Physicists celebrate evidence of 'God particle'

Scientists around the world celebrated the confirmed existence of the Higgs Boson, known as the 'God particle' following a 48 year search.

The historic announcement unlocked one of the biggest mysteries of the universe.

When scientists announced they had discovered a new particle, the fabled Higgs Boson on July 4, the exploit ranked as the greatest achievement in physics in over 50 years.

Researchers gathered at CERN (European Organisation for Nuclear Research) to explain the particle, which has been the subject of a hunt to find out how matter attains its mass.

The sub-atomic particle is believed to be instrumental in explaining how the universe came to be. It's believed that Higgs Bosons 'stick' to core particles of matter, and hence add more mass.

Without this mass, these particles would zip though the cosmos at the speed of light, unable to bind together to form the atoms that make up everything in the universe, from planets to people.

Physicists first predicted that the Higgs Boson subatomic particle exists 48 years ago.

It initially became known as the 'God particle' because, like God, it is everywhere but hard to find. However, it's also claimed the title came from a book penned by Nobel physicist Leon Lederman who named it 'The Goddamn Particle' (describing the frustrations of trying to explain the particle), which was later cut back by his publishers to avoid sounding offensive.

The man who the particle is named after, Professor Peter Higgs, was particularly emotional as CERN director Rolf Heuer confirmed the Higgs results.

"It's really an incredible thing that it's happened in my lifetime," he said. "I would like to add my congratulations to everyone involved in this achievement."

Heuer echoed Higgs's praise but remained humble in the face of such a great achievement.

"It is a historic milestone but it is only the beginning," he said. "We have a discovery - we have observed a new particle consistent with a Higgs Boson. But which one? That remains open."