Indian Neutrino Observatory – UPSC Prelims

It is a particle physics research project under construction to primarily study atmospheric neutrinos in a 1,300 meters (4,300 ft) deep cave

Located in Bodi West Hills, Theni district, Tamil Nadu. (See map, hills, rivers nearby)

Underground project

Jointly supported by the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) and the Department of Science and Technology (DST)

Neutrinos are second most widely occurring particle in universe

Neutrinos are found in three forms (e, mu and tau).

It is charge less (electrically neutral), thereby enabling it to travel through planets, stars, rocks, human bodies without any interaction; and

This characteristic has opened new domains for humanity

The National Green Tribunal stayed the neutrino project in Theni, Tamil Nadu, pending approval from the National Board for Wildlife.

Tamil Nadu has conveyed to the Supreme Court that it does not want the Indian Neutrino Observatory (INO) to be set up in a sensitive ecological zone in the Western Ghats.