Explainer: Why neutrinos matter as Francis Halzen wins 2026 Nobel Prize in Physics?-Xinhua
STOCKHOLM, Oct. 6 (Xinhua) -- Buried deep beneath the Antarctic ice, thousands of light sensors wait for flashes left by neutrinos, elusive particles that can travel across the universe almost undisturbed. By turning a cubic kilometre of South Pole ice into a giant detector, physicist Francis Halzen helped open a new window on the cosmos. The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences awarded Halzen the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physics on Tuesday "for decisive contributions to the IceCube Neutrino Observatory and the discovery of high-energy neutrinos of astrophysical origin." WHAT ARE NEUTRINOS, AND WHY DO THEY MATTER? Neutrinos are among the smallest known particles. They carry no electric charge, have extremely little mass, and interact so weakly with matter that most pass straight through th...