Thousands of energetic particles called cosmic rays fly right through our bodies every second without us ever noticing. Now scientists want your help to track this radiation from space in a massive citizen science project—by using your smartphone.
每秒,有成千上萬個被稱為“宇宙射線”的高能粒子穿過我們的身體,然而,我們卻從未注意過。現在,科學家希望你們使用一款大眾科技產品——智能手機,來幫助他們追蹤這些來自太空的放射物。
Physicists don't know for sure where cosmic rays come from, but they suspect supernovae and powerful black holes are involved. Although we're bombarded with the particles, the very highest energy cosmic rays are rare. Studying them has therefore been difficult. But it turns out that smartphone cameras are actually good at detecting them.
科學家不確定這些宇宙射線來自哪里,但他們懷疑強大的黑洞及超新星與此相關。盡管我們每時每刻與這些粒子接觸,但很少能見到超能量宇宙射線。因此,它們研究起來非常困難。但事實證明,智能手機的攝像頭非常擅長捕捉它們。
When these especially energetic rays hit Earth's atmosphere they create a shower of other charged particles. These particles hit a camera's sensor, resulting in one bright pixel against a dark background. If enough phones in the same area see particles, scientists can recreate the cosmic ray's path through space.
當這些超高能帶電粒子撞擊地球大氣層時,會產生大量的其他帶電粒子。這些帶電粒子在撞擊攝像頭的感應器時,會在黑暗的背景下產生一個光點。如果有足夠多的手機在同一地區與粒子相撞,科學家便可以再現宇宙射線穿越空間的路徑了。
You can take part in the project through an app called CRAYFIS (for Cosmic Rays Found in Smartphones).
你可以通過CRAYFIS應用(一個用于搜索宇宙射線的智能手機應用)參與該項目。
CRAYFIS only operates when a phone is plugged into a power source and not otherwise being used, so it will not drain your battery. Imagine: between Candy Crush and Facebook sessions, your phone can help unravel the mysteries of the universe.
CRAYFIS應用只能在手機接通電源的情況下運行,其他情況則無法運行,因此,該應用是不會耗盡你手機電池的。想象一下:除了玩糖果粉碎游戲或在臉譜網上聊天,你的手機還能協助解開宇宙奧秘呢。