For the first time, an international collaboration of scientists has detected extremely high-energy gamma rays, the most powerful type of light, coming from the outermost regions of an unusual star system within our own galaxy. The source is microquasar SS 433, a black hole that gobbles up stuff from a nearby companion star and blasts out powerful jets of material. The team’s observations, described in the October 4 issue of the journal Nature, represent the most energetic radiation ever detected from a microquasar in our galaxy.
In an attempt to better understand the anisotropy, the IceCube Neutrino Observatory and the HAWC gamma-ray observatory have united their efforts to study cosmic-ray arrival directions in both hemispheres at the same primary energy. The goal of this combined observation was to get a nearly full-sky coverage to study the propagation of cosmic rays with median energy of 10 TeV through our local interstellar medium as well as the interactions between interstellar and heliospheric magnetic fields. Results have just been accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal and include measurements on how the anisotropy modulations are distributed over different angular scales.
What better way to spend a nice sunny day than lying on a blanket enjoying an ice cream cone. That’s what IceCube’s winterovers thought. No matter that the nice day is at the South Pole, sunny maybe but definitely not warm.
the COSINE Collaboration today presents the first results that significantly challenge DAMA’s claim of a dark matter observation. The paper, published this week in Nature, does not reveal any excess of interactions that could be attributed to dark matter.
Last week, two of three large cargo crates holding new servers and other equipment were delivered to the IceCube Lab, or ICL. Extra hands helped with opening and unloading of all the temperature-sensitive equipment.
IceCube’s new winterovers, Benjamin and Kathrin, are now fending for themselves as they said goodbye last week to Johannes and Raffaela, who finally left the Pole after some delays. (Thanks, guys!)
