The fourth edition of the IceCube Masterclass hosted over 200 students at 14 institutions in Belgium, Denmark, Germany, and the US. Stony Brook University, which joined the masterclass program for the first time, had a full program for women. The positive interaction with scientists is again one of the things that students value most from this program. The masterclasses were held on March 8, 11 and 22.
No, not yet—that’s the moon, not the sun. But so bright, one would be forgiven for mistaking it for the sun. Not only is this full moon bright, but it’s sporting a nice clear halo, too, providing an excellent backdrop for a shot of the IceCube Lab.
Here comes a burst of electromagnetic radiation, a radio burst to be more precise. It lasts for a few milliseconds, then stops. Usually, nothing more happens—although they have been found to repeat. Still, these radio flares, or fast radio bursts, as scientists call them, may tell us a good deal about the universe if we ever discover where and how they are created.
In the northwest corridor at WIPAC, voices are sporadic once again. The open work area next to the help desk team is now mostly dark with empty tables and bare walls. But it has not always been like this. Certainly not during the last few weeks, when this space was one of the most active areas on the floor.
A fairly laid back week, all things considered. The moon was rising, and IceCube winterover Martin focused his camera outside on some snowed-in heavy machinery. Looks like quite a covering for a place that hardly sees any snowfall.
Last week at the Pole, life for the IceCube winterovers was bookended by a very busy beginning and a fun and lighthearted ending. For the first few days, they had to contend with some detector issues arising from run transitions and test runs performed, but all went well. By the end of the week, they were celebrating Christmas in July.
