• Voir en Accelerator Report: The accelerator complex is gradually waking up from the winter shutdown Beam commissioning is progressing well in CERN’s accelerator complex, with beams already at the gates of the SPS 12 February, 2026 | ByMatteo Solfaroli, Deputy Leader of the Operations Group (BE-OP) The 2026 Chamonix Workshop took place last week and brought together the accelerator and experimental communities to review the recent operational performance of the accelerator complex and discuss challenges ahead. • The programme included a look back at the 2025 operation as well as an overview of this year’s final stretch of Run 3 and of the post-LS3 (Long Shutdown 3) operation. • With LS3 approaching, discussions centred on the upcoming HL-LHC upgrades, as well as consolidation activities in the North Area and ISOLDE, and on the construction of theHiECN3facility. • The workshop concluded with an outlook on CERN’s longer-term future, including progress on the Future Circular Collider (FCC) project and the implications of the European Strategy for Particle Physics. • As for the current status of the accelerator complex, the transition into the 2026 run - the last year of Run 3 - is particularly rapid. • Responsibility was transferred from the year-end technical stop (YETS) coordination team to the Operations Group (BE-OP) to perform the Departmental Safety Officer (DSO) tests, followed by equipment and control checks, machine checkout and, finally, beam commissioning.

Article Summaries:

  • The 2026 Chamonix Workshop convened accelerator and experimental communities to review 2025 performance and outline challenges for the final Run 3 stretch and post‑LS3 operations. Discussions highlighted upcoming HL‑LHC upgrades, consolidation in the North Area and ISOLDE, construction of HiECN3, and progress on the Future Circular Collider under the European Strategy. The complex is rapidly transitioning from the year‑end technical stop to 2026 operations: Linac4, PS Booster and PS commissioning proceeded on schedule, delivering first beams to physics users in early February. H‑beam returned to ELENA, AD and SPS DSO tests are underway, and LHC powering of 1600 circuits is in progress, with beam injection planned for 21 March.

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