We don’t yet know the answers to these ultra-high energy cosmic rays, but we do know that solving this mystery will take scientists another step forward in understanding the cosmos. Information that can be gathered by the Auger Observatory is akin to information gathered in other projects, like the Hubble space telescope, in that it can help unravel mysteries about our universe.

This mystery has prompted the formation of the collaboration of more than 370 physicists and engineers from 70 institutions in 17 participating countries. Each shares a part of the total cost of the project, which is estimated at approximately 120 million dollars. The United States’ share of project cost is funded mostly through the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Energy. Scientists from Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colorado School of Mines in Golden, and Colorado State University, Pueblo are involved in the project. Various faculty and administration members from Lamar Community College and The University of Nebraska - Lincoln are working on educational outreach associated with the Auger Project in Colorado.

Many of the everyday items we use, and usually take for granted, were spawned by ideas and knowledge coming from basic scientific research - such as this project. Many of our current medical examination technologies were developed from basic research instrumentation over the last century. For more information on why we should all support scientific research, please visit this informative page at Fermilab.