Speaker Institution: Department of Physics, University of Maryland
Title: The South Pole IceCube Neutrino Detector and the Era of Multi-Messenger Astronomy
Abstract: In 2013, The IceCube Neutrino Observatory revealed the first evidence for high-energy neutrinos of astrophysical origin. That discovery represented the "first light" in a decades old quest to observe the high-energy universe with neutrinos. I will review the motivation for using neutrinos as astronomical messenger particles and the evidence of astrophysical neutrinos from the IceCube detector. I will also present some exciting recent developments that hold the promise of heralding in a new era in multi-messenger astronomy. I discuss how this new astronomy may help us solve the century old mystery on the origin of the high energy cosmic rays and the extreme astrophysical processes that produce them.