124 research outputs found
Measurement of the cosmic ray spectrum above eV using inclined events detected with the Pierre Auger Observatory
A measurement of the cosmic-ray spectrum for energies exceeding
eV is presented, which is based on the analysis of showers
with zenith angles greater than detected with the Pierre Auger
Observatory between 1 January 2004 and 31 December 2013. The measured spectrum
confirms a flux suppression at the highest energies. Above
eV, the "ankle", the flux can be described by a power law with
index followed by
a smooth suppression region. For the energy () at which the
spectral flux has fallen to one-half of its extrapolated value in the absence
of suppression, we find
eV.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO
Energy Estimation of Cosmic Rays with the Engineering Radio Array of the Pierre Auger Observatory
The Auger Engineering Radio Array (AERA) is part of the Pierre Auger
Observatory and is used to detect the radio emission of cosmic-ray air showers.
These observations are compared to the data of the surface detector stations of
the Observatory, which provide well-calibrated information on the cosmic-ray
energies and arrival directions. The response of the radio stations in the 30
to 80 MHz regime has been thoroughly calibrated to enable the reconstruction of
the incoming electric field. For the latter, the energy deposit per area is
determined from the radio pulses at each observer position and is interpolated
using a two-dimensional function that takes into account signal asymmetries due
to interference between the geomagnetic and charge-excess emission components.
The spatial integral over the signal distribution gives a direct measurement of
the energy transferred from the primary cosmic ray into radio emission in the
AERA frequency range. We measure 15.8 MeV of radiation energy for a 1 EeV air
shower arriving perpendicularly to the geomagnetic field. This radiation energy
-- corrected for geometrical effects -- is used as a cosmic-ray energy
estimator. Performing an absolute energy calibration against the
surface-detector information, we observe that this radio-energy estimator
scales quadratically with the cosmic-ray energy as expected for coherent
emission. We find an energy resolution of the radio reconstruction of 22% for
the data set and 17% for a high-quality subset containing only events with at
least five radio stations with signal.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DO
Measurement of the Radiation Energy in the Radio Signal of Extensive Air Showers as a Universal Estimator of Cosmic-Ray Energy
We measure the energy emitted by extensive air showers in the form of radio
emission in the frequency range from 30 to 80 MHz. Exploiting the accurate
energy scale of the Pierre Auger Observatory, we obtain a radiation energy of
15.8 \pm 0.7 (stat) \pm 6.7 (sys) MeV for cosmic rays with an energy of 1 EeV
arriving perpendicularly to a geomagnetic field of 0.24 G, scaling
quadratically with the cosmic-ray energy. A comparison with predictions from
state-of-the-art first-principle calculations shows agreement with our
measurement. The radiation energy provides direct access to the calorimetric
energy in the electromagnetic cascade of extensive air showers. Comparison with
our result thus allows the direct calibration of any cosmic-ray radio detector
against the well-established energy scale of the Pierre Auger Observatory.Comment: Replaced with published version. Added journal reference and DOI.
Supplemental material in the ancillary file
Carnegie Supernova Project-I and -II: Measurements of using Cepheid, TRGB, and SBF Distance Calibration to Type Ia Supernovae
We present an analysis of Type Ia Supernovae (SNe~Ia) from both the Carnegie
Supernova Project~I (CSP-I) and II (CSP-II), and extend the Hubble diagram from
the optical to the near-infrared wavelengths (). We calculate the
Hubble constant, , using various distance calibrators: Cepheids, Tip of
the Red Giant Branch (TRGB), and Surface Brightness Fluctuations (SBF).
Combining all methods of calibrations, we derive $\rm H_0=71.76 \pm 0.58 \
(stat) \pm 1.19 \ (sys) \ km \ s^{-1} \ Mpc^{-1}B\rm
H_0=73.22 \pm 0.68 \ (stat) \pm 1.28 \ (sys) \ km \ s^{-1} \ Mpc^{-1}H1.2\sim 1.3 \rm \ km \
s^{-1} \ Mpc^{-1}H_0H_0H_0Y0.12\pm0.01\sigma_{int}$). We revisit SN~Ia Hubble residual-host mass correlations and
recover previous results that these correlations do not change significantly
between the optical and the near-infrared wavelengths. Finally, SNe~Ia that
explode beyond 10 kpc from their host centers exhibit smaller dispersion in
their luminosity, confirming our earlier findings. Reduced effect of dust in
the outskirt of hosts may be responsible for this effect.Comment: Revised calculations are made. Will be resubmitted to Ap
Global burden and strength of evidence for 88 risk factors in 204 countries and 811 subnational locations, 1990–2021:a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021
BackgroundUnderstanding the health consequences associated with exposure to risk factors is necessary to inform public health policy and practice. To systematically quantify the contributions of risk factor exposures to specific health outcomes, the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2021 aims to provide comprehensive estimates of exposure levels, relative health risks, and attributable burden of disease for 88 risk factors in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations, from 1990 to 2021.MethodsThe GBD 2021 risk factor analysis used data from 54 561 total distinct sources to produce epidemiological estimates for 88 risk factors and their associated health outcomes for a total of 631 risk–outcome pairs. Pairs were included on the basis of data-driven determination of a risk–outcome association. Age-sex-location-year-specific estimates were generated at global, regional, and national levels. Our approach followed the comparative risk assessment framework predicated on a causal web of hierarchically organised, potentially combinative, modifiable risks. Relative risks (RRs) of a given outcome occurring as a function of risk factor exposure were estimated separately for each risk–outcome pair, and summary exposure values (SEVs), representing risk-weighted exposure prevalence, and theoretical minimum risk exposure levels (TMRELs) were estimated for each risk factor. These estimates were used to calculate the population attributable fraction (PAF; ie, the proportional change in health risk that would occur if exposure to a risk factor were reduced to the TMREL). The product of PAFs and