SOUTH Australian scientists may have taken us a step closer to uncovering the secrets of the supermassive black hole at the centre of our galaxy.

A new global study involving the University of Adelaide has found that the black hole within the Milky Way may harbour an extremely high-energy source of cosmic rays.

The study, conducted using powerful stereoscopic telescopes in Namibia, reveals that some cosmic rays are generated by a source with energies 100 times higher than those produced by the Large Hadron Collider, a giant physics apparatus that smashes atoms together at close to the speed of light.

The findings suggest that the highest-energy cosmic rays — particles of energy that fall to Earth from outer space — are accelerated by the black hole’s unique properties.

University of Adelaide astrophysicist Gavin Rowell says the findings will help scientists better understand how our galaxy was formed.

“The cosmic rays there are basically reaching the greatest energy theoretically possible,” Associate Professor Rowell said.

“Up until now we’ve not had any really convincing evidence that our own Milky Way’s central black hole was producing this result.

“Understanding the details of our massive black hole helps us to understand how our own Milky Way evolved and how other similar galaxies evolved.” Scientists had long thought that the highest-energy cosmic rays were produced by the after-effects of supernova explosions.

But they may also be produced by the intense power generated by the black hole, which Assoc Prof Rowell likened to water picking up speed as it swirls around a sink.

Assoc Prof Rowell’s research was partly funded by the Australian Research Council and the University of Adelaide.