All-sky Neutrino Point-source Search with IceCube Combined Track and Cascade Data
Journal article, 2025
Despite extensive efforts, discovery of high-energy astrophysical neutrino sources remains elusive. We present an event-level simultaneous maximum likelihood analysis of tracks and cascades using IceCube data collected from 2008 April 6 to 2022 May 23 to search the whole sky for neutrino sources, and using a source catalog, for coincidence of neutrino emission with gamma-ray emission. This is the first time a simultaneous fit of different detection channels is used to conduct a time-integrated all-sky scan with IceCube. Combining all-sky tracks, with superior pointing power and sensitivity in the northern sky, with all-sky cascades, with good energy resolution and sensitivity in the southern sky, we have developed the most sensitive point-source search to date by IceCube that targets the entire sky. The most significant point in the northern sky aligns with NGC 1068, a Seyfert II galaxy, which, from the catalog search, shows a 3.5 sigma excess over background after accounting for trials. The most significant point in the southern sky does not align with any source in the catalog and is not significant after accounting for trials. A search for the single most significant Gaussian flare at the locations of NGC 1068, PKS 1424+240, and the southern highest-significance point shows results consistent with expectations for steady emission. Notably, this is the first time that a flare shorter than four years has been excluded as being responsible for NGC 1068's emergence as a neutrino source. Our results show that combining tracks and cascades when conducting neutrino source searches improves sensitivity and can lead to new discoveries.
Author
R. Abbasi
Loyola University of Chicago
M. Ackermann
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
J. Adams
University of Canterbury
S. K. Agarwalla
Institute of Physics Bhubaneswar
University of Wisconsin Madison
J. A. Aguilar
Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB)
M. Ahlers
University of Copenhagen
J. M. Alameddine
Technische Universität Dortmund
S. Ali
University of Kansas
N. M. Amin
University of Delaware
K. Andeen
Marquette University
C. Arguelles
Harvard University
Y. Ashida
University of Utah
S. Athanasiado
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
S. N. Axani
University of Delaware
R. Babu
Michigan State University
X. Bai
South Dakota School of Mines & Technology
J. Baines-Holmes
University of Wisconsin Madison
A. V. Balagopal
University of Wisconsin Madison
University of Delaware
S. W. Barwick
University of California
S. Bash
Technical University of Munich
V. Basu
University of Utah
R. Bay
University of California
J. J. Beatty
Ohio State University
J. Becker Tjus
P. Behrens
RWTH Aachen University
J. Beise
Uppsala University
C. Bellenghi
Technical University of Munich
B. Benkel
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
S. BenZvi
University of Rochester
D. Berley
University of Maryland
E. Bernardini
National Institute for Nuclear Physics
University of Padua
D. Z. Besson
University of Kansas
E. Blaufuss
University of Maryland
L. Bloom
University of Alabama
S. Blot
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
I. Bodo
University of Wisconsin Madison
F. Bontempo
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
J. Y. Book Motzkin
Harvard University
C. Boscolo Meneguolo
University of Padua
National Institute for Nuclear Physics
S. Boeser
Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
O. Botner
Uppsala University
J. Bottcher
RWTH Aachen University
J. Braun
University of Wisconsin Madison
B. Brinson
Georgia Institute of Technology
Z. Brisson-Tsavoussis
Queen's University
R. T. Burley
University of Adelaide
M. A. Campana
Drexel University
K. Carloni
Harvard University
J. Carpio
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
S. Chattopadhyay
Institute of Physics Bhubaneswar
University of Wisconsin Madison
N. Chau
Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB)
Z. Chen
State University of New York
D. Chirkin
University of Wisconsin Madison
S. Choi
University of Utah
B. A. Clark
University of Maryland
A. Coleman
Uppsala University
P. Coleman
RWTH Aachen University
G. H. Collin
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
D. A. Coloma Borja
University of Padua
A. Connolly
Ohio State University
J. M. Conrad
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
R. Corley
University of Utah
D. F. Cowen
Pennsylvania State University
D. Delgado
Harvard University
T. Delmeulle
Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB)
S. Deng
RWTH Aachen University
P. Desiati
University of Wisconsin Madison
G. de Wasseige
Universite catholique de Louvain
T. DeYoung
Michigan State University
J. C. Diaz-Velez
University of Wisconsin Madison
S. DiKerby
Michigan State University
M. Dittmer
University of Münster
A. Domi
University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)
L. Draper
University of Utah
