NYC Gazette

A new study led by New York University physicist Glennys Farrar offers a potential explanation for the origin of Ultrahigh Energy Cosmic Rays (UHECRs), the universe's most energetic particles. These particles, which have puzzled scientists for over 60 years, may be generated from the merging of two neutron stars into a black hole.

Farrar, a Collegiate Professor of Physics at NYU, stated, “After six decades of effort, the origin of the mysterious highest-energy particles in the universe may finally have been identified.” This discovery could provide insights into cosmic events like neutron star mergers that produce elements such as gold and platinum.

The research, published in Physical Review Letters, suggests that UHECRs are accelerated in magnetic outflows from Binary Neutron Star mergers before forming a black hole. This process also generates gravitational waves, some already observed by LIGO-Virgo collaboration scientists.

Farrar's theory explains two enigmatic features of UHECRs: their energy-charge correlation and the extreme energy levels of certain events. The study proposes that rare "r-process" elements like xenon contribute to these high energies, encouraging further investigation into UHECR data. Additionally, it predicts that extremely high-energy neutrinos produced during these events will coincide with gravitational waves from neutron star mergers.

This research received partial funding from National Science Foundation grants PHY-2013199 and PHY-2413153. Recent simulations using supercomputers illustrate how neutron star mergers lead to organized magnetic fields capable of supporting jets powering short gamma-ray bursts.