Mysterious high-energy electrons detected near Solar System
Using a network of telescopes in Namibia, a team of scientists detected electrons with remarkably high energy. Although their origin is unknown, research suggests their source is close to the Solar System. This marks the first detection of such exceptionally strong cosmic radiation.
Cosmic radiation consists of high-energy, charged particles moving at immense speeds, close to the speed of light, in outer space. Their sources can include objects like the Sun, black holes, pulsars, exploding stars, or remnants of supernovae. As reported by National Geographic, Earth is protected from their harmful effects thanks to the atmosphere and magnetosphere, which effectively block most of this radiation.
Studying cosmic radiation, especially its most energetic components, remains highly challenging. After ten years of work, an international team of scientists, utilising the H.E.S.S. observatory in Namibia, achieved significant success.
The journal "Physical Review Letters" describes the discovery of cosmic radiation electrons with record high energy reaching 40 tera-electronvolts (TeV). This is about 400 times greater than the maximum capabilities of terrestrial accelerators.
40 TeV is energy approximately a trillion times greater than the energy of visible light, which ranges from 1.6 to 3.3 electronvolts (eV). The origin of such high-energy particles remains a mystery. However, it is known that their source must be relatively close to Earth. Particles with such high energy quickly lose it while travelling through space. Therefore, electrons and positrons with 40 TeV energy could not have travelled too far before being detected by the telescopes.
Radiation near Earth
According to researchers associated with the H.E.S.S. consortium, within a few hundred light years from Earth, there are many stars, including the nearest ones about two light years away. In this region, there may also be "dead stars," such as pulsars or supernova remnants, which could potentially be sources of high-energy electrons.
Kathrin Egberts, a member of the research team, estimates that the source of these particles could be located a few thousand light years from Earth, which is a small fraction compared to the total diameter of the Milky Way, about 100,000 light years.
As reported by National Geographic, although the exact emission location of these charged particles could not be pinpointed, their presence indicates the existence of extremely powerful cosmic radiation accelerators nearby.
