The origin of the 'ghost particle' is likely to be the core of a galaxy fed by a supermassive black hole
Origin of ‘ghost particles’ DISCOVERED: Tiny bodies that pass through our body and planet undetected emitted from galactic cores fed by supermassive black holes in outer space
- ‘Ghost particles,’ or neutrinos, are particles that originate from outer space
- These particles have no mass and hardly interact with matter
- Scientists believe they came from the core of a galaxy that was fed by a supermassive black hole
- Blazars are known for emitting bright beams of light and wind and are thought to also produce cosmic rays
Extraterrestrial ‘ghost particles’ likely originate from the cores of galaxies fed by supermassive black holes, according to a new study that could unravel the mystery of subatomic particles that formed before the universe.
Ghost particles, or neutrinos, have baffled scientists since they were first discovered in 1956 because they have no mass and barely interact with matter.
These tiny particles have no electric charge and race through the universe almost completely unaffected by objects or natural forces, but they are the second most common particle on Earth after photons.
And scientists have been hunting to find the source of these particles.
An international team of researchers believes it is located in a blazar, which is known to emit bright jets and winds and speculates it also produces cosmic rays – high-energy protons and atomic nuclei moving through space at nearly the speed of light.
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Artist’s impression of an active galactic core where ghost-like subatomic particles likely originate
At the center of most galaxies, including our own, is a supermassive black hole that creates a disk of gas, dust, and stellar debris around it.
When matter in the disk falls into a black hole, its gravitational energy can be converted into light, making the center of this galaxy very bright and called an active galactic nucleus (AGN).
When a galaxy is located in such a way that its beam is directed towards Earth, it is called a blazar and it is an on-going theory as to what produces ghost particles.
This conclusion was determined by a research team led by the University of Würzburg, who collected data from the IceCube Neutrino Observatory in Antarctica, the most sensitive neutrino detector on Earth, from 2008 and 2015.
The study determined the ghost particles came from the blazar by collecting particle data from the IceCube Neutrino Observatory in Antarctica (pictured)
This was then cross-referenced with BZCat, a catalog of more than 3,500 objects that are most likely blazars.
The results showed that 10 of the 19 IceCube hotspots located in the southern sky probably came from a blazar.
Dr Andrea Tramacere, a researcher in the Department of Astronomy at the University of Geneva, said in a statement: ‘The discovery of this high-energy neutrino factory is a major milestone for astrophysics.
‘This puts us one step further in solving the century-old mystery of the origin of cosmic rays.’
Scientists have been trying to study the elusive particle since it was first predicted by Wolfgang Pauli in 1931.
Many believe that they may hold the key to understanding parts of the universe that remain hidden from our view, such as dark matter and dark energy.
High-energy neutrinos were first detected on September 22, 2017 by the IceCube observatory, a large facility that sank a mile below the South Pole.
Here, a network of more than 5,000 super-sensitive sensors captures the characteristic ‘Cherenkov’ blue light emitted when neutrinos interact with ice.
Neutrinos are thought to be created by high-energy cosmic rays from the beam interacting with nearby matter.
Professor Paul O’Brien, a member of the international team of astronomers from the University of Leicester, said: ‘Neutrinos rarely interact with matter.
‘To detect them at all from the cosmos is wonderful, but to have a possible source identified is a victory.
‘This result will allow us to study the most distant and powerful source of energy in the universe in a completely new way.’
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