Tag Archives: cosmic rays

The Large Hadron Collider is reset and refreshed every year – a CERN physicist explains how the team uses subatomic jumps to restart experiments

When you press “start” on your microwave or computer, it immediately powers on—but that’s not how big physics experiments like the Large Hadron Collider at the European Organization for Nuclear Research, known as CERN. Instead, engineers and physicists must set aside a few weeks each year to carefully reset the collider and all the experiments… Read More »

The Large Hadron Collider is reset and refreshed every year – a CERN physicist explains how the team uses subatomic jumps to restart experiments

When you press “start” on your microwave or computer, it immediately powers on—but that’s not how big physics experiments like the Large Hadron Collider at the European Organization for Nuclear Research, known as CERN. Instead, engineers and physicists must set aside a few weeks each year to carefully reset the collider and all the experiments… Read More »

NASA’s Fermi space telescope finds strange supernova with missing gamma rays

While examining a nearby supernova with NASA’s Fermi gamma-ray space telescope, scientists uncovered a larger mystery in an effort to discover how these stellar explosions fire charged particles called cosmic rays. The team found that the supernova, called SN 2023ixf, was completely devoid of gamma-ray emissions, which should be present when cosmic ray particles are… Read More »

The Truth About the ‘Harmful Cosmic Radiation’ That Will Allegedly Pass Near Earth ‘Tonight’

Getty Images Allegation: Dangerous cosmic rays will pass near the Earth tonight and harm those who leave their personal devices turned on nearby. Evaluation: Rating: False As the total solar eclipse of April 8, 2024 approached, Snopes’ inbox began filling up with a familiar claim that “tonight” cosmic rays would pass near the Earth, endangering… Read More »

Where do cosmic rays come from?

The world is under constant bombardment cosmic raysShowers of high-energy particles blasting our planet from all directions at near the speed of light. While this may seem like a foreshadowing of a science fiction alien invasion, it is a real phenomenon that scientists have been aware of for over a century. Despite their dramatic description,… Read More »

Black hole ‘particle accelerators’ cause mysterious cosmic rays to rain down on Earth at the speed of light

An artist’s impression shows a microquasar, allowing scientists to locate the natural particle accelerator.Science Communication Laboratory for MPIK/HESS A study has revealed how cosmic objects send accelerated particles into space. Jets from quasars and supernovae can send dangerous cosmic rays hitting Earth. For the first time, a study has shown how cosmic rays are accelerated… Read More »

Vampire black hole is a ‘cosmic particle accelerator’ that could solve a long-standing astronomy mystery

Scientists may have found evidence that vampire black holes feeding on victim stars called microquasars are cosmic particle accelerators responsible for the mysterious high-energy cosmic rays we see bombarding Earth. These stellar-mass black holes are found in binary systems with a supergiant star from which they greedily rob matter. Some of this stellar material is… Read More »

NASA telescope discovers mysterious hotspot of high-energy particles beyond our galaxy

An artist’s interpretation of a gamma ray burst.DESY, Science Communication Laboratory Astronomers investigating the wallpaper of our universe came across a mysterious signal. Something unknown appears to be emitting high-energy cosmic rays and gamma rays. This pattern in the sky could help solve one of astrophysics’ greatest mysteries. NEW ORLEANS – Astronomers using the NASA… Read More »

Mysterious cosmic ray observed in Utah came from beyond our galaxy, scientists say

Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news about fascinating discoveries, scientific breakthroughs and more. Space scientists trying to understand the mysterious origins of powerful cosmic rays have detected an extremely rare, ultra-high-energy particle that they believe came to Earth from beyond the Milky Way galaxy. The energy of this… Read More »