The rate of cosmic ray showers at large zenith angles: a step towards the detection of ultra-high energy neutrinos by the Pierre Auger Observatory

It is anticipated that the Pierre Auger Observatory can be used to detect cosmic neutrinos of >10^19 eV that arrive at very large zenith angles. However showers created by neutrino interactions close to the detector must be picked out against a background of similar events initiated by cosmic ray nuclei. As a step towards understanding this background, we have made the first detailed analysis of air showers recorded at Haverah Park (an array which used similar detectors to those planned for the Auger Observatory) with zenith angles above 60 degs. We find that the differential shower rate from 60 degs to 80 degs. can be predicted accurately when we adopt the known primary energy spectrum above 10^17 eV and assume the QGSJET model and proton primaries. Details of the calculation are given.Comment: 22 pages, 12 figures, to appear in Astroparticle Physic

Mass Composition of Cosmic Rays in the Range 2 x 10^17 - 3 x 10^18 Measured with Haverah Park Array

At the Haverah Park Array a number of air shower observables were measured that are relevant to the determination of the mass composition of cosmic rays. In this paper we discuss measurements of the risetime of signals in large area water-Cherenkov detectors and of the lateral distribution function of the water-Cherenkov signal. The former are used to demonstrate that the CORSIKA code, using the QGSJET98 model, gives an adequate description of the data with a low sensitivity, in this energy range, to assumptions about primary mass. By contrast the lateral distribution is sufficiently well measured that there is mass sensitivity. We argue that in the range 0.2-1.0 EeV the data are well represented with a bi-modal composition of 34+-2 % protons and the rest iron. We also discuss the systematic errors induced by the choice of hadronic model.Comment: 16 pages, 13 figures. Accepted for publication in Astroparticle Physic

The STACEE-32 Ground Based Gamma-ray Detector

We describe the design and performance of the Solar Tower Atmospheric Cherenkov Effect Experiment detector in its initial configuration (STACEE-32). STACEE is a new ground-based gamma ray detector using the atmospheric Cherenkov technique. In STACEE, the heliostats of a solar energy research array are used to collect and focus the Cherenkov photons produced in gamma-ray induced air showers. The large Cherenkov photon collection area of STACEE results in a gamma-ray energy threshold below that of previous detectors.Comment: 45 pages, 25 figures, Accepted for publication in Nuclear Instruments and Methods

Combined effects from γ radiation and fluoranthene exposure on carbon transfer from phytoplankton to zooplankton

Risk assessment does not usually take into account mixtures of contaminants, thus potentially under- or overestimating environmental effects. We investigated how the transfer of carbon between a primary producer, Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata, and a consumer, Daphnia magna, is affected by acute exposure of γ radiation (GR) in combination with the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon fluoranthene (FA). We exposed D. magna to five concentrations of FA and five acute doses of GR as single contaminants and in nine binary combinations. We compared the observed data for three end points (incorporation of carbon by D. magna, D. magna ingestion rates, and growth) to the predicted joint effects of the mixed stressors based on the independent action (IA) concept. There were deviations from the IA predictions, especially for ingestion rates and carbon incorporation by D. magna, where antagonistic effects were observed at the lower doses, while synergism was seen at the highest doses. Our results highlight the importance of investigating the effects of exposure to GR in a multistressor context. In mixtures of GR and FA, the IA-predicted effects seem to be conservative as antagonism between the two stressors was the dominant pattern, possibly due to stimulation of cellular antioxidative stress mechanisms

Dark matter and Colliders searches in the MSSM

We study the complementarity between dark matter experiments (direct detection and indirect detections) and accelerator facilities (the CERN LHC and a $\sqrt{s}= 1$ TeV $e^+e^-$ Linear Collider) in the framework of the constrained Minimal Supersymmetric Standard Model (MSSM). We show how non--universality in the scalar and gaugino sectors can affect the experimental prospects to discover the supersymmetric particles. The future experiments will cover a large part of the parameter space of the MSSM favored by WMAP constraint on the relic density, but there still exist some regions beyond reach for some extreme (fine tuned) values of the supersymmetric parameters. Whereas the Focus Point region characterized by heavy scalars will be easily probed by experiments searching for dark matter, the regions with heavy gauginos and light sfermions will be accessible more easily by collider experiments. More informations on both supersymmetry and astrophysics parameters can be thus obtained by correlating the different signals.Comment: 25 pages, 10 figures, corrected typos and reference adde

