The European Organization for Nuclear Research (French: Organisation européenne pour la recherche nucléaire), known as CERN (; ; derived from the name "Conseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire"; see History), is a European research organization that operates the largest particle physics laboratory in the world. Established in 1954, the organization is based in a northwest suburb of Geneva on the Franco–Swiss border, and has 21 member states. Israel is the first (and currently only) non-European country granted full membership.