Giving Earth an 'X-ray' with the atmosphere's dim glow

摘要

Neutrinos can flit through the Earth as if it wasn't there, but with enough patience geologists could use these weird particles to reveal the inner workings of our planet. rnUsing neutrinos from extraterrestrial sources such as black holes to image the Earth's core is not a new idea. Though low-energy neutrinos pass through matter unimpeded, high-energy neutrinos collide with other subatomic particles. So with Earth illuminated from behind, it should be possible to record the absorption of these neutrinos byrnvarious layers of iron and rock -just as images of bone are revealed by X-rays. Earth's dense iron core should absorb more of these atmospheric neutrinos than the rock of the surrounding mantle.