High-energy particle detected falling to Earth
By K24 Editorial, November 27, 2023A rare and extremely high-energy particle has been detected falling to Earth by astronomers.
Named after the Japanese sun goddess, Amaterasu, it is one of the highest-energy cosmic rays ever detected, according to scientists.
The Amaterasu particle has an energy exceeding 240 exa-electron volts (EeV) and comes only second in recorded history to the Oh-My-God particle, another ultra-high-energy cosmic ray which was detected in 1991, possessing 320 EeV of energy.
The origins of the particle are unknown, but experts believe that only the most powerful celestial events – bigger than a star explosion – can create them.
Toshihiro Fujii, an associate professor at Osaka Metropolitan University in Japan, said he thought there “must have been a mistake” when he first discovered the particle.
“It showed an energy level unprecedented in the last three decades,” he said.
The mystery deepens for scientists, as the particle seemingly came out of nowhere.
John Matthews, a research professor at the University of Utah’s department of physics and astronomy, explains that there was nothing in the area high energy enough to have produced the event.
It appeared to emerge from the Local Void, an empty area of space bordering the Milky Way galaxy.