High-flying Experiments Tackle the Mysteries of Cosmic Rays
Cosmic rays are not rays at all, but highly energetic particles that zoom through space at nearly the speed of light. The particles range in size, from subatomic protons to the atomic nuclei of elements such as carbon and boron. Scientists suspect that the particles are bits of subatomic shrapnel produced by supernovae, but could also be signatures of other cataclysmic phenomena.
Regardless of their origin, “cosmic rays are direct samples of matter from outside our solar system—possibly from the most distant reaches of the universe,” said Eun-Suk Seo, a professor of physics at the University of Maryland. Seo leads the Cosmic Ray Physics Group and has a joint appointment in the UMD Institute for Physical Science and Technology.
For more than a decade, Seo’s research group has overseen a total of seven large-scale balloon missions in Antarctica dedicated to studying the nature of cosmic rays. This year, instruments designed and built by Seo’s group will journey to the International Space Station for a three-year mission to capture cosmic ray data beyond Earth’s atmosphere.
