705 research outputs found
The Pierre Auger Observatory: Contributions to the 34th International Cosmic Ray Conference (ICRC 2015)
Contributions of the Pierre Auger Collaboration to the 34th International
Cosmic Ray Conference, 30 July - 6 August 2015, The Hague, The NetherlandsComment: 24 proceedings, the 34th International Cosmic Ray Conference, 30 July
- 6 August 2015, The Hague, The Netherlands; will appear in PoS(ICRC2015
Operations of and Future Plans for the Pierre Auger Observatory
Technical reports on operations and features of the Pierre Auger Observatory,
including ongoing and planned enhancements and the status of the future
northern hemisphere portion of the Observatory. Contributions to the 31st
International Cosmic Ray Conference, Lodz, Poland, July 2009.Comment: Contributions to the 31st ICRC, Lodz, Poland, July 200
Simulation of proton-induced and iron-induced extensive air showers at extreme energies
The development of extensive air showers at extreme energies is studied using
a simulation model much simpler and cruder, but also more transparent and
flexible, than existing sophisticated codes. Evidence for its satisfactory
performance is presented. As an illustration, shower elongation rates are
evaluated in the to eV region and compared with recently
published data. Lateral distribution functions of both muons and
electrons/photons are also briefly discussed. Reliable results are obtained in
the comparison between proton-induced and iron-induced showers.Comment: 22 pages, Preprint submitted to Astroparticle Physic
Reconstruction of inclined air showers detected with the Pierre Auger Observatory
We describe the method devised to reconstruct inclined cosmic-ray air showers
with zenith angles greater than detected with the surface array of
the Pierre Auger Observatory. The measured signals at the ground level are
fitted to muon density distributions predicted with atmospheric cascade models
to obtain the relative shower size as an overall normalization parameter. The
method is evaluated using simulated showers to test its performance. The energy
of the cosmic rays is calibrated using a sub-sample of events reconstructed
with both the fluorescence and surface array techniques. The reconstruction
method described here provides the basis of complementary analyses including an
independent measurement of the energy spectrum of ultra-high energy cosmic rays
using very inclined events collected by the Pierre Auger Observatory.Comment: 27 pages, 19 figures, accepted for publication in Journal of
Cosmology and Astroparticle Physics (JCAP
A search for point sources of EeV photons
Measurements of air showers made using the hybrid technique developed with
the fluorescence and surface detectors of the Pierre Auger Observatory allow a
sensitive search for point sources of EeV photons anywhere in the exposed sky.
A multivariate analysis reduces the background of hadronic cosmic rays. The
search is sensitive to a declination band from -85{\deg} to +20{\deg}, in an
energy range from 10^17.3 eV to 10^18.5 eV. No photon point source has been
detected. An upper limit on the photon flux has been derived for every
direction. The mean value of the energy flux limit that results from this,
assuming a photon spectral index of -2, is 0.06 eV cm^-2 s^-1, and no celestial
direction exceeds 0.25 eV cm^-2 s^-1. These upper limits constrain scenarios in
which EeV cosmic ray protons are emitted by non-transient sources in the
Galaxy.Comment: 28 pages, 10 figures, accepted for publication in The Astrophysical
Journa
Enhancing the Pierre Auger Observatory to the 10^{17} to 10^{18.5} eV Range: Capabilities of an Infill Surface Array
The Pierre Auger Observatory has been designed to study the highest-energy
cosmic rays in nature (E > 10^{18.5} eV). The determination of their arrival
direction, energy and composition is performed by the analysis of the
atmospheric showers they produce. The Auger Surface Array will consist of 1600
water Cerenkov detectors placed in an equilateral triangular grid of 1.5 km
spacing. The aim of this paper is to show that the addition of a "small" area
of surface detectors at half or less the above mentioned spacing would allow a
dramatic increase of the physical scope of this Observatory, reaching lower
energies at which the transition from galactic to extragalactic sources is
expected.Comment: 21 pages, 5 figures, accepted for publication in Nucl. Instr. & Meth.
in Phys. Res.
Enhancing the cosmic-ray mass sensitivity of air-shower arrays by combining radio and muon detectors
The muonic and electromagnetic components of air showers are sensitive to the
mass of the primary cosmic particle. The sizes of the components can be
measured with particle detectors on ground, and the electromagnetic component
in addition indirectly via its radio emission in the atmosphere. The
electromagnetic particles do not reach the ground for very inclined showers. On
the contrary, the atmosphere is transparent for the radio emission and its
footprint on ground increases with the zenith angle. Therefore, the radio
technique offers a reliable detection over the full range of zenith angles, and
in particular for inclined showers. In this work, the mass sensitivity of a
combination of the radio emission with the muons is investigated in a case
study for the site of the Pierre Auger Observatory using CORSIKA Monte Carlo
simulations of showers in the EeV energy range. It is shown, that the
radio-muon combination features superior mass separation power in particular
for inclined showers, when compared to established mass observables such as a
combination of muons and electrons or the shower maximum Xmax. Accurate
measurements of the energy-dependent mass composition of ultra-high energy
cosmic rays are essential to understand their still unknown origin. Thus, the
combination of muon and radio detectors can enhance the scientific performance
of future air-shower arrays and offers a promising upgrade option for existing
arrays
The Pierre Auger Observatory III: Other Astrophysical Observations
Astrophysical observations of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays with the Pierre
Auger ObservatoryComment: Contributions to the 32nd International Cosmic Ray Conference,
Beijing, China, August 201
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