CERN's Accelerators Fall Silent as Ambitious Overhaul Sets Stage for Deeper Probes of the Universe

CERN's Accelerators Fall Silent as Ambitious Overhaul Sets Stage for Deeper Probes of the Universe

CERN's full accelerator complex fell silent on August 31, 2026, completing the entry into Long Shutdown 3. Over the next four years, teams will upgrade magnets, detectors and infrastructure to create the High-Luminosity LHC, delivering up to 10 times more collisions for precision Higgs studies and searches beyond the Standard Model. The HiLumi era begins in 2030.