Following the Neutrino Into Physics’ Strangest Realms

Astrophysics is undergoing rapid progress as new observatories allow us to view the universe using neutrinos and gravitational waves in place of more traditional information carriers like light. Scientists have dubbed this the era of multimessenger astronomy.

In the case of neutrinos, the messengers themselves are perplexing and quite unlike other known particles. An advisory panel to the Department of Energy and the National Science Foundation recently recommended neutrino physics as one of the top funding priorities over the coming decade – even after eight physicists have already been awarded Nobel Prizes for contributions to the subject.

This lecture will tell the story of the neutrino, from the first inklings of its existence a century ago up to its present-day role at the forefront of astronomy and physics. Along the way we’ll talk about some of the most profound aspects of quantum mechanics and some of the most extreme events in the universe. We’ll see what makes this particle so unusual and what we hope to accomplish with the monumental facilities built to detect it.