Everyone treats the mysteries of the Russian north differently. The opinions of religiously minded people are especially different: for some believers it is a place of connection with the energy of the cosmos, for others it is the source of Russian spirituality, and for still others it is a gathering of witches and devils.
One thing is for sure: there are a lot of anomalous places in Karelia and they are all full of semi-historical, semi-mythical facts. I asked the director of the Karelian National Museum, Mikhail Leonidovich Goldenberg, to choose the most interesting ones, who devoted several decades to the study of the history of the region.
# 1. Mount Votovaara - stone magic
The highest point in Karelia (417 meters), on which, probably, all the mysticism of the region is concentrated.
Place Mysteries:
Why neither animals nor birds love the mountain, and the trees have such twisted trunks, as if someone, in a burst of shamanic dances, pulled them out by the roots and stuck them in the ground with their reverse side?
How did the giant stone slabs of geometrically regular shapes appear, as if they had been cut with a laser?
Why do we need a stone staircase with 13 steps ending in the sky? Moreover, with such mystical coordinates: 63 04.999 32 38.666.
How were seids formed - huge boulders standing on smaller stones?
Perhaps the final riddle is the key to all the other oddities of the mountain. Some historians believe that the seids are the work of the Sami (or their spirits) - an ancient tribe with Noid shamans. It is still believed that they are able to subjugate groups of people to their field. All in all seriousness - both the NKVD and the Ahnenerbe were hunting for the Noids.
Seids on Votovaar
But there are also pragmatists who assure that all the stone formations were created by the glacier: it was he who "piled" large stones onto small ones, then the ice melted, the tiny stones washed away, and remained stuck. And clear stone cuts are the consequences of earthquakes. But when you see all this live, it is difficult to maintain a pragmatic view of things. Esotericists call Votoovaara an energy accumulator and an "acupuncture" point of the planet, where it is possible to receive information from the cosmos.
Absolutely even cut stones
How to get to Votavaara?
By train: from St. Petersburg or Petrozavodsk to st. Gimols is the closest village to the mountain. Further on foot or by transport, having agreed with the locals - 15-18 km.
By car: there are 2 ways from St. Petersburg - to the left of Ladoga (closer and more picturesque) and to the right (the road is slightly better). In any case, get ready to leave the car, because after 5 km from Gimola, when the main road turns to the left, and you have to go straight to the mountain, an unbearable dirt road will begin.
# 2. Kizhi Island - Christianity or Paganism?
Who does not remember from school the legend of a wooden church without a single nail? Kizhi has become a visiting card of the Russian North, is protected by UNESCO, and receives several hundred thousand pilgrims a year. But the history of the island is not limited to Christianity; according to some archaeological finds, it is obvious that the place was sacred for the ancient pagans.
View of the Kizhi churchyard
Place Mysteries:
- Church of the Transfiguration, erected in 1714 by an unknown master with nails. The mystics claim that this place used to be the most ancient pagan temple.
- Kizhi churchyard is famous again for unconfirmed, but persistent rumors about UFOs and space-time distortions at the site of the Old Believer cemetery.
- Church of the Resurrection of Lazarus- according to legend, it was built by the Monk Lazar of Murom at the beginning of the XIV century. People believed that the church was "miraculous"; before the revolution, a number of pilgrims were drawn here. But during the time of the Bolsheviks, the building was ravaged and abandoned, restoration began only in 1954. Now the church is a part of the exposition "Russian Zaonezhie".
Church of the Resurrection of Lazarus
In a word, esotericists of all stripes consider the island to be a place of intense geoactive radiation, in simple terms - a place of the mighty power, where the upper worlds of spirits, people and the world of demons intertwine.
Seagulls attacked me on Kizhi, when I was hunting for a beautiful shot, in the center of which there was a nest.
But the birds probably thought the nest was on my head.
How to get to the island of Kizhi:
- If you have time, but you don’t have money, then you can take a bus from Petrozavodsk to the village of Velkaya Guba (about 250 km along the highway), from there there is only 1 km to the island, we find locals and agree on a boat.
