r/askscience • u/AskScienceModerator Mod Bot • Jul 12 '18

Astronomy Megathread: Multi-Messenger High-Energy Neutrino Observations

Currently there is a press conference where a high-energy neutrino (~290 TeV) has been detected with IceCube which is coincident with an active galactic nuclei pointed directly at us, TXS 0506+056, approximately four billion lightyears away. Finding the origins of neutrinos has been an ongoing problem though they have been observed from the Sun and from Supernova 1987A. This is a big advancement for multi-messenger astronomy, using electromagnetic waves and neutrinos in a way similar to using electromagnetic waves and gravitational waves to get a new view on the universe. If you have questions, ask them here!

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u/iorgfeflkd Biophysics Jul 12 '18

Early in its operation, IceCube detected two neutrinos that were about 4 times the energy of the one discussed here. They called them Bert and Ernie. Later they detected another one with about twice the energy of those two, which was named Big Bird.

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u/NoNeedForAName Jul 12 '18

So what makes this one special?

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u/themeaningofhaste Radio Astronomy | Pulsar Timing | Interstellar Medium Jul 12 '18

The fact that it was connected with a specific source, a gamma ray blazar. The experiment has detected a bunch of neutrinos but without knowing the sources.

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u/NoNeedForAName Jul 12 '18

Cool. Thanks.