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The latest cosmic ray survey technology is expected to reveal the secrets of Egypt's pyramids

Can cosmic rays reveal the secrets of the Egyptian pyramids? Now, a team of researchers plans to use cosmic rays to study the pyramids in unprecedented depth. The process of detecting high-energy particles is called mu tomography. In 2017, scientists used the technique to discover a previously undiscovered chamber inside the pyramid. 

The Pyramid of Khufu is one of the seven wonders of ancient times. Although most scholars believe that the pyramid was built for the Pharaoh Khufu, who ruled Egypt around 2500 BC, there is still no consensus on how it was built. Traditional scanning tools, such as X-rays and ground-penetrating radar, have not been able to penetrate deep into the dense stone structures and reveal the mysteries therein, and direct exploration and excavation is impossible.

In 1969, a penetration method using high-energy particles produced by cosmic rays showed initial promise when scanning another pyramid, and in 2017, a project called Scanning the Pyramids used the same technique to survey the pyramids and even found them Inside there is a previously unknown "chamber". Currently, researchers hope to use the same technology to obtain more pyramid secrets, but the detection equipment is highly mobile and the detection intensity is 100 times higher than before.

Half a century has passed since Luiz Alvarez and colleagues used cosmic ray muon imaging to find the hidden chamber in Hafres' Pyramid, and the advanced capabilities of the current high-energy physics instrument (HEP) It is expected to make important new discoveries for scanning the Pyramid of Cheops, and researchers will also be able to use survey techniques that Alvarez used in 2017.

The technique involves detecting subatomic particles called muons, which are created when cosmic rays hit Earth's atmosphere and, once created, last for only a fraction of a second. Fortunately for the researchers, the muons produced by cosmic rays are moving at nearly the speed of light, so a large number of muons hit the earth and even pass through the earth, and as these decay muons pass through the pyramid blocks, by tracking the muons, for a more in-depth look at the inner structure of the pyramid.

The researchers pointed out that we can place a huge muon telescope outside the pyramid and aim it at the Pyramid of Khufu on the Giza Plateau. With the penetrable muons, the device can produce higher-resolution images. The muon telescope moves around the base of the pyramid to reconstruct tomographic images for the first time.

The mobility of the survey equipment allows surveys to proceed faster, but more importantly, the size and sensitivity of the muon telescope will provide more detailed data than the 2017 survey mission. The researchers point out that our plans to deploy a very large muon telescope to survey the pyramids will represent a major shift in cosmic ray muon imaging, which is more than 100 times more sensitive than the Pyramid's recently used equipment, and will replace almost all For the first time, real large-scale structural tomographic images can be produced.

Ideally, a real tomography image should reveal more details about the various densities inside the pyramids, as in 2017, density data analysis may reveal air or macroporosity within large buildings, but this enhanced Sensitivity is related to differences in building material types. In addition, this scanning method is able to identify subtle, previously undetectable structural differences and "discontinuities," providing insights into the construction techniques used to build these incredible feats of engineering.

At present, the actual operation of surveying the Pyramid of Khufu project has not yet begun. Most of the work to date has only included software simulation and planning. In addition, the researchers expect to spend two years scanning, repositioning, and scanning again once the equipment is in place.

Of course, just like the history of the pyramids, when some new research results are announced, it will definitely bring controversy, for example: although most of the archaeological community is celebrating the great discovery of a secret chamber in the pyramid in 2017, thinking that it is a pyramid One of the most important discoveries in its 4,500-year history, but Dr. Zahi Hawass, the Egyptian government-appointed manager of the Giza pyramids, was "disdainful," telling reporters: " They found nothing, and the relevant research papers did nothing to help Egyptology."

Regardless of outside opinions, scientists will continue to use advanced tools and techniques to try to solve the secrets of the Giza Pyramid. Considering the successful application of cosmic rays 5 years ago, this latest survey technology will help to reveal more about the pyramid. Unsolved mysteries.

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