SPACE — Over the past years, scientists have succeeded in uncovering the existence of several interesting particles. The discovery of these particles encouraged progress in the field of physics.
For example, there is a “God Particle” aka the Higgs Boson which gives mass to all other particles. There are also so-called “Oh My God” particles, energetic cosmic rays whose energy is unimaginable.
Now, there has been a discovery of a new particle which has been named ‘Sun Goddess’. These particles have an energy level one million times greater than what even the most powerful particle accelerator can produce.
These particles appear to fall to Earth along with other less energetic particles. The particle is nicknamed “Amaterasu”.
The name is taken from Amaterasu Ōmikami, the goddess of the sun and the universe in Japanese mythology. The name means “shining in heaven”.
Just as its mythological name is shrouded in mystery, so are the Amaterasu particles. Its discoverer, Osaka Metropolitan University researcher Toshihiro Fujii, didn’t know where the particles came from or what they actually were.
The scientists who discovered it are also still unsure what kind of process and force could give birth to something as energetic as Amaterasu.
“This is the most energetic charged particle ever detected by the Telescope Array experiment,” Fujii told Space.com.
Scientists hope Amaterasu can help create an entirely new branch of high-energy astrophysics. Fujii said Amaterasu particles have energy levels that have not been seen in cosmic ray detection for 30 years.
In fact, when researchers spotted Amaterasu with the Telescope Array experiment, they initially thought the detection was a mistake. The Telescope Array involves 507 detectors spread across 699 square kilometers in the desert of Millard County, Utah.
“I thought it was a mistake or bug me, and then after checking the details of the incident, I was very happy because it turned out that it was not a mistake,” Fujii said.
This light was discovered by the Telescope Array experiment on May 27 2021. The Amaterasu particle showed an energy of 224 exa-electron volts (EeV). One EeV is equivalent to 10¹⁸ electron volts. This places Amaterasu on the same energy level as the most energetic cosmic rays ever discovered.
“Amaterasu particles are supposed to be important messengers from the universe about highly energetic phenomena, but we need to decipher the origins of these mysterious particles,” explains Fujii.
There are no astrophysical objects, or any cosmic events that indicate the direction of the particle’s origin. That’s why scientists are still not sure what caused its creation.
2023-11-24 22:39:00
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