Something Mysteriously Powerful Slammed Into Earth in 2023. Scientists Now Have a Theory
Summary
The article delves into the darker aspects of scientific exploration, highlighting the ethical dilemmas and unsettling discoveries that challenge our understanding of morality in research. It invites readers to consider the implications of such knowledge on society.
Key Insights
What exactly hit Earth in 2023 that was so energetic?
In 2023, a subatomic particle called a neutrino struck Earth with an extraordinarily high amount of energy—approximately 100,000 times more powerful than the highest-energy particle ever produced by the Large Hadron Collider. This detection was made by a network of neutrino detectors called KM3NeT located in the Mediterranean Sea. The energy level was considered 'impossible' because no known sources in the universe were thought capable of producing such power.
What is the scientific theory explaining this high-energy neutrino detection?
Physicists at the University of Massachusetts Amherst hypothesize that the neutrino may have originated from an exploding primordial black hole—specifically a 'quasi-extremal primordial black hole' with a hypothetical 'dark charge.' If confirmed, this would provide evidence for Hawking radiation, the existence of primordial black holes, and potentially explain dark matter. The team's research was published in Physical Review Letters and suggests that if such black holes possess this dark charge, there could be a significant population of them accounting for the universe's missing dark matter.