The First VERITAS Telescope

The first atmospheric Cherenkov telescope of VERITAS (the Very Energetic Radiation Imaging Telescope Array System) has been in operation since February 2005. We present here a technical description of the instrument and a summary of its performance. The calibration methods are described, along with the results of Monte Carlo simulations of the telescope and comparisons between real and simulated data. The analysis of TeV $\gamma$-ray observations of the Crab Nebula, including the reconstructed energy spectrum, is shown to give results consistent with earlier measurements. The telescope is operating as expected and has met or exceeded all design specifications.Comment: Accepted by Astroparticle Physic

Implications of H.E.S.S. observations of pulsar wind nebulae

In this review paper on pulsar wind nebulae (PWN) we discuss the properties of such nebulae within the context of containment against cross-field diffusion (versus normal advection), the effect of reverse shocks on the evolution of offset ``Vela-like'' PWN, constraints on maximum particle energetics, magnetic field strength estimates based on spectral and spatial properties, and the implication of such field estimates on the composition of the wind. A significant part of the discussion is based on the High Energy Stereoscopic System ({\it H.E.S.S.} or {\it HESS}) detection of the two evolved pulsar wind nebulae Vela X (cocoon) and HESS J1825-137. In the case of Vela X (cocoon) we also review evidence of a hadronic versus a leptonic interpretation, showing that a leptonic interpretation is favored for the {\it HESS} signal. The constraints discussed in this review paper sets a general framework for the interpretation of a number of offset, filled-center nebulae seen by {\it HESS}. These sources are found along the galactic plane with galactic latitudes $|b|\sim 0$, where significant amounts of molecular gas is found. In these regions, we find that the interstellar medium is inhomogeneous, which has an effect on the morphology of supernova shock expansion. One consequence of this effect is the formation of offset pulsar wind nebulae as observed.Comment: to appear in Springer Lecture Notes on Neutron Stars and Pulsars: 40 years after their discovery, eds. W. Becke

Discovery of the Binary Pulsar PSR B1259-63 in Very-High-Energy Gamma Rays around Periastron with H.E.S.S

We report the discovery of very-high-energy (VHE) gamma-ray emission of the binary system PSR B1259-63/SS 2883 of a radio pulsar orbiting a massive, luminous Be star in a highly eccentric orbit. The observations around the 2004 periastron passage of the pulsar were performed with the four 13 m Cherenkov telescopes of the H.E.S.S. experiment, recently installed in Namibia and in full operation since December 2003. Between February and June 2004, a gamma-ray signal from the binary system was detected with a total significance above 13 sigma. The flux was found to vary significantly on timescales of days which makes PSR B1259-63 the first variable galactic source of VHE gamma-rays observed so far. Strong emission signals were observed in pre- and post-periastron phases with a flux minimum around periastron, followed by a gradual flux decrease in the months after. The measured time-averaged energy spectrum above a mean threshold energy of 380 GeV can be fitted by a simple power law F_0(E/1 TeV)^-Gamma with a photon index Gamma = 2.7+-0.2_stat+-0.2_sys and flux normalisation F_0 = (1.3+-0.1_stat+-0.3_sys) 10^-12 TeV^-1 cm^-2 s^-1. This detection of VHE gamma-rays provides unambiguous evidence for particle acceleration to multi-TeV energies in the binary system. In combination with coeval observations of the X-ray synchrotron emission by the RXTE and INTEGRAL instruments, and assuming the VHE gamma-ray emission to be produced by the inverse Compton mechanism, the magnetic field strength can be directly estimated to be of the order of 1 G.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figures, accepted in Astronomy and Astrophysics on 2 June 2005, replace: document unchanged, replaced author field in astro-ph entry - authors are all members of the H.E.S.S. collaboration and three additional authors (99+3, see document

Pulsar-wind nebulae and magnetar outflows: observations at radio, X-ray, and gamma-ray wavelengths

We review observations of several classes of neutron-star-powered outflows: pulsar-wind nebulae (PWNe) inside shell supernova remnants (SNRs), PWNe interacting directly with interstellar medium (ISM), and magnetar-powered outflows. We describe radio, X-ray, and gamma-ray observations of PWNe, focusing first on integrated spectral-energy distributions (SEDs) and global spectral properties. High-resolution X-ray imaging of PWNe shows a bewildering array of morphologies, with jets, trails, and other structures. Several of the 23 so far identified magnetars show evidence for continuous or sporadic emission of material, sometimes associated with giant flares, and a few possible "magnetar-wind nebulae" have been recently identified.Comment: 61 pages, 44 figures (reduced in quality for size reasons). Published in Space Science Reviews, "Jets and Winds in Pulsar Wind Nebulae, Gamma-ray Bursts and Blazars: Physics of Extreme Energy Release