- The fastest and most comfortable way: water transfer from Petrozovodsk, the company "Russian North" carries there in two ways:
More expensive, but very royal on the ship "Meridian", full mini-cruise for 3.30 minutes one way
# 3 Labyrinths - a spiral into another world
Another mystery is the spiral-shaped stone symbols, labyrinths with a diameter of up to 30 meters.
There is only one question: for what purpose did the ancient people put cobblestones in such bizarre shapes?
Labyrinth on Oleshin Island (Kuzov archipelago, White Sea).
There are two popular versions:
Fishing magic. All labyrinths are located in fishing areas and are connected to the coast and islands. Maybe that's how the fishing spots were marked? Or is it a global maritime navigation diagram?
The cult of the dead. Perhaps the labyrinths symbolize the difficult and winding passage from life to death? Or is it a receptacle for the souls of the dead? A tangled path so that the spirits cannot return to the world of the living. But not all labyrinths are accompanied by burials ...
Some researchers believe that the image of the spiral is a code for knowledge that has been passed down from generation to generation, from people to people, regardless of cultural and religious differences.
How to get to the labyrinths of Karelia?
Two labyrinths are located on the Kuzov archipelago, Oleshin Island, the White Sea. You can get to them by water transport from Kem - 30 km. By the way, besides labyrinths, the archipelago has a lot of mysterious objects.
The Kuzov archipelago
There is no regular communication with the islands of the archipelago, they are uninhabited, so you can get to Kuzov either with an excursion or a savage, having agreed with carriers from the village of Rabocheozersk. Please note that Kuzova is a specially protected natural area and you can only camp on three islands: German Kuzov, Russian Kuzov and Chernetsky.
The third labyrinth is located near the Krasnaya Luda Peninsula in the northern part of the Chupinsky Bay. But according to these coordinates, Google does not give out anything, it is necessary to plot a route to the working village of Keret, the labyrinth - 20 km to the north.
# 4. Onega petroglyphs - northern Kama-sutra
Petroglyphs (ancient cave paintings) are found in many places: from chilly Norway to scorching Ethiopia. In most cases, there is no mysticism in them, ancient people conveyed information with drawings: how to hunt, build, collect herbs. But everything is not so simple with the Karelian petroglyphs, most of the drawings have not yet been solved. Especially interesting are the erotic motifs in the Onega petroglyphs, created about 6 and a half thousand years ago.
Petroglyph at Cape Besov Nos.
Place Mysteries:
What is the purpose of the drawings? There is no information load as such, maybe a hint to the best poses or the first illustrations to kindle your imagination?
Why were individual men portrayed with a huge phallus, a huge leg and a huge hand? An expression of superiority?
Why in different places all women are depicted the same: with raised arms and wheel-like legs. The process of knocking out on the basalt lasted a thousand years, did they agree? -Erotic scenes are depicted in 7 places, why exactly there? A kind of sign "place for .." because of the special energy?
Whatever the version, we must come to terms with the idea that we will never be able to unravel some of the petroglyphs. Though it is very entertaining to speculate on this topic.
Cosmic rays
The differential energy spectrum of cosmic rays has a power-law character (on a doubly logarithmic scale - an oblique line) (minimum energies - yellow zone, solar modulation, average energies - blue zone, GCR, maximum energies - purple zone, extragalactic CRs)
Cosmic rays- elementary particles and atomic nuclei moving with high energies in outer space.
Basic information
Cosmic ray physics considered part of high energy physics and particle physics.
Cosmic ray physics studies:
- processes leading to the emergence and acceleration of cosmic rays;
- particles of cosmic rays, their nature and properties;
- phenomena caused by particles of cosmic rays in outer space, the atmosphere of the Earth and planets.
The study of the fluxes of high-energy charged and neutral cosmic particles falling on the boundary of the Earth's atmosphere is the most important experimental problem.
Classification by origin of cosmic rays:
- outside our Galaxy
- in the galaxy
- in the sun
- in interplanetary space
Primary it is customary to call extragalactic and galactic rays. Secondary it is customary to call the streams of particles passing and transforming in the Earth's atmosphere.
Cosmic rays are a constituent of natural radiation (background radiation) on the Earth's surface and in the atmosphere.
