Neutrinos are some of the most abundant yet mysterious particles in our universe.
Every second 65 billion neutrinos pass through every square centimeter of our body and the Earth.
They are also extremely tiny because of which they travel mostly undisturbed through matter.
The Super Kamiokande in Japan is one such neutrino observatory.
The observatory was built underground to get to isolate the detector from cosmic rays and other background radiation.
This is surrounded by 11,146 photomultiplier tubes (PMT).
The Cherenkov light is projected as a ring on the wall of the detector and recorded by the PMTs.
The distinct pattern of this flash provides information on the direction and flavor of the incoming neutrino.
Engineers examining instruments inside the half-filled Super-Kamiokande tank in a row boat.
The Super Kamiokande started operation in 1996.
It held fifteen times the water and ten times as many PMTs as its predecessor, the Kamiokande Observatory.
Just two years later, the observatory scored its first success - the first evidence of neutrino oscillation.
An example neutrino detection event.
Entrance to the Super-Kamiokande observatory.Photo credit.
