Evidence of antimatter in cosmic rays has been discovered by scientists, suggesting the potential existence of a new type of particle. These particles could be a part of dark matter, a mysterious substance that makes up 85 percent of the universe’s mass but has never been directly observed.
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A recent study indicates that antihelium particles, the antimatter form of helium, detected by instruments on the International Space Station may have originated from a new class of weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs). It is believed that dark matter could be made up of WIMPs.
“WIMP is a theoretical particle that could potentially be a perfect candidate for dark matter,” explained lead author Pedro de la Torre Luque, a physicist supporting research at the Institute of Theoretical Physics in Madrid. “Many proposed models have been ruled out, leaving only a few surviving theories.”
The antihelium core observed during cosmic ray research on the space station’s alpha magnetic spectrometer (AMS-02) may have been the result of two WIMPs colliding and annihilating each other. This collision could have generated matter, antimatter, and energy.
Antimatter is essentially the “mirror image” of normal matter, with the same mass but opposite properties such as charge.
While some antimatter may have been created during the Big Bang, researchers believe that additional antimatter is continuously generated by specific cosmic events, although it is challenging to observe.
“The observation of antihelium was thrilling because it indicates an unusual phenomenon occurring in the interstellar medium, where the production of antiparticles is unexpected,” stated De La Torre Luque.
“Theoretical forecasts suggest that even though cosmic rays interact with interstellar gas to produce antiparticles, the presence of antinuclei, particularly antihelium, should be extremely rare.”
“We anticipated discovering an antihelium event once every few decades, but the approximately 10 antihelium events observed by AMS-02 resulted from standard cosmic ray interactions. Therefore, these antihelium occurrences provide a promising clue to WIMP annihilation.”
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Source: www.sciencefocus.com
