This story was originally published by the University of Wisconsin–Madison International Division. Among the University of Wisconsin–Madison’s many ambitious research endeavors, the IceCube Neutrino Observatory stands out as one of the most unique. This remarkable telescope, which has instrumented a billion tons of South Pole ice, is designed to search for tiny, ghostlike particles called neutrinos, helping […]
You might think that the IceCube Lab, looking so impressive in the photo above just before sunrise, was the highlight of last week at the Pole. But for the station’s winterovers, it was a video conference interview with astronaut Christina Koch that really got folks thrilled. Christina is no stranger to the South Pole. Prior […]
Last year, the “Name that Neutrino” project was launched, which called on volunteers from the public to help classify signals from neutrinos—tiny, ghostlike particles from outer space—for the IceCube Neutrino Observatory at the South Pole. The project was hosted on Zooniverse, the largest web-based research platform that invites novices and science enthusiasts alike to contribute […]
The South Pole sunrise is still not official, but tell that to the sky! It is definitely getting bright outside. Bright enough for a group to gather for a photo op at the ceremonial Pole. It looks like they’re waving, essentially saying “goodbye” to the long winter night. Things were mostly quiet last week at the […]
It’s that time of year again, when the sun rises at the South Pole. That’s right, time of year, singular, since the sun rises just one time over the course of a year. And it happens ever so slowly. They’re in a period of twilight these days—nautical twilight, to be specific, when the sun is […]
The South Pole’s “Polympics” definitely builds some fun into the competitions. There were all sorts of events, from a doughnut eating competition, to pool tournaments, to a box stacking contest. IceCube’s winterovers garnered their share of awards, with a cumulative six golds, four silvers, and two bronzes. Of course, with only 40 people and nearly […]
Let the games begin! South Pole’s version of the Olympics—the “Polympics”—has several years under its belt by now. The opening ceremony to kick off this year’s event was held last week with much fanfare. Station participants were grouped into six “countries,” which were introduced with their own custom flags and national anthems. IceCube winterover Connor […]
Jim Madsen, interim director of the Wisconsin IceCube Particle Astrophysics Center (WIPAC) at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and associate director for education and outreach for the IceCube Neutrino Observatory, recently announced that he was retiring after 25 years with IceCube and its predecessor AMANDA. His last day in the office was August 2. “With a […]
The atmosphere at the Pole was a bit more relaxed last week. Like other people all over the world, many at the station were enjoying watching the Summer Olympics in Paris. The South Pole station traditionally holds their own “Polympics”—still to come, planning is underway. The skies were nice last week. Below, a group is […]
Active galactic nuclei (AGNs) are leading candidates for the sources of high-energy astrophysical neutrinos—tiny, nearly massless particles—detected by the IceCube Neutrino Observatory at the South Pole. This is demonstrated by the real-time multimessenger detection of the blazar TXS 0506+056 and recent evidence of neutrino emission from NGC 1068 from a separate time-averaged study. However, the […]