Collideroperatorssteered the protonbeams, comprisingbillionsof particles accelerated almost tothespeed of light, into their firstcollisionjust after1p.m. Genevatime.
The mistake occurred after a Proton-M rocket blasted off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Sunday night, carrying Yamal-402, a telecommunications satellite built for Russian energy giant Gazprom.