Scientists Detect 'Ghost Particles' Emerging From Milky Way In Landmark Discovery

The neutrinos, or 'ghost particles', were detected by an astronomical detector buried in Antarctic ice.

Scientists have found 'ghost particles' being emitted from within our Milky Way galaxy, an exciting discovery that may open up a new window of research. According to space.com, neutrinos are formed from radioactive decay, something that occurs in nuclear reactors, when high-energy particles strike atoms. These particles are extremely difficult to spot as they barely interact with the rest of the physical world (hence the name ghost particles). As per the BBC, the scientists used detectors at the IceCube Neutrino Observatory at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station.

"This is the first time we're seeing our Galaxy using particles rather than photons of light," Prof Subir Sarkar from the University of Oxford told the BBC. This, he explained, provides a view of "high energy processes that shape our galaxy".

"The neutrino is a ghostly particle; it's basically almost without mass. They're essentially moving at the speed of light and might pass through the Galaxy and not interact with anything. That is why, in order to see them, you need a massive detector," he added.

A study giving details about the discovery has been published in the journal Science.