Why the LHC is so large

Here is a picture of how mass incerases with speed, along with the formula.....

m-zero is the normal mass without moving
m is the mass when it is moving at speed v
c is the speed of light = 299,792,458.00 meters per second
















....and here are the actual numbers.....


1. Rel Speed of Proton = 0.5000000000

Speed of Proton = 149,896,229.0000000000

SQRT(1 - (rel)**2) = 0.8660254038

gamma = 1.1547005384



2. Rel Speed of Proton = 0.9900000000

Speed of Proton = 296,794,533.42

SQRT(1 - (rel)**2) = 0.1410673598

gamma = 7.0888120501



3. Rel Speed of Proton = 0.9999000000

Speed of Proton = 299,762,478.7542

SQRT(1 - (rel)**2) = 0.0141417821

gamma = 70.7124459519



4. Rel Speed of Proton = 0.9999999900

Speed of Proton = 299,792,455.0020750000

SQRT(1 - (rel)**2) = 0.0001414214

gamma = 7,071.0678529787


The proton/anti-proton speed and the speed of light are in meters per second, the relative speed of the proton (rel = proton speed /light speed)is with respect to the speed of light eg 0.99 is 99%. SQRT(1 - (rel)**2) is the denominator in the equation in the diagram, and Gamma is the number of times the mass increases. It can be seen that even at half the speed of light, there is a definite measurable mass increase.

This mass increase is real, not an illusion, and at number 4, which is where the LHC will be next spring, we will have a proton weighing 7,071*936 units smashing into and anti-proton weighing 7,071*936 units, giving us a total of about 13 million units of pure energy. That's 13,000 GeV. When the heaviest particle ever created is compared to this at 90 GeV, an idea can be envisaged as to just how big an experiment this is. However, panic should not ensue, as the size of the units are irrelevant, you only need to notice how much more energy we have now than before, and it is an awful lot.

Suffice it to say, in order to bend the path of a proton that "weighs" 7,000 times more than normal, a bigger curve is needed, and I back-refer to the speed-boat/Ocean Oil Tanker example given earlier.

The next few months are going to be very exciting indeed.