European Spallation Source Aims for First Neutrons

SciencePosted 09/14/202609/14/2026 at 8:37 pm

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European Spallation Source

European Spallation Source, Brunnshög, Lund, Sweden

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Edited10/26/2026 at 12:27 amby @BuildDesk
Summary
rewritten 246 added, 95 removed
Status: In Progress. The European Spallation Source (ESS) ~~near~~in Lund, ~~Sweden, built by 13 nations, completed Beam on Dump 2 in July 2026, with~~ Sweden is a 13-nation research infrastructure still being commissioned, with Sweden and Denmark as hosts. Beam milestones: protons first ~~neutrons planned for early 2027 In~~ travelled 542.5 m to a tuning dump in May ~~2025 protons were first accelerated to the tuning beam dump 542.5 m down the linac tunnel; since early May 2026~~ 2025. A second campaign began in February 2026, reaching 800-860 MeV with 1.5 ms pulses at 14 Hz and 62.5 mA; the ~~beam has stably~~ first 1.5 ms pulse reached the dump ~~at 800-860 MeV,~~ on 3 July 2026. The accelerator is then shut down over summer 2026, with ~~pulse length 1.5 ms, 14 Hz~~another commissioning phase due in autumn and ~~62.5 mA The accelerator~~ first neutrons planned for early 2027, which is ~~shut down~~the basis for ~~summer 2026 with~~ the pin's estimated end-of-February 2027 date. A setback: a ~~new commissioning phase in autumn The~~ late-2025 power dip damaged the moderator in the target station, delaying first neutron production. Reporting from April 2026 says a replacement moderator is to be installed and tested in Q4 2026 and a ~~rotating tungsten wheel struck by~~ neutron-factory test is aimed at the end of 2026. Capacity: the design goal is a 2 GeV proton beam of 5 MW ~~average-power~~ average power (the most powerful proton ~~beam to release neutrons by spallation; The B1M puts~~ linac ever built), striking a rotating helium-cooled tungsten target wheel about 2.5 m across; the ~~full facility at about $3.5 billion, with~~ ESS says the machine will first deliver 2 MW to the wheel. Instruments: 15 ~~instrument labs~~ are planned, six being readied for neutrons and ~~about~~ three more expected at beam-on-target; up to 3,000 visiting scientists a ~~year expected~~year. Cost: the 2013 construction baseline was about 1.84 billion euros, while Physics World in April 2023 described a 3 billion euro project after a rebaseline allowing up to 550 million euros of extra cost, 190 million of it contingency. Background: Lund was chosen as host in 2009 and ESS became a European Research Infrastructure Consortium in October 2015.
- ESS: powering a bright future for science and technologyinnovationnewsnetwork.com85% CONFIDENCE
- How the European Spallation Source will put Europe at the forefront of neutron sciencephysicsworld.com85% CONFIDENCE
- European Spallation Source - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org80% CONFIDENCE

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References 665% CONFIDENCEOverall confidence: 65%How well the pin's source and references back up its dates.Weighted average of how firmly 6 references, the source included, support the pin's start and end times; a reference counts half as much for every 180 days older than the newestShow all pins from 50% to 74% confidence

The first entry is always the pin's source. Overall confidence is a weighted average of how firmly each reference supports the start and end times used above; a reference counts half as much for every 180 days older than the newest.

[1]50%
youtube.com/watch?v=d5h4bIEfM5Q
youtube.com· Posted Sep 14, 2026· Starts Feb 28, 2027 ✓· 22% of score
Given as scheduled, per the source: "planned for early 2027".
[2]80%
European Spallation Source - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org· Added Oct 26, 2026· 26% of score
Member states, 2013 baseline cost 1.843bn euros, ERIC status, instrument list and site.^[1]
[3]72%
Why 13 Nations Are Building a $3BN 'Giant Microscope' - The B1M
theb1m.com· Added Sep 14, 2026· 22% of score
The B1M, a well-regarded engineering/construction video outlet, covers the European Spallation Source project described in the pin, but as a secondary explainer rather than an ESS^[4] statement its confirmation is weaker, and the page content could not be retrieved (domain blocked) to confirm the 2027 date.
[4]90%
ESS completes Beam on Dump 2, advancing toward first neutrons
ess.eu· Published Jul 7, 2026· 17% of score
ESS's own official site, published 7 July 2026, headlines progress "advancing toward first neutrons," directly backing the pin's "planned for early 2027" claim as the primary institutional source, though the article text could not be retrieved (domain blocked).
[5]85%
ESS: powering a bright future for science and technology
innovationnewsnetwork.com· Published Apr 29, 2026· 13% of score
Describes 2026 status: moderator damage from late-2025 power dip, Q4 2026 replacement, instrument readiness, construction start 2014, user programme timing.^[1]

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European Spallation Source Aims for First Neutrons

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