High-Energy Cosmic Rays Discovered by Researchers at Namibia's H.E.S.S Observatory

WINDHOEk, NAMIBIA - In a groundbreaking discovery that promises to unlock new secrets about the universe, scientists at the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S) observatory in Namibia have detected high-energy cosmic rays with energies over 10 tera-electronvolts (TeV), shattering records of what was thought to be possible.

The findings, published in the journal Physical Review Letters, were announced yesterday by researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Nuclear Physics, and mark a major breakthrough in understanding the universe's most powerful processes.

"We've uncovered data in a crucial and previously unexplored energy range," said Dr. Werner Hofmann from the Max Planck Institute. "It's likely to remain a benchmark for the coming years."

The high-energy cosmic rays discovered by H.E.S.S are millions of times more energetic than visible light, with electrons and positrons detected at energies as high as 40 TeV.

However, detecting such energy is no easy feat, as charged particles emitted by these cosmic events are deflected in all directions by the magnetic field of the Earth's background. Scientists believe that a pulsar - a remnant of a star with an incredibly strong magnetic field - could be the source of this radiation.

These findings have implications beyond just understanding high-energy cosmic rays; researchers hope to unlock secrets about other extreme events like supernovae, distant galaxies, and even our own sun during solar flares.

Researchers at H.E.S.S utilised a decade's worth of data collected by four telescopes, employing a sophisticated new algorithm that allowed them to identify and measure cosmos particles with unprecedented sensitivity.

"For the first time, we have access to an incredibly high-energy physics environment," said Dr. Hofmann. "It will be important for any future experimental or theoretical analysis."

H.E.S.S Observatory's Groundbreaking Feat

The H.E.S.S observatory, which can detect radiation at energies as high as 100 TeV, has helped discover over 100 celestial sources in its more than 15 years of operation.

While just one of the known solar gamma ray sources detected so far were previously not on the radar until this groundbreaking discovery.

Its four 12-metre diameter telescopes capture and record faint Cherenkov radiation from particles that enter Earth's atmosphere, resulting in particle shows after they collide with atmospheric gases.