The SU(3) running coupling from lattice gluons

We provide numerical results for the running coupling in $SU(3)$ Yang-Mills theory as determined from an analysis of lattice two and three-point gluon correlation functions. The coupling is evaluated directly, from first principles, by defining suitable renormalisation constants from the lattice triple gluon vertex and gluon propagator. For momenta larger than 2 GeV, the coupling is found to run according to the 2-loop asymptotic formula. The influence of lattice artifacts on the results appears negligible within the precision of our measurements, although further work on this point is in progress.