L. Dueser
RWTH Aachen University
D. Durnford
University of Alberta
K. Dutta
Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
M. A. DuVernois
University of Wisconsin Madison
T. Ehrhardt
Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
L. Eidenschink
Technical University of Munich
A. Eimer
University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)
P. Eller
Technical University of Munich
E. Ellinger
Bergische Universität Wuppertal
D. Elsaesser
Technische Universität Dortmund
R. Engel
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
H. Erpenbeck
University of Wisconsin Madison
W. Esmail
University of Münster
S. Eulig
Harvard University
J. Evans
University of Maryland
P. A. Evenson
University of Delaware
K. L. Fan
University of Maryland
K. Farrag
Chiba University
A. R. Fazely
Southern University and A&M College
A. Fedynitch
Academia Sinica
N. Feigl
Humboldt University of Berlin
C. Finley
Stockholm University
A. Franckowiak
Ruhr-Universität Bochum
P. Fuerst
RWTH Aachen University
J. Gallagher
University of Wisconsin Madison
E. Ganster
RWTH Aachen University
A. Garcia
Harvard University
M. Garcia
University of Delaware
G. Garg
University of Wisconsin Madison
Institute of Physics Bhubaneswar
E. Genton
Harvard University
Universite catholique de Louvain
L. Gerhardt
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
A. Ghadimi
University of Alabama
C. Glaser
Uppsala University
T. Glusenkamp
Uppsala University
J. G. Gonzalez
University of Delaware
S. Goswami
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
A. Granados
Michigan State University
D. Grant
Simon Fraser University
S. J. Gray
University of Maryland
S. Griffin
University of Wisconsin Madison
S. Griswold
University of Rochester
K. M. Groth
University of Copenhagen
D. Guevel
University of Wisconsin Madison
C. Guenther
RWTH Aachen University
P. Gutjahr
Technische Universität Dortmund
C. Ha
Chung-Ang University
C. Haack
University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)
A. Hallgren
Uppsala University
L. Halve
RWTH Aachen University
F. Halzen
University of Wisconsin Madison
L. Hamacher
RWTH Aachen University
M. Ha Minh
Technical University of Munich
M. Handt
RWTH Aachen University
K. Hanson
University of Wisconsin Madison
J. Hardin
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
A. A. Harnisch
Michigan State University
P. Hatch
Queen's University
A. Haungs
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
J. Haeussler
RWTH Aachen University
K. Helbing
Bergische Universität Wuppertal
J. Hellrung
Ruhr-Universität Bochum
B. Henke
Michigan State University
L. Hennig
University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)
F. Henningsen
Simon Fraser University
L. Heuermann
RWTH Aachen University
R. Hewett
University of Canterbury
N. Heyer
Uppsala University
S. Hickford
Bergische Universität Wuppertal
A. Hidvegi
Stockholm University
C. Hill
Chiba University
G. C. Hill
University of Adelaide
R. Hmaid
Chiba University
K. D. Hoffman
University of Maryland
D. Hooper
University of Wisconsin Madison
S. Hori
University of Wisconsin Madison
K. Hoshina
University of Wisconsin Madison
University of Tokyo
M. Hostert
Harvard University
W. Hou
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
T. Huber
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
K. Hultqvist
Stockholm University
K. Hymon
Technische Universität Dortmund
Academia Sinica
A. Ishihara
Chiba University
W. Iwakiri
Chiba University
M. Jacquart
University of Copenhagen
S. Jain
University of Wisconsin Madison
O. Janik
University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)
M. Jansson
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
M. Jeong
Stockholm University
M. Jin
Harvard University
N. Kamp
Harvard University
D. Kang
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
W. Kang
Drexel University
X. Kang
Drexel University
A. Kappes
University of Münster
L. Kardum
Technische Universität Dortmund
T. Karg
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
M. Karl
Technical University of Munich
A. Karle
University of Wisconsin Madison
A. Katil
University of Alberta
M. Kauer
University of Wisconsin Madison
J. L. Kelley
University of Wisconsin Madison
M. Khanal
University of Utah
A. Kheirandish
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
H. Kimku
Chung-Ang University
J. Kiryluk
State University of New York
C. Klein
University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)
S. R. Klein
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
University of California
Y. Kobayashi
Chiba University
A. Kochocki
Michigan State University
R. Koirala
University of Delaware
H. Kolanoski
Humboldt University of Berlin
T. Kontrimas
Technical University of Munich
L. Kopke
Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
C. Kopper
University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)
D. J. Koskinen
University of Copenhagen
P. Koundal
University of Delaware
M. Kowalski
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
