Considering all the advantages of American wealth and know-how, how did Europe manage to build a physics facility that is pushing Fermilab to the brink of obsolescence?
Much of the explanation stems from the impressive funding and long-term commitment that 20 European nations have given to CERN, the physics organization that runs the Large Hadron Collider.
Unlike Fermilab, which relies on the quirks of congressional budgets and direction from the U.S. Department of Energy, CERN is a force unto itself, established by treaty in 1954. The center has more freedom to chart its own future, and member states contribute a steady share of their gross domestic products to ensure its budget, which stands at $848 million — more than double Fermilab’s funding.
“CERN has much greater stability than we have for this sort of enterprise,” said Fermilab Director Pier Oddone. “There are many days when I envy the situation in Geneva.”
Almost like a private corporation, CERN has enough financial stability to get bank loans if necessary — an unthinkable option for Fermilab. In 2002, CERN secured a loan of about $200 million from the European Investment Bank to finish the LHC.
Oddone says CERN’s stability can be a drawback.
“The U.S. system is more dynamic, because we can allocate resources more quickly if Congress makes that decision,” Oddone said.
