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Astroparticle Physics
DESY is engaged in prominent international research projects on high-energy astroparticle physics. IceCube, the world largest high-energy neutrino telescope, is presently under construction and will be completed in January 2011. Stepwise growing, the detector takes data since 2005 and already with the present size has entered new territory. The boost in sensitivity will make the next 3–4 years extremely exciting and will hopefully lead to first discoveries of extraterrestrial high-energy neutrino sources.
Another messenger to explore the high-energy universe are gamma rays. Gamma telescopes like MAGIC (with DESY participation) and H.E.S.S. have discovered more than hundred sources of TeV gamma rays over the last years. A new generation Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) will continue this success story. CTA is presently in the preparation phase with different contributions by DESY as for instance a telescope prototype and simulation studies. With more than 50 telescopes the discovery potential for galactic and extragalactic sources will increase considerably.
Astrophysics with high energy neutrinos and gamma rays opens new windows to explore the universe. The aim is to find answers to fundamental questions as:
- the search for the origin of cosmic rays and the exploration of the universe at highest energies,
- the search for dark matter and other exotic parts of the cosmic inventory,
- the study of particle physics in hitherto unexplored regions of the parameter space.
