When a picture is worth a thousand maps

Your first time underground? Can't find the element you're looking for? Even when equipped with a good map and a guide, it can be tough to find your way around the CERN accelerator complex. Luckily, CERN 360° is here to help.

Back in 2010, while providing radiation protection support to engineers on the ground, CERN's Timothée Schmittler came to a realisation: "I noticed that a lot of time was being lost while people got their bearings," he explains. "Most didn't immediately know where to go or what to look out for - especially the technicians from external companies. So when I saw my first adjustable, 360° video (see box), I immediately saw its potential: people could learn the machine and the tunnels before they go underground, reducing their presence in the tunnel to a minimum."

And so the CERN 360° project was born. Armed with the strong support of the radiation protection group of the HSE unit, Schmittler set out to take high definition, panoramic views of the entire accelerator complex and its experiments. These videos can provide technicians and engineers with detailed views to help guide their activities when time in the tunnel is at a premium. "Immersive videos will also contribute to limiting the doses received by workers in accordance with CERN’s ALARA (As Low As Reasonably Achievable) approach, which aims at optimising doses. In addition, they will also support the ALARA approach during the planning phase of works in radiation areas," adds Doris Forkel-Wirth, radiation protection group leader.

One of the camera set-ups used by CERN 360° project to capture their immersive videos.

While raising awareness about this initiative has been a slow going, the overall response has been positive. What started as a small project driven by a single individual now involves not only the radiation protection group of the HSE unit, but also people from DG-CO and EN-MEF. Among them is Katy Foraz, LS1 activities coordinator who was one of the first to support the initiative of the radiation protection group: "These videos will be very useful for preparing and training for select underground jobs," she explains. "As LS1 comes to an end and access to the tunnel is prohibited, they will become even more invaluable when planning works for short shutdowns and emergency interventions."

This year, with greater support, the CERN 360° team has been filming the accelerator complex in earnest, before the machines close up for run 2. Once complete, there is still much in store for the CERN 360° project: "We hope to further improve the videos by using a custom stabiliser, currently being developed by the EN department," says Schmittler. "We would also love to link the videos to the GIS portal and layout database, so that people can type in the name of a piece of equipment and not only find the location, but also a 360° view of it!" And, of course, the videos could be excellent outreach tools, giving a virtual visit of different zones while the machine is in operation.

With so many ideas on the table, watch this space for new and exciting developments from the CERN 360° team!

by Katarina Anthony