WDR Lokalzeit features research on the IceCube experiment

A camera team from WDR Lokalzeit recently visited the Department of Physics at TU Dortmund University to report on the upgrade of the IceCube Neutrino Observatory in the Antarctic ice. For the feature, the team accompanied our PhD student Johannes Werthebach, who spent the 2025/26 summer season at the IceCube experiment, and Prof. Christian Glaser from our research group. Our former group member Dr. Alicia Fattorini was also interviewed via video call. She is currently spending a full year at the IceCube experiment and shared insights into life on site.

In the WDR report, Prof. Glaser explains the scientific significance of the neutrino experiment. Neutrinos are extremely light, electrically neutral particles that can travel through matter almost without interacting and are not deflected by cosmic magnetic fields. Because of these properties, they serve as excellent messenger particles for gaining insights into distant regions of the universe. At the same time, however, these same properties make them difficult to detect. The IceCube experiment uses the clear Antarctic ice as a detector medium. When neutrinos interact with atoms in the ice, they produce light signals that can be registered by sensors distributed throughout the ice. IceCube is currently undergoing its next major upgrade, IceCube-Gen2, which will further increase the detector’s sensitivity and enable even more precise measurements of cosmic neutrinos. During the Antarctic summer, a total of 670 new sensors and calibration devices were installed. The newly installed optical modules were also co-developed and tested in our research group.

Werthebach was stationed at the South Pole from November 2025 to mid-February 2026 and is now back in Dortmund. For his PhD, he tested thousands of photomultipliers and was part of the team installing the new multi-photomultiplier modules. In the report, he explains how the sensitive sensors have been installed deep in the ice.

Via video call, Fattorini, who completed her doctorate in our research group several years ago and is currently spending a year on site at IceCube, offers insights into life and work under the extreme conditions of Antarctica. At temperatures around −57 °C, special protective clothing is required, as exposed skin can suffer frostbite within a very short time. Between February and October, no planes arrive, so the research station must rely on its own supplies. Fattorini lives on site in an international community of around 45 researchers with private bedrooms as well as shared common rooms, a gymnasium, and even a greenhouse for fresh fruit and vegetables, much like a large shared apartment. The researchers also have additional responsibilities on site, such as being part of the station’s fire crew. Communication with the outside world takes place via satellite connection, which provides internet access for around twelve hours each day.

We are pleased that the WDR report offers insights into our research and the work at the IceCube experiment. The report is available here.