Before the development of accelerator technology, cosmic rays served as the only source of elementary high-energy particles. Thus, a positron and a muon were first found in cosmic rays.
By the number of particles, cosmic rays are 90 percent protons, 7 percent helium nuclei, about 1 percent are heavier elements, and about 1 percent are electrons. When studying cosmic ray sources outside the solar system, the proton-nuclear component is mainly detected by the flux of gamma rays it creates by orbital gamma telescopes, and the electronic component is detected by the synchrotron radiation generated by it, which falls on the radio range (in particular, meter waves - at radiation in the magnetic field of the interstellar medium), and in the case of strong magnetic fields in the region of the source of cosmic rays - and to higher frequency ranges. Therefore, the electronic component can also be detected by terrestrial astronomical instruments.
Traditionally, particles observed in CR are divided into the following groups: L, M, H, VH (respectively, light, medium, heavy and superheavy). A feature of the chemical composition of the primary cosmic radiation is the anomalously high (several thousand times) abundance of L-group nuclei (lithium, beryllium, boron) compared to the composition of stars and interstellar gas. This phenomenon is explained by the fact that CR particles, under the influence of the galactic magnetic field, randomly wander in space for about 7 million years before reaching the Earth. During this time, the nuclei of the VH group can interact inelastically with the protons of the interstellar gas and split into lighter fractions. This assumption is confirmed by the fact that CRs have a very high degree of isotropy.
History of cosmic ray physics
For the first time, an indication of the possibility of the existence of ionizing radiation of extraterrestrial origin was obtained at the beginning of the 20th century in experiments on the study of the conductivity of gases. The discovered spontaneous electric current in the gas could not be explained by ionization arising from the natural radioactivity of the Earth. The observed radiation turned out to be so penetrating that a residual current was still observed in the ionization chambers screened by thick layers of lead. In 1911-1912, a number of experiments were carried out with ionization chambers in balloons. Hess discovered that radiation increases with height, while ionization caused by the earth's radioactivity should have decreased with height. In Kolhurster's experiments, it was proved that this radiation is directed from top to bottom.
In 1921-1925, the American physicist Millikan, studying the absorption of cosmic radiation in the Earth's atmosphere depending on the observation altitude, found that in lead this radiation is absorbed in the same way as gamma radiation from nuclei. Millikan was the first to call this radiation cosmic rays. In 1925, Soviet physicists L.A. Tuvim and L.V. Mysovsky measured the absorption of cosmic radiation in water: it turned out that this radiation was absorbed ten times weaker than the gamma radiation of nuclei. Mysovsky and Tuvim also found that the intensity of radiation depends on barometric pressure - they discovered the "barometric effect". DV Skobeltsyn's experiments with a Wilson chamber placed in a constant magnetic field made it possible to "see", due to ionization, the traces (tracks) of cosmic particles. DV Skobeltsyn discovered showers of cosmic particles. Experiments in cosmic rays have made it possible to make a number of fundamental discoveries for the physics of the microworld.
Solar cosmic rays
Solar cosmic rays (SCR) are energetic charged particles - electrons, protons and nuclei - injected by the Sun into interplanetary space. The SCR energy ranges from several keV to several GeV. In the lower part of this range, SCRs border on the protons of high-speed solar wind streams. SCR particles appear due to solar flares.
Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays
The energy of some particles exceeds the Greisen-Zatsepin-Kuzmin limit - the theoretical energy limit for cosmic rays is 6 · 10 19 eV. Several dozen such particles were recorded by the AGASA observatory over the course of a year. (English) Russian ... These observations do not yet have a sufficiently substantiated scientific explanation.
Registration of cosmic rays
For a long time after the discovery of cosmic rays, the methods for registering them did not differ from the methods for registering particles in accelerators, most often - gas-discharge counters or nuclear photographic emulsions lifted into the stratosphere or into outer space. But this method does not allow systematic observations of high-energy particles, since they appear quite rarely, and the space in which such a counter can conduct observations is limited by its size.
