KM3NeT, a new generation neutrino telescope

To establish neutrino astronomy beyond the detection of single events, telescopes of cubic kilometer scale are needed. The IceCube neutrino telescope currently being built at the South Pole will be the first telescope with a detection volume of this size. In order to obtain full sky coverage, the construction of a corresponding telescope in the Northern hemisphere is being prepared. Since February 2006, the ANTARES, NEMO and NESTOR neutrino telescope projects have joined forces in the KM3NeT Design Study, supported by the European Commission in the FP6 framework, with the aim of compiling a technical design report for the construction of a neutrino telescope in the Mediterranean Sea with a detection volume of at least a cubic kilometer. In addition the KM3NeT facility will house a long-term cabled observatory for marine sciences. This report will focus on the status of the Design Study and highlight some of the concepts being studied.