Rare gas studies of the galactic cosmic ray irradiation history of lunar rocks

1972 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 269-301 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.C Huneke ◽  
F.A Podosek ◽  
D.S Burnett ◽  
G.J Wasserburg
1983 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 347-354
Author(s):  
Bertram Dorm

AbstractProton irradiation of a variety of ice mixtures were carried out to study the effect of galactic cosmic ray irradiation of comets in the Oort Cloud. Three significant effects were noted (1) production of new molecules; (2) production of a more energetic ice at low temperatures; (3) production of a non-volatile, complex organic residue. These phenomena suggest various effects on new comets approaching the sun including enhanced activity. Experiments on the condensation of silicate grains provide information on the condensation mechanism and properties of grains. Controlled annealing of the amorphous condensates shows how crystallization occurs. Infrared spectra of different stages of crystallization contain features that may identify composition, structure and history of refractory material.


1962 ◽  
Vol 17 (5) ◽  
pp. 422-432 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Voshage

The use of iron meteorites for the establishment of possible long-time variations (108 —109 years) of the cosmic ray intensity in interplanetary space is based upon the study of the production rates of nuclides which are formed by the interaction of cosmic ray particles with nuclei in meteorites. Mass spectrometric measurements of the isotopic composition of meteoritic potassium * are combined with data on cosmogenic rare gases and other elements to give K41-K40-exposure ages and rare gas production rates. The K41-K40-exposure ages are larger than the exposure ages obtained from the study of short-lived activities (e. g. Cl36, A39), by a factor 1.3 to 1.8. This result indicates that the cosmic ray intensity increased during the bombardment history of the meteorites. The data, for example, are consistent with the following assumptions: 1) The cosmic ray intensity was constant during most of the bombarding time and increased by a factor of about 1.5 only a few million years ago. 2) The intensity rose as I(t) =I0 e— γt with —1.1·10-9 ≦ γ ≦ —0.6 · 10-9 a–1. The consequences of this result for the interpretation of meteorite data are discussed.


The etching techniques for the identification of very heavy cosmic ray ions from their etchable tracks in mineral track detectors are described and the results so far obtained for the ancient galactic cosmic ray Cr group (V + Cr + Mn) to Fe abundance ratio are presented. It was found that the etchable radiation damage of fossil cosmic ray tracks has probably only been slightly affected by annealing processes. The track data obtained on pyroxenes of different lunar rocks and on pyroxenes and feldspars, i.e. detectors of different track retaining characteristics, yielded consistent results. From this measurements, an ancient Cr group to Fe ratio of approximately 0.7- 0.8 was deduced. In comparison with the present day galactic cosmic ray composition, this ratio is enhanced by a factor of about two. From the track data obtained in different lunar soil samples it was concluded that a variation in the Gr group to Fe ratio between 0.4- 0.8 exists. Both results indicate, that either a long term change in the cosmic ray composition has taken place or the interpretation of track data is much more complicated than assumed.


Thin target experiments were performed to obtain the excitation functions of the reactions Ba (p, X) MX.e. The abundances of all stable Xe isotopes and of the radionuclides 127Xe and 131Ba were determined by means of rare gas mass spectroscopy and y -counting, respectively. The excitation functions show marked characteristics leading to strong variations in the proton-induced Xe-ratios as functions of energy. The 131Xe/126Xe ratio - the special lunar anomaly-was found to vary from 1.14 ±0.4 (600 MeV) to 248.8 ± 4.0 (75 MeV). The Reproduction rates and the MXe/126Xe ratios as functions of depths were estimated for 271 geometry utilizing the depth dependent galactic-cosmic-ray (g.c.r.) fluxes of Reedy & Arnold (1972). Substantial isotopic variations for all of the proton-induced Xe ratios were found, sufficient to explain most of the cosmogenic Xe ratios (exceptions are 130Xe, and 132Xe) measured yet in lunar samples with proton-induced reactions on Ba at different depths in the Moon. Actual lunar samples are used to check the validity of the results.


2021 ◽  
Vol 502 (4) ◽  
pp. 5821-5838
Author(s):  
Ottavio Fornieri ◽  
Daniele Gaggero ◽  
Silvio Sergio Cerri ◽  
Pedro De La Torre Luque ◽  
Stefano Gabici

ABSTRACT We present a comprehensive study about the phenomenological implications of the theory describing Galactic cosmic ray scattering on to magnetosonic and Alfvénic fluctuations in the GeV−PeV domain. We compute a set of diffusion coefficients from first principles, for different values of the Alfvénic Mach number and other relevant parameters associated with both the Galactic halo and the extended disc, taking into account the different damping mechanisms of turbulent fluctuations acting in these environments. We confirm that the scattering rate associated with Alfvénic turbulence is highly suppressed if the anisotropy of the cascade is taken into account. On the other hand, we highlight that magnetosonic modes play a dominant role in Galactic confinement of cosmic rays up to PeV energies. We implement the diffusion coefficients in the numerical framework of the dragon code, and simulate the equilibrium spectrum of different primary and secondary cosmic ray species. We show that, for reasonable choices of the parameters under consideration, all primary and secondary fluxes at high energy (above a rigidity of $\simeq 200 \, \mathrm{GV}$) are correctly reproduced within our framework, in both normalization and slope.


2021 ◽  
Vol 503 (4) ◽  
pp. 5675-5691
Author(s):  
O Okike ◽  
J A Alhassan ◽  
E U Iyida ◽  
A E Chukwude

ABSTRACT Short-term rapid depressions in Galactic cosmic ray (GCR) flux, historically referred to as Forbush decreases (FDs), have long been recognized as important events in the observation of cosmic ray (CR) activity. Although theories and empirical results on the causes, characteristics, and varieties of FDs have been well established, detection of FDs, from either isolated detectors' or arrays of neutron monitor data, remains a subject of interest. Efforts to create large catalogues of FDs began in the 1990s and have continued to the present. In an attempt to test some of the proposed CR theories, several analyses have been conducted based on the available lists. Nevertheless, the results obtained depend on the FD catalogues used. This suggests a need for an examination of consistency between FD catalogues. This is the aim of the present study. Some existing lists of FDs, as well as FD catalogues developed in the current work, were compared, with an emphasis on the FD catalogues selected by the global survey method (GSM). The Forbush effects and interplanetary disturbances database (FEID), created by the Pushkov Institute of Terrestrial Magnetism, Ionosphere and Radiowave Propagation Russian Academy of Sciences (IZMIRAN), is the only available comprehensive and up to date FD catalogue. While there are significant disparities between the IZMIRAN FD and other event lists, there is a beautiful agreement between FDs identified in the current work and those in the FEID. This may be a pointer to the efficiency of the GSM and the automated approach to FD event detection presented here.


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