CERN to search for antimatter and dark matter from space

The Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, a module that will go into space to conduct particle physics experiments, is set to leave CERN for the Kennedy Space Center on Tuesday.

The AMS module is being prepared for its transportation to the space center in Florida on board a U.S. Air Force Galaxy transport aircraft, CERN--the European Organization for Nuclear Research--said in a statement Wednesday. Once launched, AMS-02 will operate as an external module on the International Space Station (ISS). It will look for antimatter and dark matter while measuring cosmic ray composition, in a series of experiments designed to complement the particle physics work being undertaken at the Large Hadron Collider.

"We are getting close to the space shuttle launch and the moment when our detector will finally be installed on board the ISS," said AMS-02 spokesman Sam Ting in the CERN statement. "The detector's construction phase is now finished, and we are eager for the data collection phase to begin."

For more on this story, read Cern gets ready to hunt for antimatter in space on ZDNet UK.