<p>Has everyone heard about the cosmic ray that hit Utah recently with an energy of about 240 EeV?  Making it the third-highest-energy of all time?  Scientists say it seems to have come from a void, and aren't sure if it could have been deflected on its path (probably not, I hear...)</p>
<p>This got me thinking about energetic particles being deflected on their journeys...</p>
<p>Would an Alpha particle with twice the charge but four times the mass be more or less easily deflected on its way here?</p>
<p>Obviously it would resist purely gravitational forces more readily, but what about an electric field?  Or a magnetic field?</p>
<p>I understand that the electromagnetic force is much stronger than gravity, of course, and that both drop off with distance as 1/r^2...</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-02-05T07:14:22.433Z
Are we comparing protons and alpha particles of the same speed, momentum, or energy (kinetic or total)?
uhoh
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-02-05T13:39:18.560Z
With regard to "Obviously it would resist purely gravitational forces more readily ..." Obviously not. The gravitational acceleration of a very small mass (and an alpha particle is a very, very small object, as is a proton) is independent of the mass of the small object.
David Hammen
<magnetic-field><particles><cosmic-ray>
Is an alpha particle cosmic ray more easily deflected on its journey than a proton? Or vice versa?
Kurt Hikes
# Is an alpha particle cosmic ray more easily deflected on its journey than a proton? Or vice versa?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2024-02-05)

Has everyone heard about the cosmic ray that hit Utah recently with an energy of about 240 EeV? Making it the third-highest-energy of all time? Scientists say it seems to have come from a void, and aren't sure if it could have been deflected on its path (probably not, I hear...)

This got me thinking about energetic particles being deflected on their journeys...

Would an Alpha particle with twice the charge but four times the mass be more or less easily deflected on its way here?

Obviously it would resist purely gravitational forces more readily, but what about an electric field? Or a magnetic field?

I understand that the electromagnetic force is much stronger than gravity, of course, and that both drop off with distance as 1/r^2...

**Tags:** magnetic-field, particles, cosmic-ray

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Are we comparing protons and alpha particles of the same speed, momentum, or energy (kinetic or total)?  
> **username_2**: With regard to "Obviously it would resist purely gravitational forces more readily ..." Obviously not. The gravitational acceleration of a very small mass (and an alpha particle is a very, very small object, as is a proton) is independent of the mass of the small object.  

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## 0 answers

