IceCube Science

We discuss the status of the kilometer-scale neutrino detector IceCube and its low energy upgrade Deep Core and review its scientific potential for particle physics. We subsequently appraise IceCube's potential for revealing the enigmatic sources of cosmic rays. After all, this aspiration set the scale of the instrument. While only a smoking gun is missing for the case that the Galactic component of the cosmic ray spectrum originates in supernova remnants, the origin of the extragalactic component remains as inscrutable as ever. We speculate on the role of the nearby active galaxies Centaurus A and M87.Comment: 19 pages, 8 figures; Talk at Discrete 08, Valencia, Spai

Search for isotropic #gamma# radiation of cosmological origin between 65 and 200 TeV

Electromagnetic energy injected into the universe above a few hundred TeV is expected to pile up as #gamma# radiation in the energy range between about 65 and 100 TeV due to its interaction with the 2.7 K background radiation. We present an upper limit (90% C.L.) on the ratio of primary #gamma# to charged cosmic rays in the energy interval 65-160 TeV (80-200 TeV) of 10.3.10"3 (7.8.10"-"3). Data from the HEGRA cosmic-ray detector complex consisting of a wide angle Cerenkov array (AIROBICC) measuring the lateral distribution of air Cerenkov light and a scintillator array, were used with a novel method to discriminate #gamma#-ray and hadron induced air showers. If the presently unmeasured universal far infrared background radiation is not too intense, the result rules out a topological-defect origin of ultrahigh energy cosmic rays for masses of the X particle released by the defects equal to or larger than about 10"1"6 GeV. (orig.)Available from TIB Hannover: RR 2916(94-28) / FIZ - Fachinformationszzentrum Karlsruhe / TIB - Technische InformationsbibliothekSIGLEDEGerman