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Identification of deep-space source for a neutrino heralds new era for astronomy

7/12/18

The first-ever identification of a deep-space source of the super-energetic subatomic high-energy neutrino particles has launched a new era of space research. Detection of one such neutrino beneath the Antarctic ice sent a global team of astronomers racing to track down its origins: a flaring supermassive black hole 3.7 billion light years from Earth. A report will be published in the journal Science by the IceCube team and collaborators, including multiple Penn State coauthors.

Abhay Ashtekar

Penn State's Ashtekar elected as member of the National Academy of Sciences

8/22/16

Penn State Professor of Physics Abhay Ashtekar, holder of the Eberly Family Chair in Physics and director of the Penn State Institute for Gravitation and the Cosmos, has been elected as a member of the National Academy of Sciences. Election to membership in the academy is one of the highest honors accorded to U.S. scientists or engineers by their peers.

Artist impression of gravitational waves generated by binary neutron stars

Penn State Science-U program to hold gravitational wave summer camp

7/14/16

The Institute for CyberScience and the Institute for Gravitation and the Cosmos will host a free summer camp for local high school students to learn about detecting gravitational waves. The camp will run from July 19 to 21. Leading the camp will be Chad Hanna, assistant professor of physics. Earlier this year, Hanna made headlines for his role in the first-ever detection of gravitational waves.

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Cosmic-Ray Physicist to Give Free Public Lecture on 20 March 2012

3/12/12

Dietrich Mueller, an eminent physicist from the University of Chicago known for his research on mysterious astrophysical particles called cosmic rays, will give a free public lecture at 7:30 p.m. on March 20, in Room 102 of the Thomas Building on Penn State's University Park campus. The lecture, which is intended for a general audience, will provide a guided tour of cosmic-ray research discoveries, including results from Mueller's Cosmic Ray Nuclei experiment on the space shuttle. The event is among those sponsored by the Penn State Institute for Gravitation and the Cosmos during 2012 to mark 100 years of cosmic-ray research and discoveries.

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The Big Question: Penrose lecture highlights conference on gravity

7/14/09

From June 4 - 6, prominent physicists from around the world attended AbhayFest, a conference in honor of Abhay Ashtekar's many contributions to the fields of relativity and quantum mechanics. Ashtekar is holder of the Eberly Family Chair in Physics and director of the Institute for Gravitation and the Cosmos at Penn State. As part of the event, visiting professor Sir Roger Penrose delivered a public lecture titled "Faith, Fashion, and Fantasy: How Big is Infinity?"

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Physicists demonstrate how information can escape from black holes

5/16/08

Physicists at Penn State have provided a mechanism by which information can be recovered from black holes, those regions of space where gravity is so strong that, according to Einstein's theory of general relativity, not even light can escape. The team's findings pave the way toward ending a decades-long debate sparked by renowned physicist Stephen Hawking. The team's work were published in the May 20 issue of the journal Physical Review Letters.