Low_Energy_Neutrino_Astronomy
Large Apparatus studying Grand Unification and Neutrino Astrophysics or LAGUNA was a European project aimed to develop the next-generation, very large volume underground neutrino observatory.[1] The detector was to be much bigger and more sensitive than any previous detector, and make new discoveries in the field of particle and astroparticle physics. The project involved 21 European institutions in 10 European countries, and brought together over 100 scientists.[2][3]
The project assessed the feasibility of developing the observatory-infrastructure and the observatory particle detectors themselves, as well as looking for a deployment site (seven candidates) in Europe. There were two design studies, LAGUNA and LAGUNA/LBNO, which were finished in 2008 and 2011, respectively.[4] The total prize of studies was €17 million, of which €7 million was direct funding from the EU, and rest came from the participating universities and other organizations.[5]
In 2016, the LAGUNA project was in practice cancelled, although no official decision was made.[1] A similar DUSEL-project in the United States was also cancelled. However, the neutrino-component of the DUSEL-project (the Long Baseline Neutrino Experiment, LBNE) was rebooted as the DUNE project and enlarged from a USA-only project into an international project. Many leading researchers from LAGUNA moved to DUNE.[1] The construction of DUNE started in 2017 in Sanford Lab in South Dakota, USA with expected completion 2027.