Particle found at the bottom of the sea may be the most energetic neutrino ever discovered

He neutrino It is a fundamental subatomic particle, that is, one of the “little blocks” that come together to form everything that exists around us. It is called ghost particle, given that has no electric chargealmost does not interact with matter and radiation, and Its mass is very small, less than the mass of an electron. However, after photons, it is the most abundant particle in the Universe.

After photons, neutrinos are the most common type of element in the entire universe. These are subatomic particles with no electrical charge and a mass much less than that of an electron.

Now, during 31st International Conference on Neutrino Physics and Astrophysics In Milan, Italy, opening: A Particle found at the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea may be the most energetic neutrino ever discovered on Earth and may indicate a large-scale cosmic event.

Detection of very high energy particles

An observatory has identified a particle that could be the most energetic neutrino ever detected. Research of astrostats with space in the abyss (THE ARK), at the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea.

This observatory is a structure consisting of detectors attached to “ropes” on the seabed at a depth of 3,500 meters, southeast of island of Sicily, in myWaist. These ropes are long vertical structures on the seabed that hold neutrino detectors.

And each of these ropes has several spheres made of a material known as polymethyl methacrylate. These spheres contain light detectors that sensitive devices capable of detecting flashes of light created by high-energy subatomic particles.

Neutrinos are considered messengers of some from the most catastrophic events in the Universe, such as the explosions of supermassive black holes in distant galaxies. That’s why, This discovery promises to provide valuable information about large-scale cosmic events..

Joao Coelho, physicist Laboratory of Astroparticles and Cosmology (armored personnel carrier) from Paris, who announced the discovery at the conference, stated that The discovered neutrino “stands out impressively” against the background of other events. However, he did not give the exact address where it came from or when the sighting occurred.

More than a third of ARCA’s sensors detected flashes consistent with flares, he said. muon which crosses the observatory horizontally, caused by a neutrino arriving about 1 degree below the horizon. The particle likely had an energy of many tens of petaelectronvolts, making it the most energetic one ever discovered..

The search for neutrinos must not stop

At least four new observatories are being built or proposed to detect these extreme particles.. For example, the future neutrino observatory on the island from Vancouver, Canada; and a prototype at the testing stage in Utah (USA.) .

detection of very high energy neutrinos ARCA Observatory an important milestone in particle physicsbecause it opens up possibilities for new understanding of catastrophic cosmic events occurring in our Universe.

Link to news:

Castelvecchi, D. ‘Fantastic’ particle may be the most energetic neutrino ever discovered. Nature2024.