By Devin Powell
The most powerful atom smasher in the United States will soon smash no more.
Known as the Tevatron, this 6.3-kilometer subterranean ring was once the biggest, baddest physics machine in the world. For 26 years it has been slamming together bits of matter and antimatter moving at nearly the speed of light. These violent collisions spit out new particles never before seen by humankind, revealing some of nature’s deepest secrets.