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Nobel physics prize goes to Francis Halzen for Antarctic neutrino work
Версия 2: Later Korean reports added that the physics prize is a solo award for the first time in 34 years and carries 12 million Swedish kronor, and new coverage fills in the committee's citation, the IceCube technical specifications, the laureate's background in Belgium and his remarks on receiving the news.
Коротко
The Swedish Royal Academy of Sciences' Nobel Committee announced on Oct 6, local time, that the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physics goes to Francis Halzen, an 82-year-old Belgian-born professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Korean outlets said the prize recognises his work on the IceCube Neutrino Observatory in Antarctic ice and the discovery of high-energy neutrinos of astrophysical origin. Seoul Economic Daily reported it is a solo award, the first in physics since 1992, with prize money of 12 million Swedish kronor.
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The Swedish Royal Academy of Sciences' Nobel Committee announced on Oct 6, local time, that the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physics goes to Francis Halzen, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, according to Chosun Ilbo, Asia Economy, Kyunghyang Shinmun, Seoul Economic Daily and Yonhap. Seoul Economic Daily reported the prize went to a single laureate, the first solo physics winner since Georges Charpak in 1992, 34 years earlier, and that the prize money is 12 million Swedish kronor, about 1.61 billion won. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
Seoul Economic Daily quoted the committee's citation as recognising Halzen's “decisive contributions to the IceCube Neutrino Observatory and the discovery of high-energy neutrinos of astrophysical origin”. Kyunghyang Shinmun described neutrinos as particles that fill the universe but pass through objects without colliding, and quoted Yang Woon-ki, a professor of physics and astronomy at Seoul National University, saying they are also called “ghost particles”. [ 3 , 6 ]
Halzen proposed using Antarctic ice to detect neutrinos in 1988, Kyunghyang Shinmun reported. Seoul Economic Daily reported that IceCube is built at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station, uses about one cubic kilometre of ice, and has thousands of optical sensors installed roughly 1,450 to 2,450 metres below the surface. When a neutrino rarely collides with matter in the ice, a charged particle is produced that emits blue Cherenkov light when it moves faster than light in ice, and sensors capture that light to trace the neutrino's energy and direction. [ 3 , 6 ]
Kyunghyang Shinmun reported the IceCube ice weighs 1 billion tonnes and holds more than 5,000 sensors buried at depths of over 2,000 metres, and that the research group centred on Halzen, made up of scientists from about 10 countries, has run IceCube as a natural laboratory since 2011. Chosun Ilbo reported the prize went to a researcher who gave “new eyes” to a universe previously seen through light, by capturing neutrinos and opening a path to observing high-energy neutrinos arriving from outside the solar system. [ 3 , 4 ]
Yonhap, reporting from Brussels, focused on Belgium. It said Halzen was born in Tienen in the Flemish region, studied physics at KU Leuven where he received his doctorate in 1969, worked as a researcher at CERN in Geneva from 1969 to 1971, and moved to the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1972. Yonhap reported he is the first Belgian physics laureate in 13 years, after François Englert shared the 2013 prize, and that Belgium's science and technology laureates now number seven, with 11 individuals and one organisation overall. It noted Belgium's population of 11.7 million, its top-tier EU research and development spending, the IMEC semiconductor institute in Leuven and pharmaceutical research facilities in Ghent. [ 5 ]
Seoul Economic Daily reported Halzen told the Nobel Committee in a call that he had not expected the award, saying he was preparing a research proposal and hoped the prize would help get it approved. The paper also reported the remaining announcement schedule: chemistry on Oct 7, literature on Oct 8, peace on Oct 9 and economics on Oct 12, following medicine on Oct 5. [ 6 ]
Почему это важно
The Nobel is a global science honour, and Korean outlets treated it as same-day breaking news while adding technical and biographical detail. Yonhap framed the result around Belgium's record of producing laureates relative to its small population, tying the award to that country's research spending and institutions rather than to any direct consequence for Korea. The documents give no indication of effects beyond the recognition itself.
Ключевые факты
- The Swedish Royal Academy of Sciences' Nobel Committee announced on Oct 6, local time, that the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physics goes to Francis Halzen, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- The prize recognises neutrino observation research using ice deep beneath Antarctica and the IceCube observatory. [ 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Halzen is 82 years old; Kyunghyang Shinmun and Yonhap describe him as Belgian, and Seoul Economic Daily as a Belgian-born American physicist. [ 3 , 5 , 6 ]
- Halzen proposed using Antarctic ice to detect neutrinos in 1988, and the IceCube facility has been operated as a natural laboratory by a research group centred on him since 2011. [ 3 , 6 ]
- Kyunghyang Shinmun reported the IceCube ice weighs 1 billion tonnes and holds more than 5,000 sensors buried at depths of over 2,000 metres; Seoul Economic Daily reported thousands of optical sensors installed about 1,450 to 2,450 metres below the surface. [ 3 , 6 ]
- Seoul Economic Daily reported the physics prize went to a single laureate for the first time since Georges Charpak in 1992, 34 years earlier, and that the prize money is 12 million Swedish kronor, about 1.61 billion won. [ 6 ]
- Yonhap reported Halzen is the first Belgian physics laureate in 13 years, after François Englert shared the 2013 prize, and that Belgium now counts seven science and technology laureates. [ 5 ]
Подтверждено несколькими источниками
- The 2026 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to Francis Halzen of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, announced by the Swedish Royal Academy of Sciences' Nobel Committee on Oct 6. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- The award is for work on detecting neutrinos using Antarctic ice and for the IceCube observatory. [ 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]
- Halzen is 82 years old and was born in Belgium. [ 3 , 5 , 6 ]
- Halzen proposed using Antarctic ice as a neutrino detector in 1988, and IceCube has been run as a natural laboratory since 2011. [ 3 , 6 ]
Пока неясно
- Whether the physics prize is shared with other laureates. Seoul Economic Daily states it is a solo award, but the other documents name only Halzen and do not say whether the prize is shared, so the solo claim rests on one outlet.
- The exact number and depth of IceCube's sensors. Kyunghyang Shinmun reports more than 5,000 sensors buried in ice more than 2,000 metres deep, while Seoul Economic Daily reports thousands of sensors installed at roughly 1,450 to 2,450 metres; the two figures are reported by different outlets and are not reconciled.
- Halzen's citizenship. Kyunghyang Shinmun and Yonhap call him Belgian, while Seoul Economic Daily describes him as a Belgian-born American physicist; the documents do not state his current nationality.
- The amount of the prize money and when and where the award will be presented. Only Seoul Economic Daily gives the sum of 12 million Swedish kronor, and no document states a ceremony date or place.
Что пишут местные СМИ
Хронология, местное время
- Chosun Ilbo publishes a breaking-news report that the Nobel Committee named Francis Halzen of the University of Wisconsin-Madison as this year's physics laureate. [ 1 ]
- Asia Economy publishes a breaking-news item naming Halzen as the physics laureate. [ 2 ]
- Kyunghyang Shinmun publishes a breaking-news report adding the citation detail: a neutrino detection method using Antarctic ice. [ 3 ]
- Chosun Ilbo publishes a fuller report on the Antarctic ice method and high-energy neutrinos arriving from outside the solar system. [ 4 ]
- Yonhap, filing from Brussels, publishes its report on Halzen's Belgian background and Belgium's record of Nobel laureates. [ 5 ]
- Seoul Economic Daily publishes the committee's citation, the prize sum, the solo-award record and Halzen's remarks, and lists the remaining Nobel announcement dates. [ 6 ]