Kosmische Strahlen - das leise Bombardement aus dem All

The Stuttgart Observatory presents a lecture on cosmic rays (history of discovery, properties, current research) in the Kepler Hall of the planetarium on Friday, July 3, 2026 at 19:30. Admission is free, registration is not required.

The Earth is constantly hit by particle showers that originate from space. The energy spectrum of the particles spans the huge range from moderate kiloelectronvolts to unimaginable 10^21 eV. The sources of the radiation are the sun, stellar winds, supernova explosions and - as far as the highest measured energies are concerned - jets from black holes and pulsars. The Earth's magnetic field and its atmosphere effectively protect our biosphere from the dangers of primary radiation. However, their collision with particles in the outer atmosphere leads to secondary particle showers that can be detected on the Earth's surface. We trace the history of the discovery of cosmic radiation, try to classify the different types of radiation and show their existence using a live demonstration of a muon detector.