Extragalactic cosmic ray Extragalactic cosmic ray Extragalactic cosmic rays are very-high-energy particles that flow into the Solar System from beyond the Milky Way galaxy. The energies these particles possess are in excess of 10 eV. Unlike solar or galactic cosmic rays, little is known about the origins of extragalactic cosmic rays. This is largely due to a lack of statistics: only about 1 extragalactic cosmic ray particle per square meter per year reaches the Earth's surface (see figure). There are many ideas about which processes may be responsible for cosmic rays with such high energies. In the 'bottom-up' approach, cosmic rays gain more
Extragalactic cosmic ray many more possible sources scientists are considering. These include colliding galaxy systems, accretion flow shocks to clusters of galaxies, and more exotic processes from the very early universe, such as the decay of superheavy particles trapped in the galactic halo, or topological defects. Due to the very low flux of extragalactic cosmic particles received on Earth, little is known about their composition. Most estimates, based on theoretical and numerical models, predict that light atomic nuclei such as protons are the dominant particle type. Extragalactic cosmic ray Extragalactic cosmic rays are very-high-energy particles that flow into the Solar System from beyond