Modern observatories work on different principles. When a high-energy particle enters the atmosphere, it, interacting with air atoms for the first 100 g / cm², gives rise to a whole flurry of particles, mainly pions and muons, which in turn give rise to other particles, and so on. A cone of particles is formed which is called a shower. Such particles move at a speed exceeding the speed of light in air, due to which the Cherenkov glow, recorded by telescopes, arises. This technique allows you to track areas of the sky over an area of hundreds of square kilometers.
Significance for space travel
When the ISS astronauts close their eyes, no more than once every 3 minutes, they see flashes of light, perhaps this phenomenon is associated with the effect of high-energy particles entering the retina. However, this has not been experimentally confirmed; it is possible that this effect has exclusively psychological foundations.
Long-term exposure to space radiation can have a very negative effect on human health. For the further expansion of mankind to other planets of the solar system, it is necessary to develop reliable protection against such dangers - scientists from Russia and the United States are already looking for ways to solve this problem.
see also
Notes (edit)
Literature
- S. V. Murzin. Introduction to the physics of cosmic rays. Moscow, Moscow: Atomizdat, 1979.
- Model of outer space - M .: publishing house of Moscow State University, in 3 volumes.
- A. D. Filonenko Radio astronomical method for measuring fluxes of ultrahigh energy cosmic particles (rus.) // UFN... - 2012 .-- T. 182 .-- S. 793-827.
Links
- Scientific and educational open project for the study of Cosmic rays
| Interstellar medium | ||
|---|---|---|
| The constituents | Interstellar Gas Interstellar Dust Interstellar Cloud Cosmic rays· A magnetic field |  |
| Nebula | Diffuse (light) nebula Dark nebula Emission nebula Reflection nebula Supernova remnant Planetary nebula Protoplanetary nebula | |
| Star forming regions | Molecular cloud Globule H II region | |
| Circumstellar formations | Accretion disk Protoplanetary disk Polar jet streams Herbig object - Haro | |
| Radiation | Stellar Wind Background Radiation | |
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.
Cosmic rays are streams of fast charged particles - protons, electrons, nuclei of various chemical elements, flying in different directions in outer space at a speed of more than 100,000 km / s. Getting into the earth's atmosphere, particles of cosmic rays collide with the nuclei of nitrogen and oxygen atoms and destroy them. As a result, streams of new elementary particles appear. Such particles, born in the atmosphere, are called secondary cosmic rays. Secondary cosmic rays are recorded by special devices - counters of ionizing particles or using special nuclear photographic emulsions. Primary cosmic rays practically do not reach the Earth, and only a small amount of them is recorded high in the mountains. Studies of these particles are carried out mainly outside the earth's atmosphere using modern space technology.
The bulk of cosmic rays arriving at the Earth has an energy of more than eV (1 eV is equal to J). For comparison, let us point out that in the interior of the Sun, where matter is heated to a temperature of 15,000,000 K, the average energy of plasma particles only slightly exceeds 103 eV, that is, it is many times less than that of cosmic rays.
Cosmic rays every second penetrate literally every square centimeter of interplanetary and interstellar space. An area with a surface of 1 m2 receives an average of about 10,000 particles per second. These are mainly particles of relatively low energies. The more energy of cosmic particles, the less often they occur. Thus, particles with a very high energy exceeding eV fall on an area of 1 m2 on average once a year.
Particles with fantastic energies in eV are extremely rare. Where they were able to get so much energy remains unknown.
More than 90% of the primary cosmic rays of all energies are protons, about 7% are particles (nuclei of helium atoms), about 2% are the nuclei of atoms heavier than helium, and about 1% are electrons.
By their nature, cosmic rays are divided into solar and galactic.
Solar cosmic rays have a relatively low energy and are formed mainly during solar flares (see Solar activity). The acceleration of the particles of these cosmic rays occurs in the chromosphere and corona of the Sun. The streams of solar cosmic rays after particularly strong solar flares can pose a serious radiation hazard to astronauts.
Primary cosmic rays coming from outside to the solar system are called galactic. They move in interstellar space along rather intricate trajectories, constantly changing their direction of flight under the influence of the magnetic field that exists between the stars of our Galaxy.
