The Oh-My-God Particle and the Days That Vanished

The Oh-My-God Particle and the Days That Vanished

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Episode description

The Oh-My-God Particle and the Days That Vanished

On 15 October 1991, scientists at the University of Utah detected a single subatomic particle travelling at a speed so close to light that it defied the known laws of physics. The Oh-My-God particle, as it became known, carried energy forty million times greater than anything human accelerators can produce, and its origin remains unexplained three decades later. That same date marks the first tethered human balloon flight in 1783, when Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier rose 26 metres above Paris and launched the age of aviation. In 1066, Edgar the Ætheling was briefly proclaimed King of England, only to submit to William the Conqueror within weeks. And in 1582, Pope Gregory XIII introduced the Gregorian calendar, erasing ten days from October to correct centuries of astronomical drift. Clara Vale explores a day that saw particles break cosmic speed limits, humans leave the ground, kings vanish into footnotes, and time itself get edited.

Chapters

  • Intro Clara opens with the fastest thing ever recorded: a subatomic particle that hit Earth on 15 October 1991, moving at a speed so close to light the gap was almost nothing.
  • The Oh-My-God Particle Scientists at the University of Utah detected a cosmic ray carrying energy forty million times greater than human accelerators can produce. It exceeded the theoretical GZK limit, and its source has never been identified. The particle remains the highest energy cosmic ray ever reliably recorded.
  • The First Human Balloon Flight On 15 October 1783, Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier became the first human to ascend in a balloon, rising 26 metres above Paris. He later died attempting to cross the English Channel, becoming the first aviation fatality.
  • Edgar the Ætheling, The King Who Wasn’t Proclaimed King of England on 15 October 1066 after Harold II’s death at Hastings, the teenage Edgar Ætheling submitted to William the Conqueror within weeks, never reigning or being crowned.
  • The Gregorian Calendar, The Days That Vanished Pope Gregory XIII introduced the Gregorian calendar on 15 October 1582, removing ten days from October to correct astronomical drift. Protestant countries resisted for centuries, with Britain holding out until 1752.
  • Outro Clara reflects on a day that saw a particle rewrite physics, the first human flight, a vanished king, and ten days erased from history.

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