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TRIDENT Ghost Particle Detector

Source: Times of India
GS II: Science and Technology


Overview

TRIDENT Ghost Particle Detector
Representation purpose Photo by Pixabay
  1. News in Brief
  2. About TRIDENT?
  3. What are Neutrinos?
  4. Neutrino Observatory in Inida

Why in the News?

China is undertaking a massive scientific endeavour by constructing the world’s largest ghost particle detector beneath the Western Pacific Ocean’s surface

  • It is named the Tropical Deep-sea Neutrino Telescope (TRIDENT) or Ocean Bell in Chinese.
News in Brief

  • The project is set for completion in 2030.
  • It aims to capture elusive neutrinos as they briefly become detectable in the deep ocean depths.
  • It provides valuable insights into their cosmic origins.
  • Neutrinos, are often referred to as ghost particles.
About TRIDENT?

  • TRIDENT, anchored 11,500 feet (3,500 meters) below the ocean’s surface.
  • Employs the Earth itself as a shield to detect neutrinos penetrating from the opposite side of the planet.
  • TRIDENT is near the equator which makes it receive neutrinos coming from all directions with the rotation of the Earth.
  • The location also enables all-sky observation without any blind spots.
  • TRIDENT Ghost Particle Detector will utilize more than 24,000 optical sensors.
    • It will distributed across 1,211 strings.
    • Each is 2,300 feet (700m) in length, ascending from the seabed.
    • It is arranged in a Penrose tiling pattern.
    • The detector will span 2.5 miles (4 kilometres) in diameter.
    • Scan an impressive 1.7 cubic miles (7.5 cubic kilometres).
What are Neutrinos?

  • They are subatomic particles with almost zero mass and no electrical charge.
  • They pass through matter with minimal interaction, making them notoriously difficult to detect.
  • Why they are called Ghost Particles?
    • They rarely collide with atoms and are difficult to find.
    • They can only be seen when they interact with other particles rarely.
    • That is why they are called ghost particles.
  • It is believed that Neutrinos are created from radioactive decay.
  • Nuclear forces treat electrons and neutrinos identically.
  • There is evidence that neutrinos are essential for understanding the origins of our universe.
Neutrino Observatory in Inida

  • India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO) will observe neutrinos produced in the atmosphere of the Earth.
  • This observation will tell us more about the properties of neutrino particles, whose main source is the Sun and the Earth’s atmosphere.
  • The neutrino detector will be a magnetized iron calorimeter, which will be the heaviest one made by any country.
  • The site identified is in Bodi West Hills, in Theni district, Tamil Nadu.

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