MYSTERIOUS CHAMBER AND CORRIDOR DETECTED DEEP IN THE GREAT PYRAMID

SCIENTISTS using an imaging method based on cosmic rays have detected a mysterious chamber and a hitherto unknown corridor in the Great Pyramid of Khufu.

The corridor ... on the northern side of the Pyramid of Khufu ... measures 9 meters (nearly 30 feet) in length and is 2 meters (over 6 feet) wide, perched above the main entrance of the pyramid.

Archaeologists do not know what the function was of the chamber, which is not accessible from the outside. In 2017, scientists announced the discovery of another sealed-off corridor, a 30-meter chamber ... or about 98 feet ... also inside the Pyramid of Khufu.

Egyptian archaeologist Zahi Hawass and Egypt's Minister for Tourism Ahmed Eissa, announced the discovery at a news conference outside the pyramid. 

The Scan Pyramids project, an international program that uses scans to look at unexplored sections of the ancient structure, was credited for the find.

To peer inside the pyramid, the scientists used an imaging technique called muon tomography that tracks particles that bombard Earth at close to the speed of light and penetrate deeply into solid objects.

The findings come from a project called Scan Pyramids that relies on non-invasive scanning methods to probe the internal structure of the pyramids of ancient Egypt's glorious Old Kingdom period and understand how they were built.

"We are not doing this mission in order to find hidden cavities," Helal said.

Muon particles originate from interactions between cosmic rays from space and atoms of Earth's upper atmosphere. The particles can penetrate hundreds of yards (meters) into stone before being absorbed. Placing detectors inside a pyramid can discern cavities within a solid structure.