Cosmic-ray deuterium and helium-3 nuclei

1968 ◽  
Vol 46 (10) ◽  
pp. S627-S632 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Ramaty ◽  
R. E. Lingenfelter
Keyword(s):  
Cross Sections ◽  
Solar Minimum ◽  
Path Length ◽  
Cosmic Ray ◽  
Unique Determination ◽  
The Earth ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Helium 3 ◽  
Field Modulation ◽  
Ray Path

Assuming that cosmic-ray deuterons and helium-3 nuclei are of secondary origin, we show that a unique determination of both the cosmic-ray path-length and the residual interplanetary field modulation at solar minimum may be made from a comparison of the calculated and measured intensities of these two nuclei. This determination does not depend on any assumptions regarding either the source spectra or the unmodulated proton to alpha particle ratio of the primary cosmic rays. The production of deuterium and helium-3 by cosmic-ray interactions in the galaxy is calculated considering energy-dependent cross sections, interaction kinematics, and demodulated cosmic-ray spectra. The resulting flux at the earth is obtained by taking into account leakage from the galaxy, ionization losses, nuclear breakup, and modulation. From a comparison of these calculations with the measured deuterium and helium-3 intensities at the earth, we conclude that within the experimental uncertainties all the data can be understood in terms of an energy-independent cosmic-ray path-length of 4 ± 1 g/cm2 and a residual interplanetary field modulation at solar minimum of the form exp(–η/Pβ) with η = 0.4 ± 0.1 BV, where P and β are the rigidity and velocity.

Influence of supernovae, gamma-ray bursts, solar flares, and cosmic rays on the terrestrial environment

2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arnon Dar
Keyword(s):  
Solar Activity ◽  
Cosmic Rays ◽  
Gamma Ray ◽  
Cosmic Ray ◽  
Gamma Ray Bursts ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Terrestrial Environment ◽  
The Earth ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Threat To Life

Changes in the solar neighbourhood due to the motion of the sun in the Galaxy, solar evolution, and Galactic stellar evolution influence the terrestrial environment and expose life on the Earth to cosmic hazards. Such cosmic hazards include impact of near-Earth objects (NEOs), global climatic changes due to variations in solar activity and exposure of the Earth to very large fluxes of radiations and cosmic rays from Galactic supernova (SN) explosions and gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). Such cosmic hazards are of low probability, but their influence on the terrestrial environment and their catastrophic consequences, as evident from geological records, justify their detailed study, and the development of rational strategies, which may minimize their threat to life and to the survival of the human race on this planet. In this chapter I shall concentrate on threats to life from increased levels of radiation and cosmic ray (CR) flux that reach the atmosphere as a result of (1) changes in solar luminosity, (2) changes in the solar environment owing to the motion of the sun around the Galactic centre and in particular, owing to its passage through the spiral arms of the Galaxy, (3) the oscillatory displacement of the solar system perpendicular to the Galactic plane, (4) solar activity, (5) Galactic SN explosions, (6) GRBs, and (7) cosmic ray bursts (CRBs). The credibility of various cosmic threats will be tested by examining whether such events could have caused some of the major mass extinctions that took place on planet Earth and were documented relatively well in the geological records of the past 500 million years (Myr). A credible claim of a global threat to life from a change in global irradiation must first demonstrate that the anticipated change is larger than the periodical changes in irradiation caused by the motions of the Earth, to which terrestrial life has adjusted itself. Most of the energy of the sun is radiated in the visible range. The atmosphere is highly transparent to this visible light but is very opaque to almost all other bands of the electromagnetic spectrum except radio waves, whose production by the sun is rather small.

Cosmic-ray nuclei up to 10 10 eV/u in the galaxy

1975 ◽  
Vol 277 (1270) ◽  
pp. 319-348 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Cosmic Rays ◽  
Solar System ◽  
Cross Sections ◽  
Cosmic Ray ◽  
Interstellar Space ◽  
Heavy Nuclei ◽  
Hydrogen Atoms ◽  
Interstellar Gas ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Ionization Cross Sections

O f the nuclear cosmic rays arriving in the vicinity of Earth from interstellar space, more than 90% have energies less than 1010 eV /u.f Some effects of their modulation (including deceleration) in the Solar System are briefly discussed. The origin of particles at energies < 107 eV/u is still obscure. They could be due to stellar explosions or to solar emissions, or perhaps to interaction of interstellar gas with the solar wind. Between 108 and 1010 eV/u, the composition appears constant to ca. 30% within the statistics of available data. Cosmic rays traverse a mean path length of 6 g/cm 2 in a medium assumed to contain nine hydrogen atoms for each helium atom. Spallation reactions occurring in this medium result in enhancement of many cosmic-ray elements that are more scarce in the general abundances by several orders of magnitude. Cosmic-ray dwell time in the Galaxy seems to be < 107 years. The source composition of cosmic rays has been derived for elements with atomic numbers 1 ≤ Z ≤ 26. A comparison with abundances in the Solar System implies that the latter is richer in hydrogen and helium by a factor of ca. 20, in N and O by ca. 5, and in C by a factor of ca.2. Possible interpretations invoke (a) nucleosynthesis of cosmic rays in certain sources, e.g. supernovae, or (b) models of selective injection that depend, e.g. on ionization potentials or ionization cross sections. Calculated isotopic abundances of arriving cosmic rays are compared with the observed values now becoming available, and found to be in general agreement. Recent progress in probing the composition and spectrum of ultra-heavy nuclei is outlined.

