"Cosmic rays come from the sun, some from elsewhere in our Milky Way, and others, called extragalactic cosmic rays, trace their origins across vast distances to other galaxies."
"These particles come in with a broad range of velocities, which in turn gives them a broad range of kinetic energy, the energy of motion."
"Cosmic rays are moving so rapidly—near the speed of light—that they can have a very high kinetic energy, easily reaching the mega electron volt (MeV) and giga electron volt (GeV) level."
"Shockingly, some cosmic rays have far, far higher energy levels, but you still wouldn't feel it if one of these struck you."
Cosmic rays are forms of radiation that include visible light and subatomic particles from the sun, the Milky Way, and other galaxies. These particles travel vast distances, sometimes tens of millions of light-years, before being absorbed by Earth's atmosphere. They possess a wide range of velocities and kinetic energy, measured in electron volts, with some reaching mega and giga electron volt levels. Despite their high energy, cosmic rays do not pose a threat to human beings as they are absorbed harmlessly in the atmosphere.
Read at www.scientificamerican.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]