One of the most fun names that can be found in physical science is undoubtedly the “OMG particle”(Oh my God Particle). At this point, the first thing most of us will think about will be the Higgs boson, discovered in 2012, dubbed the “God Particle” by the media. But these two particles are very different.
So, what is the OMG particle and why is it referred to by this name?
Cosmic Rays
Cosmic rays are simply nothing but atomic fragments that hit the Earth from the far corners of the universe. These rays, whose origins are presumed to be supernovae or Starbursts, have been discovered to travel very close to the speed of light.
The OMG particle is also a kind of cosmic ray that has puzzled scientists since it was discovered.
How was the OMG particle discovered?
On October 15, 1991, a single atomic nucleus, moving at 99,9% of the speed of light, crashed into the Earth's atmosphere and crossed the sky in Utah. The core quickly turned into a shower of subatomic particles and light. The light was captured by the fly's Eye Observatory, a collection of oversized cans built by the University of Utah to detect high-energy cosmic rays in the universe.
Analyzing fly's eye's data, the scientists calculated that the cosmic ray responsible for this light must have a kinetic energy of 300 Exa-electrons. This number means 48 Joules, an amount of energy that we associate not with subatomic objects, but with macroscopic, i.e. large-scale objects. Even more simply, a single atomic nucleus carried as much kinetic energy as a fairly large stone that was thrown into your head at a speed of almost 100 km per hour! Moreover, it was thought that it was impossible for cosmic rays to have such energy. Thus the particle was called the" OMG " particle.
Nature of OMG particle
Let's examine this discovery a little more deeply, try to find the true nature of the particle and answer the question of what makes this particle so “godlike”.
Most cosmic ray particles consist of single protons, nuclei of hydrogen atoms, and a fairly large number of helium nuclei. But about 1% of cosmic rays are nuclei as heavy as iron. Gamma rays and antimatter particles can be found at low levels or at incredibly high energies, such as the OMG particle. The higher the energy, the rarer the particle is. At the lowest energy levels, one particle per square meter of the Earth's surface is ejected every second, while at energies close to that of the OMG particle, they become incredibly rare. Only a handful of these particles have been detected since the first was discovered, and it is estimated to be quite rare at the head of a square kilometre every few centuries.
Where Is That Coming From?
It takes a particle accelerator to extract a particle to the energies of cosmic rays. On earth, we were able to build artificial accelerators using giant rings and powerful magnetic fields. But the universe is full of natural particle accelerators. There are theories that most of the low-energy cosmic ray particles come from supernova explosions in our galaxy. When a star explodes, the expanding shock wave carries a strong magnetic field. This field can capture particles and accelerate them until they have enough energy to escape the shock.
However, the higher the energy of the cosmic ray, the more likely it is to come from outside our galaxy. Another theory about mysterious particles is that they came from magnetic acceleration or gamma-ray bursts found in quasars.
Unfortunately, the question of exactly what produces these cosmic rays and how close these sources are to Earth still remains a mystery. Part of the difficulty in fully understanding cosmic rays comes from the fact that our atmosphere and magnetic field protect the Earth's surface very well.
Result
As we unravel the origins of these particles, cosmic ray astronomy is becoming an increasingly powerful tool for investigating our amazing universe. But even now, these particles are extremely useful. The highest energy cosmic rays, such as the OMG particle, produce far more energetic collisions than our largest particle accelerator, the Large Hadron Collider. Studying cosmic rays can solve the mysteries of both the largest and smallest scales of space-time.