Humboldt University of Berlin
T. Kozynets
University of Copenhagen
N. Krieger
Ruhr-Universität Bochum
J. Krishnamoorthi
Institute of Physics Bhubaneswar
University of Wisconsin Madison
T. Krishnan
Harvard University
K. Kruiswijk
Universite catholique de Louvain
E. Krupczak
Michigan State University
A. Kumar
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
E. Kun
Ruhr-Universität Bochum
N. Kurahashi
Drexel University
N. Lad
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
C. Lagunas Gualda
Technical University of Munich
L. Lallement Arnaud
Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB)
M. Lamoureux
Universite catholique de Louvain
M. J. Larson
University of Maryland
F. Lauber
Bergische Universität Wuppertal
J. P. Lazar
Universite catholique de Louvain
K. Leonard DeHolton
Pennsylvania State University
A. Leszczynska
University of Delaware
J. Liao
Georgia Institute of Technology
C. Lin
University of Delaware
Y. T. Liu
Pennsylvania State University
M. Liubarska
University of Alberta
C. Love
Drexel University
L. Lu
University of Wisconsin Madison
F. Lucarelli
University of Geneva
W. Luszczak
Ohio State University
Y. Lyu
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
University of California
J. Madsen
University of Wisconsin Madison
Y. Makino
University of Wisconsin Madison
E. Manao
Technical University of Munich
S. Mancina
National Institute for Nuclear Physics
University of Padua
A. Mand
University of Wisconsin Madison
I. C. Maris
Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB)
S. Marka
Columbia University
Z. Marka
Columbia University
L. Marten
RWTH Aachen University
I. Martinez-Soler
Harvard University
R. Maruyama
Yale University
J. Mauro
Universite catholique de Louvain
F. McNally
Mercer University
J. V. Mead
University of Copenhagen
K. Meagher
University of Wisconsin Madison
S. Mechbal
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
A. Medina
Ohio State University
M. Meier
Chiba University
L. Merten
Ruhr-Universität Bochum
J. Mitchell
Southern University and A&M College
L. Molchany
South Dakota School of Mines & Technology
T. Montaruli
University of Geneva
R. W. Moore
University of Alberta
Y. Morii
Chiba University
A. Mosbrugger
University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)
M. Moulai
University of Wisconsin Madison
D. Mousadi
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
E. Moyaux
Universite catholique de Louvain
T. Mukherjee
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
R. Naab
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
M. Nakos
University of Wisconsin Madison
U. Naumann
Bergische Universität Wuppertal
J. Necker
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
L. Neste
Stockholm University
M. Neumann
University of Münster
H. Niederhausen
Michigan State University
M. U. Nisa
Michigan State University
K. Noda
Chiba University
A. Noell
RWTH Aachen University
A. Novikov
University of Delaware
A. Obertacke Pollmann
Chiba University
V. O'Dell
University of Wisconsin Madison
A. Olivas
University of Maryland
R. Orsoe
Technical University of Munich
J. Osborn
University of Wisconsin Madison
E. O'Sullivan
Uppsala University
V. Palusova
Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
H. Pandya
University of Delaware
A. Parenti
Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB)
N. Park
Queen's University
V. Parrish
Michigan State University
E. N. Paudel
University of Alabama
L. Paul
South Dakota School of Mines & Technology
C. Perez de los Heros
Uppsala University
T. Pernice
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
J. Peterson
University of Wisconsin Madison
M. Plum
South Dakota School of Mines & Technology
A. Ponten
Uppsala University
V. Poojyam
University of Alabama
Y. Popovych
Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
M. Prado Rodriguez
University of Wisconsin Madison
B. Pries
Michigan State University
R. Procter-Murphy
University of Maryland
G. T. Przybylski
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
L. Pyras
University of Utah
C. Raab
Universite catholique de Louvain
J. Rack-Helleis
Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
N. Rad
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
M. Ravn
Uppsala University
K. Rawlins
University of Alaska Anchorage
Z. Rechav
University of Wisconsin Madison
A. Rehman
University of Delaware
I. Reistroffer
South Dakota School of Mines & Technology
E. Resconi
Technical University of Munich
S. Reusch
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
C. D. Rho
Sungkyunkwan University
W. Rhode
Technische Universität Dortmund
L. Ricca
Universite catholique de Louvain
B. Riedel
University of Wisconsin Madison
A. Rifaie
Bergische Universität Wuppertal
E. J. Roberts
University of Adelaide
S. Robertson
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
University of California
M. Rongen
University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)
A. Rosted
Chiba University
C. Rott
University of Utah
T. Ruhe
Technische Universität Dortmund
