Giant ice cube hints at the existence of cosmic antineutrinos

A huge neutrino detector in the Antarctic ice sheet might have seen the first evidence of a rare neutrino-interaction process called the Glashow resonance. The IceCube Neutrino Observatory, buried in the deep ice near the Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station, observes eye-wateringly powerful neutrinos produced by sources such as active galactic nuclei and supernovae. The observatory detected a shower of secondary particles that look likely to have been caused by a collision between an electron antineutrino travelling close to the speed of light and an electron in the ice. If confirmed by more observations, the finding provides further confirmation of the standard model of particle physics, proves the existence of cosmic antineutrinos and opens the door to a better understanding of the wild stuff going on in the cosmos.