Chào các bạn! Vì nhiều lý do từ nay Truyen2U chính thức đổi tên là Truyen247.Pro. Mong các bạn tiếp tục ủng hộ truy cập tên miền mới này nhé! Mãi yêu... ♥

Cosmic Rays

Cosmic Rays

I keep mentioning these, but what the heck are they?

The reason why they're called cosmic rays is because most of them come from outside the solar system. Basically, a cosmic ray is a high-energy form of radiation in the form of protons and other atomic nuclei.

The one thing they are not is a 'ray'. They were called that because scientists once thought that they consisted of electromagnetic radiation. But the truth is that they are not photons like gamma rays.

The reason why cosmic rays are dangerous is because they are composed of high-energy particles that have mass. Photons, on the other hand, are only dangerous if they are at a high frequency. Think of UV radiation or even gamma ray radiation. Cosmic rays are 3 million times more powerful than any photon. The reason for this is simple. They have mass, and that kind of muscle is what makes them powerful.

Cosmic rays are mostly (90%) made up of protons, which is a hydrogen atom stripped of its electron. About 9% of cosmic rays consist of helium nuclei, and the rest (1%) are nuclei of higher elements.

It's hard to express how dangerous cosmic rays are. They can be 40 times the energy of particles in the Hadron collider, and since they have mass and are charged, they can blast atoms right out of our DNA, which causes birth defects and cancers.

The good news is that cosmic rays don't do a good job of penetrating down through our atmosphere, mostly because of the ionosphere. However, if one does a lot of air travel, one receives more cosmic ray exposure than normal. For the most part, cosmic rays are not a danger to us here on Earth, but astronauts, especially astronauts that leave the protection of Earth, are more susceptible to these death rays.

The big question for astrophysicists is: where do cosmic rays come from? In other words, what is their source?

That's a good question that has bugged astrophysicists for a long time. Basically, cosmic rays can be divided into two types. Ones that come from a galactic source and those that come from the sun. The sun spews out mostly high-energy protons, in what's called the solar wind. The galactic sources are higher energy protons, alpha particles mixed in with antiprotons and other exotic stuff. These devils come from supernovae and other high energy sources, some of which are not known.

As I see it, the term 'cosmic ray' has been used to describe several different types of radiation coming from outer space, including high-energy nucleotides, antimatter in the form of positrons, alpha particles and just about anything that causes air molecule ionization.
Cosmic rays cause all sorts of effects, including reacting with nitrogen to create carbon-14. These cosmic particle bombardments also create a lot of other radioisotopes.

Cosmic rays also account for 13% of the annual background radiation exposure to us humans, which is responsible for genetic defects and the formation of cancers. They also cause transient errors in electronic devices, such as computers and memory devices. This has more effect on high altitude satellite and airplane electronics. People in jet airliners get exposed 10 times as much as those at ground level.

Cosmic rays are believed to play a part in the formation of lightening during storms. There is also some who believe that they play a role in global warming, but this has not been verified.
Cosmic rays are good for something. They crash into larger atoms in space and break them up. One of the remnants of these collisions is lithium, the element that goes into batteries of electronic devices and the new electric cars. Scientists believe this is the only way that lithium is created.

The bottom line is that cosmic rays affect our planet and all life. Fortunately, we are shielded from any serious damage from these devil rays from space. The planet Earth's magnetosphere and the ionosphere help shield us from these cosmic rays. It's also thought that the sun's magnetosphere and cosmic wind help prevent the bombardment of our planet with cosmic rays from sources outside our solar system. In other words, the sun was designed to help life start and thrive.

Thanks for reading.

Bạn đang đọc truyện trên: Truyen247.Pro