Astronomers have detected a rare and extremely energetic particle falling to Earth.
Scientists say the ray, named after the Japanese sun goddess Amaterasu, is one of the most energetic cosmic rays ever detected.
The Amaterasu particle has an energy of more than 240 exaelectron volts (EeV), making it the second particle in recorded history, after another ultra-high-energy cosmic ray, the Oh My God particle (320 EeV), detected in 1991.
The origins of the particles are unknown, but experts believe that only the most powerful astronomical phenomena, larger than an exploding star, can produce them.
Toshihiro Fujii, associate professor at Osaka Metropolitan University, Japansaid that when he first discovered this particle, he thought, “There must have been a mistake.”
“We’ve seen energy levels unprecedented in the last 30 years,” he said.
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The particle seems to come out of nowhere, further deepening the mystery for scientists.
John Matthews, a research professor in the University of Utah’s Department of Physics and Astronomy, explains that there was nothing in the area high-energy enough to cause this phenomenon.
It appeared to emerge from the Local Void, the empty space adjacent to the Milky Way.
“We should be able to point to where in the sky they came from,” Professor Matthews says.
“But in the case of the Oh My God particle and this new particle, even if we trace its trajectory back to its source, there is nothing high enough energy to produce it.
“That’s the mystery – what the hell is going on?”
Typically, when ultra-high-energy cosmic rays hit Earth’s atmosphere, they create a cascade of secondary particles and electromagnetic radiation known as a massive air shower.
Some charged particles in air showers travel faster than the speed of light and produce a type of electromagnetic radiation that can be detected with special equipment.
One of those instruments is the Telescope Array Observatory in Utah, which discovered the Amaterasu particle.
It is now hoped that this particle will pave the way for further research that will help uncover ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays and their origins.
Experts suggest this may indicate a much larger magnetic deflection than predicted, an unidentified source within the local void, or an incomplete understanding of high-energy particle physics.
Another Utah professor, John Beltz, said he was “throwing out crazy ideas” to try to explain the mystery.
“These events appear to be coming from completely different places in the sky. There is no one mysterious source,” he said. “It could be a flaw in the fabric of space-time, causing cosmic strings to collide.”
However, he added, “There is no conventional explanation.”
Source: news.sky.com