Drawing (see original)
The electrons that make up the cosmic rays are gradually decelerated in the magnetic field, losing energy for the radiation of radio waves. Such radiation is called synchrotron radiation. It is recorded by radio telescopes. By observing it, it is possible to identify areas of increased concentration of cosmic rays. It turned out that cosmic rays are concentrated mainly in the disk of our Galaxy, several thousand light-years thick (near the plane of the Milky Way). The total energy of all cosmic rays in this layer is measured by a gigantic figure - J.
The main source of cosmic rays in interstellar space is apparently supernova explosions. It is no coincidence that supernova remnants have powerful synchrotron radiation. The rapidly rotating magnetized neutron stars also contribute. They are capable of imparting large energies to charged particles. Active galactic nuclei, as well as radio galaxies with characteristic ejections of matter, accompanied by very powerful radio emission, can be very powerful sources of cosmic rays.
Having received high energy, particles of cosmic rays wander through the Galaxy in different directions for tens of millions of years before losing their energy in collisions with atoms of rarefied interstellar gas.
The study of cosmic rays is one of the most fascinating areas of astrophysics. Observations of cosmic rays (direct registration of them, analysis of synchrotron radiation or the effects of their interaction with the environment) make it possible to better understand the mechanisms of energy release during various cosmic processes, to clarify the physical properties of the interstellar medium under the continuous influence of cosmic rays. Observations are also important for studying the physics of those elementary particles that arise in the interaction of cosmic rays with matter. Research carried out using spacecraft, including those launched in the 60s, made a significant contribution to this branch of physics. in the USSR four heavy satellites "Proton".
rice. Cosmic rays
Cosmic rays are a stream of charged particles moving in the Galaxy at monstrous speeds. These are mainly the nuclei of ordinary chemical elements, apparently arising as a result of supernova explosions, the movement of which along galactic routes is regulated by weak magnetic fields permeating our Galaxy. Cosmic rays are an integral part of the interstellar medium, and they contain a significant proportion of its total energy. When we trace the paths of cosmic rays, registering them with the help of special thick-film photographic emulsions, we actually register the capture of a particle that has come down to us from interstellar space. Today, cosmic rays are the only known particles from outside the solar system with which we can have direct contact. For this reason alone, they deserve careful research.
Discovery of cosmic rays
Cosmic rays that managed to reach the Earth, having passed through the thickness of the atmosphere, were exposed to the Earth's magnetic field and possible interplanetary fields. They also experienced the action of the solar wind, a stream of particles ejected into space by the solar atmosphere. Cosmic rays were first recorded about 60 years ago due to the ionization effects they cause in ionization chambers. Information about the directions in which cosmic rays arrive can be obtained by tracing the effect of a single charged particle on a chain of appropriately installed ionization chambers. Scientists have found that the Earth's atmosphere strongly affects all particles, except for those that have the highest energy, and that on the Earth fluxes of secondary cosmic rays - "air showers" - arising from the interaction of high-energy cosmic particles with atoms of the upper atmosphere are recorded.
photo: ground-based gamma observatory VERITAS for registration of cosmic radiation
Comprehensive scientific research has made it possible to study the properties of charged particles that make up cosmic rays. Their most common components were easily identified: the nuclei of hydrogen atoms, protons, and the nuclei of helium atoms, alpha particles, consisting of two protons and two neutrons. But it soon became clear that there were also nuclei of heavier elements, in particular the nuclei of iron atoms with atomic number Z = 26. Not so long ago, using modern methods of "manifestation of traces", it was possible to trace the paths of particles in meteorites, which made it possible to detect elements in cosmic rays heavier than iron. The heaviest nucleus currently found is the nucleus with the atomic number Z = 106, that is, the transuranium nucleus.
Influence of the Earth's magnetic field on charged particles from space
The Earth's magnetic field affects the cosmic ray particles to such an extent that it becomes very difficult to trace the original direction until the entry into the Earth's magnetosphere of all particles, except those with the highest energies. In addition, the interaction of cosmic ray particles and gases from the upper atmosphere creates secondary effects in the form of ionized particle showers. The Earth's magnetic field and its atmosphere are a reliable shield that protects us from cosmic rays! Artificial satellites are of great help in studying cosmic rays before they invade the Earth's atmosphere and before they are exposed to the earth's magnetic field. An extremely important task for the future is to conduct research on spacecraft outside the inner solar system.
