Dr. Shmuel Bialy (Technion) and Dr. Alexei Ivlev (MPE, Germany) have been awarded a prestigious GIF (German-Israeli Foundation) grant for their groundbreaking collaborative project: “Cold Clouds as Cosmic Ray Detectors.”

This innovative research focuses on using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to develop a novel method for measuring the cosmic-ray ionization rate (CRIR) in molecular clouds. Cosmic rays play a crucial role in the evolution of molecular clouds, influencing chemical reactions and star formation processes. By analyzing H₂ rovibrational emission lines excited by cosmic rays, the team aims to achieve more precise and direct measurements of the CRIR, shedding new light on cosmic-ray propagation in the interstellar medium.

Congratulations to Dr. Bialy and Dr. Ivlev on this well-deserved recognition of their pioneering work! 

Inage of Barnard 68 (Credit: ESO): a striking dark molecular cloud located just 500 light-years away in the constellation Ophiuchus. This dense and cold cloud, composed primarily of molecular hydrogen (H_2), blocks starlight from background stars, creating its eerie silhouette. Shmuel Bialy, a researcher at the Technion, has received a GIF grant to use the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to unveil the mysteries of cosmic rays—energetic protons zipping through space—by observing the faint glow of excited H_2 molecules in Barnard 68. For the first time, the “direct H_2 method” will be employed to measure the elusive flux of GeV cosmic rays within such clouds, shedding new light on their impact on star formation and galactic evolution.