L. Ruohan
Technical University of Munich
D. Ryckbosch
Ghent university
J. Saffer
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
D. Salazar-Gallegos
Michigan State University
P. Sampathkumar
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
A. Sandrock
Bergische Universität Wuppertal
G. Sanger-Johnson
Michigan State University
M. Santander
University of Alabama
S. Sarkar
University of Oxford
J. Savelberg
RWTH Aachen University
M. Scarnera
Universite catholique de Louvain
P. Schaile
Technical University of Munich
M. Schaufel
RWTH Aachen University
H. Schieler
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
S. Schindler
University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)
L. Schlickmann
Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
B. Schluter
University of Münster
F. Schlueter
Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB)
N. Schmeisser
Bergische Universität Wuppertal
T. Schmidt
University of Maryland
F. G. Schroeder
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
L. Schumacher
University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)
S. Schwirn
RWTH Aachen University
S. Sclafani
University of Maryland
D. Seckel
University of Delaware
L. Seen
University of Wisconsin Madison
M. Seikh
University of Kansas
S. Seunarine
University of Wisconsin
P. A. Sevle Myhr
Universite catholique de Louvain
R. Shah
Drexel University
S. Shefali
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
N. Shimizu
Chiba University
B. Skrzypek
University of California
R. Snihur
University of Wisconsin Madison
J. Soedingrekso
Technische Universität Dortmund
A. Segaard
University of Copenhagen
D. Soldin
University of Utah
P. Soldin
RWTH Aachen University
G. Sommani
Ruhr-Universität Bochum
C. Spannfellner
Technical University of Munich
G. M. Spiczak
University of Wisconsin
J. Stachurska
Ghent university
M. Stamatikos
Ohio State University
T. Stanev
University of Delaware
T. Stezelberger
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
T. Stuewald
Bergische Universität Wuppertal
T. Stuttard
University of Copenhagen
G. W. Sullivan
University of Maryland
I. Taboada
Georgia Institute of Technology
S. Ter-Antonyan
Southern University and A&M College
A. Terliuk
Technical University of Munich
A. Thakuri
South Dakota School of Mines & Technology
M. Thiesmeyer
University of Wisconsin Madison
W. G. Thompson
Harvard University
J. Thwaites
University of Wisconsin Madison
S. Tilav
University of Delaware
K. Tollefson
Michigan State University
S. Toscano
Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB)
D. Tosi
University of Wisconsin Madison
A. Trettin
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
A. K. Upadhyay
University of Wisconsin Madison
Institute of Physics Bhubaneswar
K. Upshaw
Southern University and A&M College
A. Vaidyanathan
Marquette University
N. Valtonen-Mattila
Ruhr-Universität Bochum
J. Valverde
Marquette University
J. Vandenbroucke
University of Wisconsin Madison
T. Van Eeden
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
L. Van Rootselaar
Technische Universität Dortmund
J. van Santen
Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron (DESY)
J. Vara
University of Münster
F. Varsi
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
M. Venugopal
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
M. Vereecken
Universite catholique de Louvain
S. Vergara Carrasco
University of Canterbury
S. Verpoest
University of Delaware
D. Veske
Columbia University
A. Vijai
University of Maryland
J. Villarreal
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
C. Walck
Stockholm University
A. Wang
Georgia Institute of Technology
E. H. S. Warrick
University of Alabama
C. Weaver
Michigan State University
P. Weigel
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
A. Weindl
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
J. Weldert
Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz
A. Y. Wen
Harvard University
C. Wendt
University of Wisconsin Madison
J. Werthebach
Technische Universität Dortmund
M. Weyrauch
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
N. Whitehorn
Michigan State University
C. H. Wiebusch
RWTH Aachen University
D. R. Williams
University of Alabama
L. Witthaus
Technische Universität Dortmund
M. Wolf
Technical University of Munich
G. Wrede
University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)
X. W. Xu
Southern University and A&M College
J. P. Yanez
University of Alberta
E. Yildizci
University of Wisconsin Madison
S. Yoshida
Chiba University
R. Young
University of Kansas
F. Yu
Harvard University
S. Yu
University of Utah
T. Yuan
University of Wisconsin Madison
A. Zegarelli
Ruhr-Universität Bochum
S. Zhang
Michigan State University
Z. Zhang
State University of New York
P. Zhelnin
Harvard University
P. Zilberman
University of Wisconsin Madison
Astrophysical Journal
0004-637X (ISSN) 1538-4357 (eISSN)
Vol. 995 1 11Subject Categories (SSIF 2025)
Astronomy, Astrophysics, and Cosmology
Subatomic Physics
DOI
10.3847/1538-4357/ae113f