Why in the News?
Scientists are deploying two advanced telescopes under the Mediterranean Sea as part of the Cubic Kilometre Neutrino Telescope (KM3NeT) project.
What is KM3NeT Project?
- The KM3NeT is a European research initiative launched in 2012 and located in the Mediterranean Sea.
- It uses advanced water Cherenkov detectors to study high-energy neutrinos and their origins, as well as fundamental neutrino properties.
- ARCA (Astroparticle Research with Cosmics in the Abyss): Offshore Sicily, Italy, at 3,400 meters depth, studying high-energy cosmic neutrinos.
- ORCA (Oscillation Research with Cosmics in the Abyss): Offshore Toulon, France, at 2,475 meters depth, focusing on neutrino oscillations and mass hierarchy.
- It detects Cherenkov radiation, faint light produced when neutrinos interact with water molecules, using 6,210 optical modules.
- Design:
- Modular construction with plans to deploy 12,000 optical modules on 600 vertical strings, anchored to the seabed.
- Connected via electro-optical networks to shore stations for power and data processing.
About Neutrinos
- Neutrinos are subatomic particles, similar to electrons but without an electric charge.
- Neutrinos are the 2nd most abundant particles in the universe after Photons.
- Approximately a billion neutrinos pass through a cubic centimetre of space every second.
- First detected in 1959, though their existence was theorized in 1931.
- High-energy neutrinos, which originate from exotic astrophysical events like supernovae, gamma-ray bursts, or colliding stars, are of particular interest to scientists because:
- Neutrinos can travel through dense cosmic environments, such as the dust-shrouded centre of the Milky Way, where visible light telescopes fail.
- Neutrino detection depends on observing Cherenkov radiation — light flashes produced when neutrinos interact with water or ice molecules.
- Darkness is essential for detecting the faint flashes of Cherenkov radiation.
- Why study neutrinos?
- Neutrinos provide insights into particle physics, including neutrino oscillations and mass hierarchy, challenging the Standard Model.
- Neutrinos pass through dense cosmic regions, offering access to areas invisible to traditional telescopes.
- Studying neutrinos aids in tracing cosmic ray origins and understanding dark matter, unlocking mysteries of the universe.
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PYQ:
[2010] India-based Neutrino Observatory is included by the planning commission as a mega-science project under the 11th Five-year plan. In this context, consider the following statements:
- Neutrinos are chargeless elementary particles that travel close to the speed of light.
- Neutrinos are created in nuclear reactions of beta decay.
- Neutrinos have a negligible, but non-zero mass.
- Trillions of Neutrinos pass through the human body every second.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
(a) 1 and 3 only
(b) 1, 2 and 3 only
(c) 2, 3 and 4
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4 |
