Fermilab’s NOvA experiment is helping scientists determine the role that ghostly particles called neutrinos played in the evolution of the cosmos.
The NOvA (NuMI Off-axis νe Appearance) experiment is shedding light on one of nature’s most elusive particles: neutrinos. Since the late 1990s, physicists have known that neutrinos exhibit a quantum mechanical behavior called oscillations. But this behavior is not predicted by the Standard Model of particle physics. NOvA is working to better understand these strange particles through precision measurements of their oscillation properties.
The NOvA co-spokespersons are Patricia Vahle (William & Mary) and Alex Himmel (Fermilab). The international collaboration is made up of more than 250 scientists and engineers from 49 institutions in eight countries.
Credit: Symmetry Magazine. Artwork by Sandbox Studio, Chicago with Ana Kova
