Cosmic rays & astroparticles is a research area focused on high-energy particles of extraterrestrial origin and their role in fundamental physics and astrophysics. It encompasses experimental and theoretical studies of primary cosmic rays (protons, nuclei, electrons), secondary air-shower particles, gamma rays, neutrinos, and other non-photonic messengers that probe extreme environments such as supernova remnants, active galactic nuclei, and compact objects. The field integrates particle detection techniques, high-energy astrophysics, plasma and magnetic field modeling, and multi-messenger observations to investigate particle acceleration mechanisms, propagation in interstellar and intergalactic media, and potential signatures of new physics beyond the Standard Model.
Cosmic rays seen at Earth show a wide range of particle energies, from 107 electron-volts (eV) to more than 1020 eV, the latter being about the same as the kinetic energy of a 450 gram football (soccer ball) being kicked ...
A new study published in Physical Review Letters by the IceCube Collaboration reports evidence that the energy spectrum of astrophysical neutrinos is not a simple straight line.
There may be an ultraheavy explanation for the mystery surrounding the origins of the highest-energy particles ever observed. Ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays are particles from space that strike Earth with energies far beyond ...
Astronomy
May 7, 2026
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Theories of quantum mechanics predict that some particles can exist in superpositions, which essentially means that they can be in more than one state at once. When a particle's state is measured, however, this superposition ...
A century after their discovery, cosmic rays—particles of extreme energy originating from the far reaches of the universe—remain a mystery to scientists. The DAMPE (Dark Matter Particle Explorer) space telescope is tackling ...
Astronomy
Apr 30, 2026
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The Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO) has made a breakthrough in exploring the extreme universe. For the first time, the LHAASO collaboration has detected ultra-high-energy (UHE) gamma rays—with energies ...
Astronomy
Apr 30, 2026
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A detector buried deep in Antarctic ice has captured the first experimental evidence of a predicted but never-before-seen phenomenon: radio pulses generated when high-energy cosmic rays slam into the ice sheet and trigger ...
In the exotic world of particle physics, neutrinos may be the most mysterious members. They rarely interact with other matter, have almost no mass, and have no electrical charge. These characteristics make them extremely ...
Astronomy
Apr 24, 2026
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The Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory (LHAASO) has detected PeV (1015 eV) gamma-ray emission from a pulsar wind nebula powered by PSR J1849-0001 in the constellation Aquila, marking the discovery of a new PeVatron ...
Astronomy
Apr 24, 2026
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Buried within the Antarctic ice are more than 5,000 light sensors that work together to detect some of the highest energy particles in the universe. These tiny particles, called neutrinos, provide insight into the extreme ...
General Physics
Apr 21, 2026
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