A mile underground: the large caverns and detectors of DUNE

The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment is an international experiment to unlock the mysteries of neutrinos. DUNE will be installed in the Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility, under construction in the United States. The U.S. Department of Energy’s Fermilab is the host laboratory for DUNE, in partnership with funding agencies and more than 1,300 scientists and engineers from over 35 countries. One mile underground, at the Sanford Underground Research Facility in South Dakota, the excavation of the large LBNF caverns for the DUNE far detectors is in full swing. This 2-minute animation shows the layout of these caverns and shows one of the neutrino detector modules that will be installed in these caverns. When complete, the LBNF underground facility will cover an area about the size of eight soccer fields. DUNE will help provide a clearer picture of the universe and how it works. DUNE scientists will pursue three major science goals: find out whether neutrinos could be the reason the universe is made of matter; look for subatomic phenomena that could help realize Einstein’s dream of the unification of forces; and watch for neutrinos emerging from an exploding star, perhaps witnessing the birth of a neutron star or a black hole. DUNE comprises neutrino detectors at both Fermilab and Sanford Lab. LBNF will provide the infrastructure and the intense neutrino beam for the experiment. It will send a beam 1,300 kilometers straight through the earth from Fermilab to the DUNE detectors at Sanford Lab. The new PIP-II particle accelerator at Fermilab will power the beam of neutrinos for DUNE – the world’s most powerful neutrino beam. For more information about LBNF/DUNE, visit our website: Production Credits: Animation: ViaNova Titles/Editing: Ryan Postel Writer: Kurt Riesselmann Music: Marc Walloch (licensed via PremiumBeats)