Some Astrophysical Implications of Recent Measurements on the Intensity of Cosmic-Ray Electrons

1968 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. 112-113 ◽  
Author(s):  
W.R. Webber
Keyword(s):  
Electron Spectrum ◽  
Cosmic Ray ◽  
Solar Modulation ◽  
List Type ◽  
Secondary Electrons ◽  
The Earth ◽  
Thermal Radio Emission ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Electron Intensity ◽  
Spiral Arm

We have extended our recent measurements on the extraterrestrial cosmic ray electron spectrum, this spectrum now being determined over the energy range from ~15 MeV to 6 GeV. The extraterrestrial electron intensity between 15 MeV and 200 MeV can be determined unambiguously by studying the diurnal variation of these particles. We have also measured the effects of the 11-year solar modulation on the electrons, thus enabling the electron spectrum observed near the Earth to be extrapolated to the local region of the spiral arm. It is the purpose of this paper to relate these measurements to: (i) calculations of ‘secondary’ electrons produced by cosmic ray nuclei moving in the Galaxy; and(ii) the observations of non-thermal radio emission from disk components of the Galaxy.

scholarly journals Galactic Anisotropy of Cosmic Ray Intensity Observed by an Air Shower Experiment

2006 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 129-134
Author(s):  
Mahmud Bahmanabadi ◽  
Mehdi Khakian Ghomi ◽  
Farzaneh Sheidaei ◽  
Jalal Samimi
Keyword(s):  
Daily Variation ◽  
Cosmic Ray ◽  
Cosmic Ray Intensity ◽  
Extensive Air Shower ◽  
Air Shower ◽  
The Earth ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Unidirectional Anisotropy ◽  
Galactic Cosmic Ray ◽  
Shower Array

AbstractWe have monitored multi-TeV cosmic rays by a small air shower array in Tehran (35°43′ N, 51°20′ E, 1200 m = 890 g cm−2). More than 1.1 × 106 extensive air shower events were recorded. These observations enabled us to analyse sidereal variation of the galactic cosmic ray intensity. The observed sidereal daily variation is compared to the expected variation which includes the Compton–Getting effect due to the motion of the earth in the Galaxy. In addition to the Compton–Getting effect, an anisotropy has been observed which is due to a unidirectional anisotropy of cosmic ray flow along the Galactic arms.

scholarly journals Static versus Dynamical Cosmic-ray Halos

1991 ◽  
Vol 144 ◽  
pp. 359-368 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frank C. Jones
Keyword(s):  
Diffusion Coefficient ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Cosmic Ray ◽  
Random Motion ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Resident Time ◽  
Ray Path ◽  
Convection Dominated ◽  
Determining Factor ◽  
Extract Information

The dynamical halo of the Galaxy offers a natural explanation for the form of the variation of cosmic-ray path length with energy. The variation above 1 GeV per nucleon can be understood as due to the variation of the diffusion coefficient, and hence the resident time in the galaxy, with energy. The flattening of the curve below 1 GeV per nucleon is seen to mark a transition to a convection dominated regime where the variation of the diffusion coefficient is no longer a determining factor. It is possible that the random motion of the cosmic rays about the galaxy that prevents us from seeing their sources in a clear manner may enable us to extract information about the galaxy at large and learn something about its large scale motions.

Considerations affecting the estimation of cosmic-ray age

1968 ◽  
Vol 46 (10) ◽  
pp. S561-S568 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. M. Shapiro ◽  
R. Silberberg
Keyword(s):  
Cosmic Rays ◽  
Cross Sections ◽  
Galactic Disk ◽  
Principal Component ◽  
Cosmic Ray ◽  
Light Nuclei ◽  
The Galaxy ◽  
Primary Cosmic Radiation ◽  
Order Of Magnitude ◽  
Medium Nuclei

Previous investigations by Daniel and Durgaprasad on the ratios Be/B and Be/Li in the primary cosmic radiation exploited the decay of 10Be produced in space to deduce a confinement time for cosmic rays in the galaxy. They concluded that this "age" T is at least 50 million years, and thence inferred that the cosmic-ray nuclei are trapped in a volume much larger than that of the galactic disk. These conclusions depended upon the values of fragmentation cross sections available in 1962 to Badhwar, Daniel, and Vijayalakshmi. Recent values of the Orsay group, however, reduce the calculated rates of 10Be and 9Be production by an order of magnitude; and an analysis based upon the latest cross sections leads to the following conclusions: (1) The possibility that cosmic rays are mainly confined to the disk of the galaxy and that T ≈ 106 years is not excluded. (2) The fragmentation parameter for medium nuclei [Formula: see text] into light nuclei [Formula: see text] is revised from 0.48 (the value of Badhwar et al.) to 0.34. (3) The mean path-length of 2.5 ± 0.5 g/cm2 of Badhwar et al. is revised to 4 ± 1 g/cm2. (4) 7Be now appears to be the principal component of cosmic-ray beryllium (about 70 or 80%, depending upon the cosmic-ray lifetime).

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