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#KITKarlsruhe congratulates Francis Halzen on the #NobelPrize in #Physics 👏. He is being honored for his decisive contributions to the IceCube neutrino observatory and for the discovery of high-energy neutrinos of astrophysical origin. Researchers from KIT are closely involved in the observatory.

Since 2010, the IceCube Observatory at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station has been providing groundbreaking measurements of the highest-energy cosmic neutrinos. Neutrinos are particles originating from the cosmos.

Last year, IceCube was upgraded to enable the detection of lower-energy neutrinos as well. Researchers from #KITKarlsruhe made a significant contribution to this extension.

Since neutrinos themselves do not produce detectable signals, their traces are detected through muons and other secondary particles generated in rare interactions in the ice.

As these electrically charged elementary particles pass through the ice, they produce a characteristic cone of light that is detected by highly sensitive sensors.

In recognition of his outstanding scientific achievements in the field of astroparticle physics and his leading role in the international IceCube experiment, Professor Francis Halzen was awarded the Julius Wess Prize of the KIT Center Elementary Particle and Astroparticle Physics as early as 2017.

The prize commemorates Professor Julius Wess, who worked tirelessly to advance theoretical and experimental particle physics at the University of Karlsruhe—now KIT—and during his time there published research of outstanding international significance.