back to article A high-energy neutrino, a powerful cosmic ray, and a gamma ray walk into a bar... Where you from, asks the bartender

A new model has traced the origins of high-energy neutrinos, cosmic rays, and gamma rays to powerful jets billowing around supermassive black holes. Known as cosmic messenger particles, these neutrinos and rays carry huge amounts of energy, travel insane distances across space, and can be detected when they reach Earth – yet …

  1. amanfromMars 1 Silver badge
    Mushroom

    Once upon a time, in a warping time and space operating system far away ....

    Yes .... well .... of course.

    Nice one, Katyanna .... Nothing there hard to believe is not perfectly true in that filed report. Thanks for the invaluable info.

    1. Youngone Silver badge

      Re: Once upon a time, in a warping time and space operating system far away ....

      Welcome back. I still have no idea what you're on about, but it's nice to have you commenting again.

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    A photon

    walks into a hotel and asks the steward if he can have a room.

    Sure, says the steward, can I take your luggage?

    No thanks, says the photon, I'm travelling light.

    Baddum Tish.

  3. JimmyPage Silver badge

    these neutrinos and rays carry huge amounts of energy,

    Probably me being a bit dim, but if the amounts of energy are "huge", why on earth (literally) are neutrinos so hard to find ?

    Not going A/C, as I'm not ashamed to ask the question.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Coat

      Re: these neutrinos and rays carry huge amounts of energy,

      Hope this helps to explain it :

      The neutrino and its friends...

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: these neutrinos and rays carry huge amounts of energy,

        That's gr8, m8!

        Some canvas for your gem -

        https://www.laetusinpraesens.org/notdone/astruni2.php

    2. amanfromMars 1 Silver badge

      Re: these neutrinos and rays carry huge amounts of energy,

      They are as cosmic dust, JimmyPage, so ask Brian May for its State today and if there be any difficulties in realising and releasing ......... well, they be somewhat a kith and kin to Alien Power Sources, don't they?

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: these neutrinos and rays carry huge amounts of energy,

        Ah. We are the Cosmic dust. "Stardust", by Jack London.

    3. ibmalone

      Re: these neutrinos and rays carry huge amounts of energy,

      It's a good question, neutrinos are everywhere and can carry a large amount of energy, but they don't carry electrical charge and only interact via the weak nuclear force (and gravity) unlike electrons (carry electrical charge) and quarks (electrical charge and strong nuclear force). This is sometimes expressed as having a tiny interaction cross section (the area one needs to pass through to be affected by another particle). The result is billions of neutrinos originating in the sun pass through you every second https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neutrino#Solar

    4. Solmyr ibn Wali Barad

      Re: these neutrinos and rays carry huge amounts of energy,

      Finding is easy, they're everywhere, but catching them for analysis is very hard. Those buggers can slip through most obstacles without giving a pause.

  4. Mystic Megabyte
    Alien

    WTF?

    Are Cosmic rays similar to Yobba rays?

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Patrol_(1962_TV_series)

    1. Sean o' bhaile na gleann

      Re: WTF?

      "... similar to Yobba rays?..."

      Wow, THAT brought back a few memories!

      Anyone out there remember anything older than 'Torchy, The Battery Boy"? (That's about my limit)

      1. anthonyhegedus Silver badge

        Re: WTF?

        What about "Danny's tranny" from Buzz or Topper, can't remember which.

  5. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Far better punchlines available

    The bar man said "So what's the matter"

    The bar man said "Don't charge in here like that"

    The bar man said "I don't want any of your positivity in here"

    The bar man waves

    The bar man said "Sorry, you guys look a bit spaced out already"

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Far better punchlines available

      > These neutrinos and gamma rays are effectively the “daughter particles” of the cosmic rays.

      "No children allowed in the bar"

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Far better punchlines available

        "We don't serve your kind here!", the bartender says.

        A tachyon walks into bar.

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Joke

    A high-energy neutrino walks into a bar...

    And the bar man said... nothing...

    Because the neutrino didn't interact with him...

    1. Tail Up

      Re: A high-energy neutrino walks into a bar...

      Neither it could open the door, nor walk, nor drink - nor even piss out an aftertrace on the snow for the boffins to explore - except the fact that Lily *Was* Here. So inertious is to imagine it being lagged along such slow boozards as its bar buddies withesses are (-:

      It has a lot more deals around. Kinda Santa on the Eve of the Christmas :-)

      Some of us remember, of course. Santa, Irish Pub.

      1. Tail Up

        Re: A high-energy neutrino walks into a bar...

        ->"except bringing us closer to the fact that Lily *Was* Here"

        ==

  7. Alistair
    Windows

    screaming coincidence.

