The “Horizon-T” Experiment: Extensive Air Showers Detection

Horizon - T is a n innovative detector system constructed to study Extensive Air Showers (EAS) in the energy range above 10 16 eV coming from a wide range of zenith angles (0 o - 85 o ). The system is located at Tien Shan high - altitude Science Station of Lebedev Physical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences at approximately 3340 meters above the sea level. It consists of eight charged particle detection points separated by the distance up to one kilometer as well as optical detector subsystem to view the Vavilov - Cherenkov light from the EAS. The time resolution of charged particles and Vavilov - Cherenkov light photons passage of the detector system is a few ns. This level of resolution allows conducting research of atmos pheric development of individual EAS

Investigation of EAS cores

The development of nuclear-electromagnetic cascade models in air in the late forties have shown informational content of the study of cores of extensive air showers (EAS). These investigations were the main goal in different experiments which were carried out over many years by a variety of methods. Outcomes of such investigations obtained in the HADRON experiment using an X-ray emulsion chamber (XREC) as a core detector are considered. The Ne spectrum of EAS associated with γ-ray families, spectra of γ-rays (hadrons) in EAS cores and the Ne dependence of the muon number, ⟨Nμ⟩, in EAS with γ-ray families are obtained for the first time at energies of 1015–1017 eV with this method. A number of new effects were observed, namely, an abnormal scaling violation in hadron spectra which are fundamentally different from model predictions, an excess of muon number in EAS associated with γ-ray families, and the penetrating component in EAS cores. It is supposed that the abnormal behavior of γ-ray spectra and Ne dependence of the muon number are explained by the emergence of a penetrating component in the 1st PCR spectrum ‘knee’ range. Nuclear and astrophysical explanations of the origin of the penetrating component are discussed. The necessity of considering the contribution of a single close cosmic-ray source to explain the PCR spectrum in the knee range is noted

Investigation of EAS cores

The development of nuclear-electromagnetic cascade models in air in the late forties have shown informational content of the study of cores of extensive air showers (EAS). These investigations were the main goal in different experiments which were carried out over many years by a variety of methods. Outcomes of such investigations obtained in the HADRON experiment using an X-ray emulsion chamber (XREC) as a core detector are considered. The Ne spectrum of EAS associated with γ-ray families, spectra of γ-rays (hadrons) in EAS cores and the Ne dependence of the muon number, ⟨Nμ⟩, in EAS with γ-ray families are obtained for the first time at energies of 1015–1017 eV with this method. A number of new effects were observed, namely, an abnormal scaling violation in hadron spectra which are fundamentally different from model predictions, an excess of muon number in EAS associated with γ-ray families, and the penetrating component in EAS cores. It is supposed that the abnormal behavior of γ-ray spectra and Ne dependence of the muon number are explained by the emergence of a penetrating component in the 1st PCR spectrum ‘knee’ range. Nuclear and astrophysical explanations of the origin of the penetrating component are discussed. The necessity of considering the contribution of a single close cosmic-ray source to explain the PCR spectrum in the knee range is noted

Investigation of EAS cores

The development of nuclear-electromagnetic cascade models in air in the late forties have shown informational content of the study of cores of extensive air showers (EAS). These investigations were the main goal in different experiments which were carried out over many years by a variety of methods. Outcomes of such investigations obtained in the HADRON experiment using an X-ray emulsion chamber (XREC) as a core detector are considered. The Ne spectrum of EAS associated with γ-ray families, spectra of γ-rays (hadrons) in EAS cores and the Ne dependence of the muon number, ⟨Nμ⟩, in EAS with γ-ray families are obtained for the first time at energies of 1015–1017 eV with this method. A number of new effects were observed, namely, an abnormal scaling violation in hadron spectra which are fundamentally different from model predictions, an excess of muon number in EAS associated with γ-ray families, and the penetrating component in EAS cores. It is supposed that the abnormal behavior of γ-ray spectra and Ne dependence of the muon number are explained by the emergence of a penetrating component in the 1st PCR spectrum ‘knee’ range. Nuclear and astrophysical explanations of the origin of the penetrating component are discussed. The necessity of considering the contribution of a single close cosmic-ray source to explain the PCR spectrum in the knee range is noted