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maxnoetoday at 10:22 AM1 replyview on HN

The article has a section about what it can be used for, but only mentions the uses of the IAEA.

Of course I am biased because I work in the field, but the by far most wide reaching application of Cherenkov radiation is in the detection of high energy particles, particularly in astrophysics.

- Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes detect the Cherenkov radiation emmited in the atmosphere when a high energy cosmic ray or gamma ray creates an air shower - Water Cherenkov Detectors detect Cherenkov light when the secondary particles of these air showers reach water tanks on the ground - Neutrino telescopes like kamiokande, Icecube and km3net detect Cherenkov radiation in water or ice produced by secondary particles produced by the rare interactions of Neutrinos in their detector volumes

Modern, high energy astrophysics is all about detecting different kinds of Cherenkov radiation and the reconstructing the original particle properties.


Replies

fnandstoday at 10:45 AM

Exactly! I visited HESS in Namibia last week, so Cherenkov telescopes are on the top of my mind right now.