By: HISTORY.com Editors

2008

CERN Large Hadron Collider is powered up

Published: June 26, 2019Last Updated: June 30, 2025

On September 10, 2008, scientists successfully flip the switch for the first time on the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) lab in Geneva, kicking off what many called history’s biggest science experiment.

Testing particle physics theories, the $8 billion LHC is the largest particle accelerator in the world, made up of superconducting magnets that allow engineers and physicists to study subatomic particles including protons, electrons, quarks and photons. The LHC can create 600 million collisions per second.

The 17-mile underground ring, located beneath the Swiss-French border, sends particle beams at close to the speed of light, causing them to collide and recreate debris caused by the Big Bang. At the time of its launch, some scientists and environmentalists speculated that the LHC would create a mini black hole that could end the world. These claims were refuted by CERN and physicist Stephen Hawking, who said any mini black holes would evaporate instantly.

The goal of the LHC, the largest scientific instrument on the planet, was to create and discover the Higgs boson, better known as “the God particle.” In 1964, Peter Higgs and Francois Englert came up with the theory that the particle associated with a mass-transmitting energy field was the key to how everything in the universe acquires mass.

In 2012, CERN announced the LHC experiments had allowed researchers to observe a particle consistent with the Higgs boson. On Oct. 8, 2013, Higgs and Englert were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics, “for the theoretical discovery of a mechanism that contributes to our understanding of the origin of mass of subatomic particles, and which recently was confirmed through the discovery of the predicted fundamental particle, by the ATLAS and CMS experiments at CERN's Large Hadron Collider.”

10 World Engineering Marvels

These remarkable feats of design and construction transformed the ways people travel, communicate and live.

By: Christopher Klein

Timeline

Also on This Day in History

Discover more of the major events, famous births, notable deaths and everything else history-making that happened on September 10th

1608

John Smith elected to lead Jamestown

English adventurer John Smith is elected council president of Jamestown, Virginia—the first permanent English settlement in North America. Smith, a colorful figure, had won popularity in the colony because of his organizational abilities and effectiveness in dealing with local Native American groups. In May 1607, about 100 English colonists settled along the James River in […]

1:50m read

1813

The Battle of Lake Erie

In the first unqualified defeat of a British naval squadron in history, U.S. Captain Oliver Hazard Perry leads a fleet of nine American ships to victory over a squadron of six British warships at the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812. The battle was closely contested for hours, and Perry’s flagship Lawrence […]

0:58m read

1846

The struggling Donner Party sends ahead to California for food

Weeks behind schedule and the massive Sierra Nevada mountains still to be crossed, on what was likely September 10, 1846, the members of the ill-fated Donner Party realize they are running short of supplies and send two men ahead to California to bring back food. The group of 89 emigrants had begun their western trek […]

2:08m read

1897

First drunk driving arrest

A London cab driver was arrested after driving into a building.

2:16m read

1919

New York City parade honors World War I veterans

On September 10, 1919, almost one year after an armistice officially ended the First World War, New York City holds a parade to welcome home General John J. Pershing, commander in chief of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF), and some 25,000 soldiers who had served in the AEF’s 1st Division on the Western Front. The […]

1921

Silent film star Fatty Arbuckle arrested for murder

On September 10, 1921, silent film star Fatty Arbuckle is arrested in San Francisco for the rape and murder of aspiring actor Virginia Rappe. He is later acquitted.

1:48m read

1940

British War Cabinet reacts to the Blitz in kind

In light of the destruction and terror inflicted on Londoners by a succession of German bombing raids, called “the Blitz,” the British War Cabinet seeks retaliation, instructing British bombers over Germany to drop their bombs “anywhere” if unable to reach their targets. The prior two nights of bombing had wrought extraordinary damage, especially in the […]

1:16m read

1960

Hurricane Donna batters the Florida Keys

On September 10, 1960, Hurricane Donna hits the Florida Keys as a Category 4 storm. Having formed near Cape Verde off the African coast, it would go on to cause 150 deaths from Puerto Rico to New England over the course of two weeks. Donna first attained hurricane status on August 31 and headed west […]

1:46m read

1977

The guillotine falls silent

On September 10, 1977, at Baumetes Prison in Marseille, France, Hamida Djandoubi, a Tunisian immigrant convicted of murder, becomes the last person executed by guillotine. The guillotine first gained fame during the French Revolution when physician and revolutionary Joseph-Ignace Guillotin won passage of a law requiring all death sentences to be carried out by “means […]

1:10m read

1981

Picasso’s “Guernica” is displayed in Spain

Spanish artist Pablo Picasso’s monumental antiwar mural Guernica is displayed in Spain. The painting was inspired by the bombing of the town of Guernica by the Luftwaffe in the Spanish Civil War.

3:46m read

1991

Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” is released as a single

On September 10, 1991, Seattle rock band Nirvana releases its breakout single, “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” In just a few short months, a group that was a complete nonentity to the mainstream music-buying public would become one of the most important rock bands on earth. You either had to be part of a fairly small […]

2:10m read

Inventions & Science

97 videos

Inventions & Science

How an Anonymous Parisian Became the First Person Ever Photographed

An 1838 photo that accidentally captured a man getting a shoe shine on a Paris street was almost lost to history. Twice.

Inventions & Science

Why Coca-Cola’s ‘New Coke’ Flopped

Coca-Cola’s disastrous attempt at rebranding Coke in 1985 delivered a painful lesson: Don't mess with a classic.

Inventions & Science

Who Invented Television?

Multiple inventors deserve credit for the technology, which had its origins in the 19th century.

About the author

HISTORY.com Editors

HISTORY.com works with a wide range of writers and editors to create accurate and informative content. All articles are regularly reviewed and updated by the HISTORY.com team. Articles with the “HISTORY.com Editors” byline have been written or edited by the HISTORY.com editors, including Amanda Onion, Christian Zapata, Cristiana Lombardo and Adrienne Donica.

Fact Check

We strive for accuracy and fairness. But if you see something that doesn't look right, click here to contact us! HISTORY reviews and updates its content regularly to ensure it is complete and accurate.