ICE CUBE – FROM THE SOUTH POLE TO THE EDGE OF THE UNIVERSE

Megan Madsen, Education and Outreach Coordinator for the Wisconsin IceCube Particle Astrophysics Center (WIPAC) told how WIPAC is a new center in the graduate school at the University of Wisconsin-Madison that is developing new ways to explore the universe.  WIPAC also operates IceCube, a neutrino observatory at the geographic South Pole.  Other South Pole WIPAC projects include DM-Ice that looks for direct evidence for the mysterious dark matter, ARA, a project that will search for the highest energy neutrino and High Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC).  The IceCube collaboration consists of 25 scientists from 42 institutions in 12 countries that meet twice a year. IceCube is a telescope/particle detector at the South Pole that records nearly massless sub-atomic particles called neutrinos. IceCube searches for neutrinos that come from the sun, radioactive decay, cosmic rays and from events such as exploding stars and gamma ray bursts.   In addition to exploring the background of neutrinos, IceCube studies the neutrinos themselves. Neutrinos can help us understand where cosmic rays come from and learn more about gamma ray bursts and supernovae.  IceCube is the world's largest neutrino detector, encompassing a cubic kilometer of ice.  The IceCube detector is buried 1 1/2 miles in the ice and consists of strings/cables and 60 sensors.  IceCube records light from changed particles traveling faster than light in the ice:  the time sequence gives direction, the amount of light is proportional to energy and the pattern indicates the neutrino type.  The detector was completed in 2010 with the primary funding provided by the National Science Foundation.  There are logistics to consider when traveling to the South Pole Station. It takes about 4 days to get there traveling on a commercial airline to New Zealand; a military plane to McMurdo Base, a U. S. station on the Antarctic coast; then another military plane to the South Pole.  Work is restricted to November 1 to February 14.  In summary, the universe is immense and mostly unexplored; science and technology enable both to advance; and partners in Wisconsin are at the forefront of these efforts.