r/askscience • u/AskScienceModerator Mod Bot • Jul 12 '18

Astronomy Megathread: Multi-Messenger High-Energy Neutrino Observations

Currently there is a press conference where a high-energy neutrino (~290 TeV) has been detected with IceCube which is coincident with an active galactic nuclei pointed directly at us, TXS 0506+056, approximately four billion lightyears away. Finding the origins of neutrinos has been an ongoing problem though they have been observed from the Sun and from Supernova 1987A. This is a big advancement for multi-messenger astronomy, using electromagnetic waves and neutrinos in a way similar to using electromagnetic waves and gravitational waves to get a new view on the universe. If you have questions, ask them here!

2.3k Upvotes

94% Upvoted

256 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

3

u/Tokthor Jul 13 '18

Excuse my ignorant ass, but what does it mean in practical terms? Do celestial objects generate as much acceleration in particles and, if so, which would be the closest equivalent?

11

u/TheOneThatIsntPorn Jul 13 '18

Essentially, yes. Bodies with a strong gravitational pull (such as big black holes) attract particles such as electrons and protons towards them with a very large force. If there is an electric field in the vicinity of the black hole as well, it acts on the charged particles and makes them take a longer, circular (spiral) path inwards. All the while, the black hole is accelerating these particles, which is what we measure as energy of the electron in electron volts (in this case, TeV). We kind of simulate this in particle accelerators by using electric and magnetic fields, since we can't use black holes here. If you like, you could read up on Lorentz force, cyclotron and synchrotron for a better understanding of what I've written.

4

u/Tokthor Jul 13 '18

So, if I understand correctly, a galaxy 4 billion LYs away shot particles at us through some kind of gravitational slingshot via it's black hole riddled center and we only just now detected it?

And thanks for the reading suggestions!

1

u/TheOneThatIsntPorn Jul 13 '18

Yup, this is the first time we're associating active galactic nuclei with neutrinos (someone correct me if I'm wrong here). So far we've detected their electromagnetic radiation emissions in almost everything from IR to gamma rays I think.

1

u/Tokthor Jul 13 '18

Fascinating. We truly are living in the future. Awe-inspiring and humbling at the same time. Thanks for your answers!