The nature of cosmic radiation
Scientists have found that most of the cosmic rays, and with the lowest energies, are of solar origin, but the main contribution is made by cosmic rays that come from and have high energies. It is possible that some of the cosmic rays are messengers from other galaxies. It is now believed that supernova explosions are the most likely source of cosmic rays in the Galaxy.
photo: Supernova explosion - a source of galactic radiation
As we noted, the main components of cosmic rays are protons and alpha particles. They are followed by elements with atomic numbers Z = 30 and more, especially the iron group. It is also interesting that electrons are also found among the particles of cosmic rays. It is not easy to separate the true cosmic electrons from the electrons generated in the solar wind and as a result of secondary effects in the earth's atmosphere. Observations from artificial satellites during periods of minimum solar activity provide the best data on free electrons in interstellar and interplanetary space. The results of the study of cosmic rays allowed us to learn a lot of new and interesting things about the relative distribution of chemical elements and their abundance in interstellar space.
Supernova hypothesis
In recent years, cosmic ray experts have argued a lot about whether cosmic rays originate in our Galaxy or beyond. In general, advocates of the galactic origin of cosmic rays appear to be gaining the upper hand. The greatest attention was attracted by the hypothesis put forward by Soviet scientists V.L. Ginzburg, V.N. Syrovatsky and supported by I.S.Shklovsky, according to which cosmic rays arise in supernova explosions in our Galaxy. In, there are 2-3 supernova explosions per century. The energy released from each such explosion is colossal, and the fact that known supernova remnants such as the Crab Nebula are sources of synchrotron radio emission indicates the presence of large-scale magnetic fields around them. Atomic nuclei ejected into space as byproducts of supernova explosions are accelerated by these magnetic fields, making it possible to understand the high energies of cosmic ray particles.
There is no doubt that cosmic rays in large quantities cannot come to us from distant galaxies located at distances of several billion parsecs. The supernova hypothesis provides a constant influx of particles with approximately the required energy. That is why it seems quite reasonable to look for the source of cosmic rays in the most grandiose phenomena occurring in our Galaxy - supernova explosions.
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Subtitles
Basic information
Cosmic ray physics considered part of high energy physics and particle physics.
Cosmic ray physics studies:
- processes leading to the emergence and acceleration of cosmic rays;
- particles of cosmic rays, their nature and properties;
- phenomena caused by particles of cosmic rays in outer space, the atmosphere of the Earth and planets.
The study of the fluxes of high-energy charged and neutral cosmic particles falling on the boundary of the Earth's atmosphere is the most important experimental problem.
Classification by origin of cosmic rays:
- outside our Galaxy
- in the galaxy
- in the sun
- in interplanetary space
Primary it is customary to call extragalactic and galactic rays. Secondary it is customary to call the streams of particles passing and transforming in the Earth's atmosphere.
Cosmic rays are a constituent of natural radiation (background radiation) on the Earth's surface and in the atmosphere.
Before the development of accelerator technology, cosmic rays served as the only source of elementary high-energy particles. Thus, a positron and a muon were first found in cosmic rays.
The energy spectrum of cosmic rays consists of 43% of the energy of protons, another 23% of the energy of helium (alpha particles) and 34% of the energy carried by the rest of the particles.
In terms of the number of particles, cosmic rays consist of 92% of protons, 6% of helium nuclei, about 1% of heavier elements, and about 1% of electrons. When studying cosmic ray sources outside the solar system, the proton-nuclear component is mainly detected by the flux of gamma rays it creates by orbital gamma telescopes, and the electronic component is detected by the synchrotron radiation generated by it, which falls on the radio range (in particular, meter waves - at radiation in the magnetic field of the interstellar medium), and in the case of strong magnetic fields in the region of the source of cosmic rays - and to higher frequency ranges. Therefore, the electronic component can also be detected by terrestrial astronomical instruments.
