hide
Free keywords:
Astrophysics, High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena, astro-ph.HE,High Energy Physics - Theory, hep-th
Abstract:
We argue that the superheavy gravitinos that we had previously proposed as
candidates for Dark Matter can offer a possible explanation for the ultra-high
energy cosmic ray (UHECR) events observed at the Pierre Auger Observatory, via
gravitino anti-gravitino annihilation in the `skin' of neutron stars. The large
mass and strong interactions of these particles, together with their stability
against decays into standard matter are essential for the proposed explanation
to work. In particular, it ensues that UHECR events can be understood to
originate from neutron stars inside a GKZ horizon of 50 Mpc. The composition of
neutron stars near their surface could play a crucial role in explaining the
presence of heavy ions in these events. If confirmed, the present results can
be taken as evidence for the fundamental ansatz towards unification on which
they are based.
