The Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) Enters Construction Phase with UT Arlington's Involvement

With the completion of excavation work at the site designated for the installation of the four massive particle detectors for the international Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE), scientists are now poised to initiate the construction phase, a significant endeavor in which The University of Texas at Arlington plays a crucial role. Situated approximately a mile below the surface within the Sanford Underground Research Laboratory in Lead, South Dakota, the three expansive caverns serve as the nucleus of a groundbreaking research facility spanning an underground area equivalent to eight soccer fields.

Spearheaded by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab), the DUNE collaboration endeavors to unravel the mysteries surrounding neutrinos, enigmatic particles whose behavior holds the key to answering fundamental questions about the universe. These inquiries include unraveling the mystery of why the universe is predominantly composed of matter, elucidating the mechanisms behind the formation of black holes from exploding stars, and exploring potential connections between neutrinos and elusive phenomena such as dark matter or undiscovered particles.