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Scientists Close in on Source of Cosmic Rays

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  • Scientists Close in on Source of Cosmic Rays

    Reuters, UK
    Nov. 3, 2004

    Scientists Close in on Source of Cosmic Rays
    Wed 3 November, 2004 18:01

    LONDON (Reuters) - An international team of astronomers believe they
    have solved a mystery that has been perplexing scientists for 100 years
    -- the origin of cosmic rays.

    Scientists first discovered the energetic particles that bombard the
    Earth nearly a century ago but where they come from has been one of the
    big questions in astrophysics.

    Using an array of four telescopes in Africa, the scientists produced
    the first image showing that the source of cosmic rays could be the
    remnant of a supernova, a powerful explosion of a star at the end of
    its life.

    "This is the first time we were able to take an image of the source,"
    David Berge, an astrophysicist at the Max Planck Institute in
    Heidelberg, Germany, told Reuters.

    Scientists had long thought that supernova explosions were indeed the
    source, but did not have evidence to support it, according to Berge,
    who reported the findings in the science journal Nature.

    He and colleagues from Britain, Armenia, France, Ireland, Namibia,
    South Africa and the Czech Republic studied the remnant of a supernova
    that exploded about 1,000 years ago and left a shell of debris.

    "Because the energy density in cosmic rays is so large, they play an
    important role in the development of our galaxy," said Berge.

    "We are now at a stage where we seem to be able to prove cosmic rays
    come from supernova remnants."

    Professor Ian Halliday, head of the Particle Physics and Astronomy
    Research Council (PPARC) which funds research, welcomed the findings.

    "These results provide the first unequivocal proof that supernovae are
    capable of producing large quantities of galactic cosmic rays --
    something we have long suspected, but never been able to confirm," he
    said in a statement.
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