CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, operates the world’s leading laboratory for particle physics. Its business is fundamental physics, finding out what the Universe is made of and how it works. Founded in 1954, CERN has become a prime example of international collaboration, with currently 20 Member States. Additional nations from around the globe also contribute to and participate in the research programmes.

The CERN Laboratory sits astride the Franco–Swiss border near Geneva. Its new flagship research facility, the Large Hadron Collider, is housed in a 27 kilometre tunnel under the plain between Lake Geneva and the Jura mountains. The cover photograph (see also above) is a view from Le Reculet in the Jura, showing the Laboratory in its setting north of Geneva with the Alps, including Mont Blanc, in the distance.