disease burden associated with a given outcome, measured in disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs), yielded measures of attributable burden (ie, the proportion of total disease burden attributable to a particular risk factor or combination of risk factors). Adjustments for mediation were applied to account for relationships involving risk factors that act indirectly on outcomes via intermediate risks. Attributable burden estimates were stratified by Socio-demographic Index (SDI) quintile and presented as counts, age-standardised rates, and rankings. To complement estimates of RR and attributable burden, newly developed burden of proof risk function (BPRF) methods were applied to yield supplementary, conservative interpretations of risk–outcome associations based on the consistency of underlying evidence, accounting for unexplained heterogeneity between input data from different studies. Estimates reported represent the mean value across 500 draws from the estimate's distribution, with 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs) calculated as the 2·5th and 97·5th percentile values across the draws.FindingsAmong the specific risk factors analysed for this study, particulate matter air pollution was the leading contributor to the global disease burden in 2021, contributing 8·0% (95% UI 6·7–9·4) of total DALYs, followed by high systolic blood pressure (SBP; 7·8% [6·4–9·2]), smoking (5·7% [4·7–6·8]), low birthweight and short gestation (5·6% [4·8–6·3]), and high fasting plasma glucose (FPG; 5·4% [4·8–6·0]). For younger demographics (ie, those aged 0–4 years and 5–14 years), risks such as low birthweight and short gestation and unsafe water, sanitation, and handwashing (WaSH) were among the leading risk factors, while for older age groups, metabolic risks such as high SBP, high body-mass index (BMI), high FPG, and high LDL cholesterol had a greater impact. From 2000 to 2021, there was an observable shift in global health challenges, marked by a decline in the number of all-age DALYs broadly attributable to behavioural risks (decrease of 20·7% [13·9–27·7]) and environmental and occupational risks (decrease of 22·0% [15·5–28·8]), coupled with a 49·4% (42·3–56·9) increase in DALYs attributable to metabolic risks, all reflecting ageing populations and changing lifestyles on a global scale. Age-standardised global DALY rates attributable to high BMI and high FPG rose considerably (15·7% [9·9–21·7] for high BMI and 7·9% [3·3–12·9] for high FPG) over this period, with exposure to these risks increasing annually at rates of 1·8% (1·6–1·9) for high BMI and 1·3% (1·1–1·5) for high FPG. By contrast, the global risk-attributable burden and exposure to many other risk factors declined, notably for risks such as child growth failure and unsafe water source, with age-standardised attributable DALYs decreasing by 71·5% (64·4–78·8) for child growth failure and 66·3% (60·2–72·0) for unsafe water source. We separated risk factors into three groups according to trajectory over time: those with a decreasing attributable burden, due largely to declining risk exposure (eg, diet high in trans-fat and household air pollution) but also to proportionally smaller child and youth populations (eg, child and maternal malnutrition); those for which the burden increased moderately in spite of declining risk exposure, due largely to population ageing (eg, smoking); and those for which the burden increased considerably due to both increasing risk exposure and population ageing (eg, ambient particulate matter air pollution, high BMI, high FPG, and high SBP).InterpretationSubstantial progress has been made in reducing the global disease burden attributable to a range of risk factors, particularly those related to maternal and child health, WaSH, and household air pollution. Maintaining efforts to minimise the impact of these risk factors, especially in low SDI locations, is necessary to sustain progress. Successes in moderating the smoking-related burden by reducing risk exposure highlight the need to advance policies that reduce exposure to other leading risk factors such as ambient particulate matter air pollution and high SBP. Troubling increases in high FPG, high BMI, and other risk factors related to obesity and metabolic syndrome indicate an urgent need to identify and implement interventions.FundingBill & Melinda Gates Foundation.<br/
The Clustering of Galaxies in SDSS-III DR9 Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey: Constraints on Primordial Non-Gaussianity
We analyze the density field of 264,283 galaxies observed by the Sloan
Digital Sky Survey (SDSS)-III Baryon Oscillation Spectroscopic Survey (BOSS)
and included in the SDSS data release nine (DR9). In total, the SDSS DR9 BOSS
data includes spectroscopic redshifts for over 400,000 galaxies spread over a
footprint of more than 3,000 deg^2. We measure the power spectrum of these
galaxies with redshifts 0.43 < z < 0.7 in order to constrain the amount of
local non-Gaussianity, f_NL,local, in the primordial density field, paying
particular attention to the impact of systematic uncertainties. The BOSS galaxy
density field is systematically affected by the local stellar density and this
influences the ability to accurately measure f_NL,local. In the absence of any
correction, we find (erroneously) that the probability that f_NL,local is
greater than zero, P(f_NL,local >0), is 99.5%. After quantifying and correcting
for the systematic bias and including the added uncertainty, we find -45 <
f_NL,local 0) = 91.0%. A more
conservative approach assumes that we have only learned the k-dependence of the
systematic bias and allows any amplitude for the systematic correction; we find
that the systematic effect is not fully degenerate with that of f_NL,local, and
we determine that -82 < f_NL,local < 178 (at 95% confidence) and P(f_NL,local
>0) = 68%. This analysis demonstrates the importance of accounting for the
impact of Galactic foregrounds on f_NL,local measurements. We outline the
methods that account for these systematic biases and uncertainties. We expect
our methods to yield robust constraints on f_NL,local for both our own and
future large-scale-structure investigations.Comment: Matches version to be published in MNRAS. While in press, we found an
error that caused all of our fNL values to be off by a factor of h^2. Our
conclusions (and nearly 100% of the text) are unchanged because they were all
in reference to the probability of fNL > 0 and the relative effect of
systematics on the recovered constraint
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