change, because it is getting hotter for extended periods in the summer and maybe eventually the long Technical Stops will be in the summer? MYTS (Mid Year Technical stops); FCC will be on the lookout for saving as much money as possible.