    Having chewed through "Evolution - the story of life" for bedtime reading (for the third time) last year, the youngest switched to "We Have No Idea" (Whiteson/Cham) at the beginning of this year, and we hit 'cosmic rays' section on Friday - discussed this on Sunday night. I suppose this sort of stuff might seem a bit heady for an 11/12 year old but it is *fun* letting their imagination run wild on stuff like this. The book is a *great* read for anyone interested in physics. And lamas.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: screaming coincidence.

      4 couple of monks of any branch of The Company will always make a gr8 company in any bar, Alistair.

  8. ibmalone

    I did need to dig a bit, as the discussion of "cosmic rays" alongside fundamental particles (neutrinos and gamma) was a bit confusing and the original paper doesn't help. It turns out "cosmic ray" means it has mass (no-one tell them about the neutrinos!), very high energy and comes from space, so anything up to the size of a nucleus (rocks don't count).

    1. ravenviz Silver badge
      Joke

      "Cosmic Ray" had a good line in magic mushrooms in Camden Town in the late 60's.

      Until he started selling hippy wigs.

    2. johnnybee

      btw

      Cosmic rays are high energy radiation from space. It is often used purely for the massive particles (which includes neutrinos, btw), but not always and it's a relatively recent distinction in any case. The particles need not be fundamental either - nuclei up to and including iron are found in the flux (esp. for E < ~10^15eV)

      It is virtually always used to mean particles with E>10^12eV, since below that energy, the flux of extra-solar particles is completely swamped by the solar wind.

      1. ibmalone

        Re: btw

        Cosmic rays are high energy radiation from space. It is often used purely for the massive particles (which includes neutrinos, btw), but not always and it's a relatively recent distinction in any case. The particles need not be fundamental either - nuclei up to and including iron are found in the flux (esp. for E < ~10^15eV)

        Exactly: if not solely for massive particles then it includes photons (there aren't many other massless ones we can detect), so the story becomes, "cosmic rays have similar energy to other cosmic rays of similar energy". Knowing they are making an unstated distinction for nuclei separate to neutrinos and gamma is rather crucial to understand what's going on.

        1. johnnybee

          Re: btw

          I see what you mean, but the researcher talks about the intensities being similar.

          “The fact that the measured intensities of very high-energy neutrinos, ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays, and high-energy gamma rays are roughly comparable tempted us to wonder if these extremely energetic particles have some physical connections.”

          Logically, the intensity of <generic_cosmic_radiation> can't be the same as intensity of <generic_cosmic_radiation> + intensity of gamma + intensity of neutrinos unless there's no flux of neutrinos and gamma at all*. Hence he *must* be using the specific context.

          OTOH, it's a good old while since I was involved in CR research - maybe the distinction is always made nowadays... :-)

          * for a given energy range

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Where you from, asks the bartender ?

    Betelgeuse and make mine a pan galactic gargle blaster when you're ready.

  10. Scroticus Canis
    Meh

    "...jets of electromagnetic energy close to the speed of light..."

    No. They will by definition be at the speed of light.

    Jets of particles could be near the speed of light.

  11. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Re:No thanks, says the photon, I'm travelling light...

    ..while the Earth has a form of a luggage cart.

    Once there were beliefs that this particular planet is a center of the UniVerse.

    So if to combine the belief with the registered fact stated above, what are the Cosmic messages that they bring every tiniest bit of the Beat? How many seals should be broken until the Realization is realized?

    (-;

    1. Muscleguy

      Re: Re:No thanks, says the photon, I'm travelling light...

      Oi! hands off the pinnipeds you, leave the seals alone and stop breaking them. I'll report you to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Pinniped, you see if I don't.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Re:No thanks, says the photon, I'm travelling light...

        Cheers, Muscleguy,

        Seals :-) are intended to be broken in due time, otherwise the woes are known. A Never Too Late rule isn't working in this case, me afraids.

  12. Roj Blake Silver badge

    A Proton Walks into a Bar and Orders a Pint

    The barman asks "are you sure?"

    "Yes," says the proton, "I'm positive."

  13. Roj Blake Silver badge

    Sixteen Sodium Atoms Walk into a Bar...

    ...followed by BATMAN!

  14. foxpak
    Joke

    A tillion neutrinos walk into a bar.

    - One says OUCH!

  15. Nimby
    Pint

    Two men walk into a bar, the third ducks.

    Maybe I am missing something, but I had kind of always thought this was already a well accepted theory / known / assumed. I guess it's nice that they spent piles of money to play with big electromagnets in order to still not quite really prove it? I guess I need to walk into their bar for this to all make sense as being newsworthy. (Or interesting.)

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