Is there a place in the universe where we can get away from the radiation that surrounds us? Certainly not on the surface of the planet. Not even in space, which is awash with diffuse radiation in the form of gamma rays and neutrinos, which is a source of confusion. Scientists have attempted to figure out where all of the gamma rays and neutrinos are coming from for decades. In a recent study, a team of researchers proposes a possible explanation for all of the radiation: resting black holes are the source of all of it.
Supermassive Black Holes (SMBH) are thought to exist in the center of every big galaxy, including the Milky Way, according to current theories. The radiation produced by the SMBHs can range throughout the whole electromagnetic spectrum, from radio waves to gamma rays, when they are actively accumulating materials. When this occurs, they are referred to be active galactic nuclei. But what about SMBHs that are deafeningly silent?
According to a recent research, even inactive SMBHs are capable of releasing gamma rays and neutrinos. The discovery contributes to the understanding of why the Universe is awash with energetic particles….
Specifically, “Soft gamma rays from low accreting supermassive black holes and their relation to energetic neutrinos” is the title of the study. Shigeo Kimura of Tohoku University in Sendai, Japan, is the primary author of the study, which was published in the journal Nature Communications last month.
Neutrinos are almost massless subatomic particles that are electrically neutral, which is how they got their name. They are nearly massless subatomic particles that are electrically neutral. This has resulted in a gravitational interaction that is close to zero, as well as no contact with the strong nuclear force. Despite the fact that they’re incredibly tough to detect, they’re now traveling through your body.
Gamma rays, on the other hand, are not difficult to detect in their natural environment. Photons of this energy are the most energetic photons in the Universe, and you definitely don’t want any of them going into your body. Among other things, they are released during the detonation of atomic bombs. Gamma rays with voltages in the gigaelectron range have been discovered by space-based detectors. You may also think of electron volt ranges as being orders of magnitude more energetic than visible light if electron volt ranges aren’t your thing.
Therefore, scientists have a great deal of knowledge regarding both neutrinos and gamma rays; they simply do not know where they all come from. It’s possible that this investigation may provide an answer. It is believed that the Universe is filled with a diffuse background of MeV gamma-rays and PeV neutrinos, the source of which is unknown. “In this paper, we offer a scenario that may account for both backgrounds at the same time,” the scientists wrote in their paper.
It is believed that scientists have discovered the source of strong background gamma-rays in the gigaelectron volt (GeV) to teraelectron volt (TeV) volt levels. AGNs and perhaps star-forming galaxies are the sources of these particles. However, the source of softer gamma rays, such as those in the megaelectron volt (MeV) range, is still a mystery. The same may be said for numerous neutrinos.
This article demonstrates that low-luminosity galactic nuclei might be responsible for both the neutrinos and the gamma rays observed in the universe.
With its tremendous mass and gravitational attraction, a black hole attracts stuff and forces it toward itself. It ultimately creates an accretion disk of whirling matter, and the matter falls into the black hole as a result of this process. When this occurs, a massive amount of gravitational energy is unleashed into the universe. This energy warms up the gas surrounding the hole, resulting in the formation of plasma. As a result of the insufficient cooling provided by the low-accreting black hole, the plasma’s temperature can reach tens of billions of degrees Celsius.
What occurs is that the plasma energises protons to a high degree of intensity. There is a possibility that they will attain energies 10,000 times greater than those achieved by the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), which is now our most powerful particle accelerator. In their interactions with matter and radiation, these high-speed protons result in the production of neutrinos. This may explain why neutrinos with greater energy ranges have been discovered in space.
Gamma rays are produced via a process that is similar to that of X-rays. As the electrons reach extremely high temperatures, they undergo a process known as Comptonization, which allows them to become effective generators of gamma rays in the MeV range.
As a result, neutrinos and gamma rays can be produced by the high-temperature plasma that surrounds silent black holes. However, despite the fact that these sorts of black holes are faint and difficult to detect, there are numerous examples. It’s plausible to believe that they could account for background radiation in the form of gamma rays and neutrinos, among other things.
However, this is only a suggested process. There isn’t any clear evidence at this time. What is the source of this money?
Most of our gamma-ray detectors aren’t tuned to the MeV frequency since they’re too expensive. They have been programmed to operate at greater energy levels. In order to identify several signals, the scientists developed what they call a “multimessenger” detector. That is a detector that can detect both gamma rays and neutrinos at the same time, as long as they are in the appropriate energy ranges. Proposed missions such as e-ASTROGAM, the All-sky Medium Energy Gamma-ray Observatory (AMEGO), and the Gamma-Ray and AntiMatter Survey (GRAMS) are expected to be of assistance.