A team of scientists has made a groundbreaking discovery using a network of sensors at the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea. The team detected a cosmic neutrino, a type of high-energy particle that originates from space, which is 30 times more energetic than any previously detected neutrinos.
The record-breaking neutrino, named KM3-230213A, has an energy of 220 million billion electron volts, making it one of the most powerful particles ever detected. Neutrinos are difficult to detect because they don’t interact with their surroundings, but they can be picked up by detectors in ice or water.
The scientists believe that the neutrino came from beyond our galaxy and may have originated from an extreme environment such as a supermassive black hole or gamma-ray burst. However, more research is needed to determine its exact source.
The discovery was made using two detectors, ARCA and ORCA, which are anchored to the seabed at depths of 11,319 feet and 8,038 feet respectively. The team found that the neutrino traveled a nearly horizontal path through the entire telescope, setting off signals in more than one-third of the active sensors.
The implications of this discovery are significant, as it may provide insights into the origins of mysterious cosmic rays and long thought to be the primary source of neutrinos when they strike Earth’s atmosphere.
Source: https://edition.cnn.com/2025/02/12/science/energetic-neutrino-particle-detection/index.html