Traditionally, particles observed in CRs are divided into the following groups: p (Z = 1), α (Z = 2), L (Z = 3 - 5), M (Z = 6 - 9), H (Z ⩾ 10), VH (Z ⩾ 20) (\ displaystyle p ( Z = 1), \ alpha (Z = 2), L (Z = 3-5), M (Z = 6-9), H (Z \ geqslant 10), VH (Z \ geqslant 20))(respectively, protons, alpha particles, light, medium, heavy and superheavy). A feature of the chemical composition of the primary cosmic radiation is the anomalously high (several thousand times) abundance of L-group nuclei (lithium, beryllium, boron) compared to the composition of stars and interstellar gas. This phenomenon is explained by the fact that the mechanism of generation of cosmic particles primarily accelerates heavy nuclei, which, when interacting with protons of the interstellar medium, decay into lighter nuclei. This assumption is confirmed by the fact that CRs have a very high degree of isotropy.
History of cosmic ray physics
For the first time, an indication of the possibility of the existence of ionizing radiation of extraterrestrial origin was obtained at the beginning of the 20th century in experiments on the study of the conductivity of gases. The discovered spontaneous electric current in the gas could not be explained by ionization arising from the natural radioactivity of the Earth. The observed radiation turned out to be so penetrating that a residual current was still observed in the ionization chambers screened by thick layers of lead. In 1911-1912, a number of experiments were carried out with ionization chambers in balloons. Hess discovered that radiation increases with height, while ionization caused by the earth's radioactivity should have decreased with height. In Kolhurster's experiments, it was proved that this radiation is directed from top to bottom.
In 1921-1925, the American physicist Millikan, studying the absorption of cosmic radiation in the Earth's atmosphere depending on the observation altitude, found that in lead this radiation is absorbed in the same way as gamma radiation from nuclei. Millikan was the first to call this radiation cosmic rays. In 1925, Soviet physicists L.A. Tuvim and L.V. Mysovsky measured the absorption of cosmic radiation in water: it turned out that this radiation was absorbed ten times weaker than the gamma radiation of nuclei. Mysovsky and Tuvim also found that the intensity of radiation depends on barometric pressure - they discovered the "barometric effect". DV Skobeltsyn's experiments with a Wilson chamber placed in a constant magnetic field made it possible to "see", due to ionization, the traces (tracks) of cosmic particles. DV Skobeltsyn discovered showers of cosmic particles. Experiments in cosmic rays have made it possible to make a number of fundamental discoveries for the physics of the microworld.
Solar cosmic rays
Solar cosmic rays (SCR) are energetic charged particles - electrons, protons and nuclei - injected by the Sun into interplanetary space. The SCR energy ranges from several keV to several GeV. In the lower part of this range, SCRs border on the protons of high-speed solar wind streams. SCR particles appear due to solar flares.
Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays
The energy of some particles exceeds the GZK (Greisen - Zatsepin - Kuzmin) limit - the theoretical energy limit for cosmic rays is 5⋅10 19 eV, caused by their interaction with relic radiation photons. Several dozen such particles were recorded by the AGASA observatory over the course of a year. (English) Russian... These observations do not yet have a sufficiently substantiated scientific explanation.
Registration of cosmic rays
For a long time after the discovery of cosmic rays, the methods for registering them did not differ from the methods for registering particles in accelerators, most often - gas-discharge counters or nuclear photographic emulsions lifted into the stratosphere or into outer space. But this method does not allow systematic observations of high-energy particles, since they appear quite rarely, and the space in which such a counter can conduct observations is limited by its size.
Modern observatories work on different principles. When a high-energy particle enters the atmosphere, it, interacting with air atoms for the first 100 g / cm², gives rise to a whole flurry of particles, mainly pions and muons, which, in turn, give rise to other particles, and so on. A cone of particles is formed, which is called a shower. Such particles move at a speed exceeding the speed of light in air, due to which the Cherenkov glow, recorded by telescopes, arises. This technique allows you to track areas of the sky over an area of hundreds of square kilometers.
Significance for space travel
When the ISS astronauts close their eyes, no more than once every 3 minutes, they see flashes of light, perhaps this phenomenon is associated with the effect of high-energy particles entering the retina. However, this has not been experimentally confirmed; it is possible that this effect has exclusively psychological foundations.
