Thousands honored UW–Madison physics professor Francis Halzen, the university’s newest Nobel laureate, at Memorial Union on Oct. 23.
By Will Cushman
Photos by Althea Dotzour
Video by Jason Weiss
On Friday, Oct. 23, the campus community honored University of Wisconsin–Madison professor Francis Halzen following his selection earlier this month for the 2026 Nobel Prize in physics.
In the Memorial Union’s Great Hall, Halzen joined interim Chancellor Eric Wilcots for a fireside chat about his scientific career and the development of the NSF IceCube Neutrino Observatory, the massive South Pole installation designed to detect astrophysical neutrinos for which the Nobel committee recognized Halzen.
Before an in-person audience of more than 400, along with thousands more watching online and at livestream watch parties across campus, Halzen and several key collaborators on IceCube then detailed the engineering, logistical and scientific hurdles that the international collaboration has had to overcome to make the observatory a scientific success. In addition to well-wishers from the UW–Madison community and beyond, the Great Hall crowd counted many “IceCubers” who were in town from across the world for the scientific collaboration’s annual meeting in Madison.
Nobel laureate Francis Halzen recounts the “surprise” that theories accurately predicted the behavior of neutrinos observed by the NSF IceCube Neutrino Observatory.
In response to a question from Dan Hooper, director of the Wisconsin IceCube Particle Astrophysics Center, about what he hopes to discover next, Halzen says the answer is easy: “You want some completely off-the-wall surprise. You don’t learn anything when you keep discovering things you understand.”
The festivities weren’t all so academic — following the Great Hall discussions, the party moved to the Memorial Union Terrace, where U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, Bucky Badger and members of the University of Wisconsin Marching Band were among those who honored Halzen before a packed-to-capacity Terrace crowd. And before the event’s conclusion, Wilcots announced contests to determine the flavor and name for a special Babcock Dairy ice cream flavor in honor of Halzen’s Nobel Prize win. Join in the festivities by scrolling through these highlights:
As thousands more joined online and via livestream watch parties around campus, some 400 lucky individuals were able to join the celebration in Memorial Union’s Great Hall. A large contingent of the in-person crowd was made up of IceCube collaborators in Madison for an annual meeting. The room was awash in raised hands when interim Chancellor Eric Wilcots asked “IceCubers” to raise their hands.
Vice Chancellor for Research Dorota Grejner-Brzezinska welcomed the audience: “Beneath that [Antarctic] ice, and behind the extraordinary science we are celebrating today, is a story about curiosity, persistence, collaboration and the willingness to pursue questions that can seem almost impossibly big.”
Halzen was kept busy even before the official festivities began, shaking hands and taking selfies with well-wishers. Here, Dean of the College of Engineering Devesh Ranjan congratulates Halzen while others wait for their turn to greet the Nobel laureate.
Terry Benson (right), director of the UW Physical Sciences Lab, describes some of the engineering challenges that had to be overcome to make IceCube a reality at the South Pole. Benson’s remarks were part of a panel conversation that also included physics professor Lu Lu (left); Albrecht Karle, IceCube associate director for science and instrumentation; and Halzen. Dan Hooper, director of the Wisconsin IceCube Particle Astrophysics Center, moderated the panel.
During a Q&A with the audience, 10-year-old Madelyne McFadden asked Halzen, “What advice would you give to people who want to become a scientist some day?” His response: “Join us soon!”
Halzen, the 2026 physics Nobel Prize winner and professor of physics, received a standing ovation and sustained applause from the crowd at the end of a fireside chat with interim Chancellor Wilcots during the Nobel Prize celebration.
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Following the Great Hall celebration, the party moved to the Memorial Union Terrace, where Halzen was greeted by a massive crowd that included U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, Bucky Badger and members of the University of Wisconsin Marching Band. Sen. Baldwin congratulated Halzen in remarks that highlighted the crucial role of federal support for IceCube, via the U.S. National Science Foundation. Photo: Althea Dotzour / UW–Madison
Interim Chancellor Wilcots addressed the standing-room-only crowd during a reception celebrating Halzen, 2026 physics Nobel Prize winner and professor of physics, at the Memorial Union Terrace. Photo: Althea Dotzour / UW–Madison
Bucky and members of the UW Marching Band danced during a reception celebrating Halzen, 2026 physics Nobel Prize winner and professor of physics, at the Memorial Union Terrace. Photo: Althea Dotzour / UW–Madison
University of Wisconsin–Madison Chancellor Emeritus John Wiley, left, and his wife, Tess Arenas, joined the festivities in honor of Halzen at the Memorial Union Terrace. Photo: Althea Dotzour / UW–Madison
From left to right, Vice Chancellor for Research Dorota Grejner-Brzezinska; interim Chancellor Eric Wilcots; Terry Benson, director of the UW Physical Sciences Lab; Lu Lu, UW–Madison associate professor of physics; Dan Hooper, director of the Wisconsin IceCube Particle Astrophysics Center; Nobel Prize winner Francis Halzen; Albrecht Karle, UW–Madison professor of physics and associate director for science and instrumentation at IceCube; and U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, share the stage for a quick photo at the reception in honor of Halzen at Memorial Union Terrace. Photo: Althea Dotzour / UW–Madison
Guests enjoyed a limited-run Babcock Dairy ice cream flavor, “Nobel Neutrino,” at the Oct. 23 reception celebrating Halzen. Wilcots announced that Babcock is preparing a brand new flavor in honor of Halzen’s Nobel Prize, with the public invited to weigh in on both the potential flavors and names. Photo: Althea Dotzour / UW–Madison
Bucky Badger made a special appearance at the reception and, as he’s wont to do, got chummy with Halzen and Wilcots. Photo: Althea Dotzour / UW–Madison
The crowd gathered at Memorial Union Terrace enjoyed a picture-perfect autumn afternoon as Sen. Baldwin and the UW Marching Band paid tribute to Halzen. Photo: Althea Dotzour / UW–Madison