Does the Sun Make Muons and Tauons?

[dangerbird]

does the sun make them?

 

[Vanadium 50]

There is no such thing as a "tauon". It's just a "tau", or "tau lepton". The sun does not make them, nor does it make muons.

 

[dangerbird]

There is no such thing as a "tauon". It's just a "tau", or "tau lepton". The sun does not make them, nor does it make muons.

i was just reading this it says the sun makes pions which turn into muons. http://www.hps.org/publicinformation/ate/q3781.html

whys there so much confusion about muons it doesn't make sense that a pion which is smaller than a muon can change into it as it goes through the Earth's atmosphere. is this another force?

i know I am asking buckets of questions but I am confused. answers are very much appreciated though

 

[jtbell]

i was just reading this it says the sun makes pions which turn into muons. http://www.hps.org/publicinformation/ate/q3781.html

No, it doesn't say that. It says:

When protons and other primary cosmic particles from various stars, including our own sun, interact in the atmosphere, they produce some secondary particles called pi mesons, or pions. The pions have very short lifetimes, on the order of 0.01 microseconds, and decay to produce muons.

That is, the sun produces protons, which interact with nuclei in our atmosphere to produce pions (and other stuff). The pions in turn (mostly) decay into muons plus neutrinos.

a pion which is smaller than a muon

Are you referring to their masses?

Mass of a muon: 105.6 MeV/c^2

Mass of a (charged) pion: 139.6 MeV/c^2

 

[dangerbird]

Are you referring to their masses?

Mass of a muon: 105.6 MeV/c^2

Mass of a (charged) pion: 139.6 MeV/c^2

so the pions come from space and as they enter the atmosphere decay to a muon correct which is lighter... right? and this is the only place where muons come from right? I am just making sure I am learning this right i don't have a book

 

[jtbell]

so the pions come from space

No, the protons come from space. When they enter the atmosphere, they collide with nuclei of atoms in the atmosphere, producing mostly pions.

The pions decay into muons because muons are lighter, and this particular decay isn't otherwise forbidden or suppressed.

and this is the only place where muons come from right?

We generally produce muons via pion decay, if that's what you mean. We can do it at accelerator laboratories, too. For example, at Fermilab (which is a proton accelerator), they take a beam of protons and smack it into a metal target, producing lots of different kinds of particles, mostly pions (just like the protons coming from the sun when they collide with nuclei in the atmosphere). The pions decay into muons.

 

[dangerbird]

No, the protons come from space. When they enter the atmosphere, they collide with nuclei of atoms in the atmosphere, producing mostly pions.

The pions decay into muons because muons are lighter, and this particular decay isn't otherwise forbidden or suppressed.



We generally produce muons via pion decay, if that's what you mean. We can do it at accelerator laboratories, too. For example, at Fermilab (which is a proton accelerator), they take a beam of protons and smack it into a metal target, producing lots of different kinds of particles, mostly pions (just like the protons coming from the sun when they collide with nuclei in the atmosphere). The pions decay into muons.

good that clears up the confusing and seemingly conflicting stuff. the protons come from the solar wind and other star's then huh.

 

[Astronuc]

good that clears up the confusing and seemingly conflicting stuff. the protons come from the solar wind and other star's then huh.

Young stars are mostly hydrogen. Helium (He-4) is a product of fusion. There are conditions when He fusion occurs, and the fusion of heavier elements.

The sun and most stars are mostly hydrogen, and some hydrogen (with electrons) leaves to produce the solar wind.

http://csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr162/lect/energy/ppchain.html

High energy protons originate from supernovae and other exotic objects
http://www2.slac.stanford.edu/vvc/cosmicrays/
http://www2.slac.stanford.edu/vvc/cosmicrays/cratmos.html

http://www-pdg.lbl.gov/2008/reviews/rpp2008-rev-cosmic-rays.pdf