Amaterasu

Context:

• In May 2021, Japanese scientists found a powerful cosmic ray and named it 'Amaterasu' after the Japanese sun goddess.

What is a Cosmic Ray?

1. A cosmic ray is a high-energy particle. A high-energy particle is a very small, fast-moving piece of matter in space which is studied by scientists to understand the smallest parts of the universe.
2. Origin: They come from various sources in space. Some are produced by the sun, while others come from sources outside of our solar system. They are developed in the events like explosion of stars. When these speedy particles reach Earth, we call them cosmic rays.
3. Nature of Particles: They can be like protons (positively charged particles found in the nucleus of an atom), electrons (negatively charged particles), or even entire atomic nuclei (combinations of protons and neutrons).
4. High Energy: Cosmic rays are interesting because they have way more energy than particles made in labs by scientists.
5. When cosmic rays reach Earth, they interact with the Earth's atmosphere. Its collision with atmospheric particles leads to an Air Shower of these particles. This shower can be detected by telescopes and detectors based on Earth's surface. From these particles, we can understand the nature of these cosmic rays.

What is so special about Amaterasu Cosmic Ray?

1. Amaterasu Cosmic Ray is the 2nd highest energy cosmic ray ever found.
2. Its energy level is about 40 million times higher than what the Large Hadron Collider can produce. The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is a massive machine in Europe that helps scientists look at really tiny things. It speeds up tiny particles like protons and makes them crash into each other. By doing this, scientists learn more about how everything in the universe works.
3. Amaterasu appears to come from an empty part of the universe, making scientists curious about an unknown space phenomenon. Our current studies and explanations of physics are unable to fully understand this phenomenon.

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