Tiny black holes from cosmic collisions ⚡ экспресс
Three new phenomenological tests of low-scale quantum gravity theories are proposed, leveraging the production of gravitons and black holes in cosmic ray collisions. The first analyzes interactions of cosmic rays with protons, electrons, and photons in active galactic nuclei (AGN): high-energy neutrino data from blazar TXS 0506+056 sets a lower limit on the fundamental gravity scale M_f > 0.3 TeV; future neutrino telescopes could raise the bound to 200 TeV. The second considers collisions between pairs of cosmic rays in uncollimated AGN regions or in binary supermassive black hole systems, potentially probing scales up to M_f > 2 PeV. The third calculates the thermal neutrino emission from Hawking evaporation of the produced black holes, whose spectrum differs markedly from that expected from meson decays. A hypothetical mechanism is also discussed for generating neutrinos and gamma rays without counterparts in other bands—via a graviton propagating from another brane and then decaying in our Universe.
Cosmic rays—particles with monstrous energy—race through the darkness of intergalactic space. In a head-on collision, their force can crush into a black hole the size of an atom. It’s not dangerous: like a drop on a hot skillet, such a hole instantly evaporates, flying apart into a stream of neutrinos—ghostly particles that even lead cannot stop. This process was described by Stephen Hawking.
Astronomers have already analyzed neutrinos from the galaxy TXS 0506+056. It turned out: if black holes are born, it’s only at energies where the very fabric of spacetime behaves strangely. Future telescopes will go further. The intrigue in this detective story: when evaporating, such holes emit an equal number of neutrinos of all flavors—an anomaly that can be recognized amid the noise. And if extra dimensions exist, some neutrinos might dive in and return, producing mysterious flashes in the void. That would be a hint at hidden realities where gravitational waves wander.
🎯 A micro black hole with the mass of a mosquito would vanish in 10^-27 seconds, releasing the energy of a ton of TNT—but safely: almost all of it would go into neutrinos, which would fly right through you unnoticed.
🎬 The idea of particles leaking into other dimensions is reminiscent of the series 'Fringe,' where parallel universes exchanged inexplicable signals.