New results on the short-term galactic cosmic-ray (GCR) intensity variation (Forbish decrease) in 2006 December measured by the PAMELA instrument are presented. Forbush decreases are sudden ...suppressions of the GCR intensities, which are associated with the passage of interplanetary transients such as shocks and interplanetary coronal mass ejections (ICMEs). Most of the past measurements of this phenomenon were carried out with ground-based detectors such as neutron monitors or muon telescopes. These techniques allow only the indirect detection of the overall GCR intensity over an integrated energy range. For the first time, thanks to the unique features of the PAMELA magnetic spectrometer, the Forbush decrease, commencing on 2006 December 14 and following a CME at the Sun on 2006 December 13, was studied in a wide rigidity range (0.4-20 GV) and for different species of GCRs detected directly in space. The daily averaged GCR proton intensity was used to investigate the rigidity dependence of the amplitude and the recovery time of the Forbush decrease. Additionally, for the first time, the temporal variations in the helium and electron intensities during a Forbush decrease were studied. Interestingly, the temporal evolutions of the helium and proton intensities during the Forbush decrease were found to be in good agreement, while the low rigidity electrons ( GV) displayed a faster recovery. This difference in the electron recovery is interpreted as a charge sign dependence introduced by drift motions experienced by the GCRs during their propagation through the heliosphere.
EUSO-TA is a ground-based fluorescence telescope built to validate the design of ultra-high energy cosmic ray fluorescence detectors to be operated in space with the technology developed within the ...Joint Exploratory Missions for Extreme Universe Space Observatory (JEM-EUSO) program. It operates at the Telescope Array (TA) site in Utah, USA. With an external trigger provided by the Black Rock Mesa fluorescence detectors of the Telescope Array experiment, with EUSO-TA we observed air-showers from ultra-high energy cosmic rays, as well as laser events from the Central Laser Facility at the TA site and from portable lasers like the JEM-EUSO Global Light System prototype. Since the Black Rock Mesa fluorescence detectors have a ∼30 times larger field of view than EUSO-TA, they allow a primary energy reconstruction based on the observation of a large part of the shower evolution, including the shower maximum, while EUSO-TA observes only a part of it, usually far away from the maximum. To estimate the detection limits of EUSO-TA in energy and distance, a method was developed to re-scale their energy, taking into account that EUSO-TA observes only a portion of the air-showers. The method was applied on simulation sets with showers with different primaries, energy, direction, and impact point on the ground, as well as taking into account the experimental environment. EUSO-TA was simulated with an internal trigger and different elevation angles and electronics. The same method was then applied also to real measurements and compared to the simulations. In addition, the method can also be used to estimate the detection limits for experiments that are operated at high altitudes and in most cases can see the maximum of the showers. This was done for EUSO-SPB1, an instrument installed on a super-pressure balloon. Finally, the expected detection rates for EUSO-TA were also assessed using the prepared simulated event sets. The rates correspond to a few detections per recording session of 30 h of observation, depending on the background level and the configuration of the detector.
EUSO-Balloon
is a pathfinder for
JEM-EUSO
, the mission concept of a spaceborne observatory which is designed to observe Ultra-High Energy Cosmic Ray (UHECR)-induced Extensive Air Showers (EAS) by ...detecting their UltraViolet (UV) light tracks “from above.” On August 25, 2014,
EUSO-Balloon
was launched from Timmins Stratospheric Balloon Base (Ontario, Canada) by the balloon division of the French Space Agency CNES. After reaching a floating altitude of 38 km,
EUSO-Balloon
imaged the UV light in the wavelength range ∼290–500 nm for more than 5 hours using the key technologies of
JEM-EUSO
. The flight allowed a good understanding of the performance of the detector to be developed, giving insights into possible improvements to be applied to future missions. A detailed measurement of the photoelectron counts in different atmospheric and ground conditions was achieved. By means of the simulation of the instrument response and by assuming atmospheric models, the absolute intensity of diffuse light was estimated. The instrument detected hundreds of laser tracks with similar characteristics to EASs shot by a helicopter flying underneath. These are the first recorded laser tracks measured from a fluorescence detector looking down on the atmosphere. The reconstruction of the direction of the laser tracks was performed. In this work, a review of the main results obtained by
EUSO-Balloon
is presented as well as implications for future space-based observations of UHECRs.
The PAMELA experiment is a satellite-borne apparatus designed to study charged particles in the cosmic radiation with a particular focus on antiparticles. PAMELA is mounted on the Resurs DK1 ...satellite that was launched from the Baikonur cosmodrome on June 15th 2006. The PAMELA apparatus comprises a time-of-flight system, a magnetic spectrometer, a silicon–tungsten electromagnetic calorimeter, an anticoincidence system, a shower tail catcher scintillator and a neutron detector. The combination of these devices allows antiparticles to be reliably identified from a large background of other charged particles. This paper reviews the design, space qualification and on-ground performance of PAMELA. The in-orbit performance will be discussed in future publications.
This analysis documents the process and results of reliability determination of the PhotoMultiplier Tube (PMT) components of the JEM-EUSO telescope under the different radiation sources, UV ...radiation, Total Ionizing Doses (TIDs), and Single Event Transients. In terms of UV Ionization, the transmittance of the glass of the PMTs during the 5-year duration of the mission is greater than 99.98%, thereby ensuring the desired 20% value for quantum efficiency. Of the 4932 PMTs covering the focal surface of the telescope, we estimate that of order 7 may fail due to TID and about 16 may fail due to SET. Therefore, it can be concluded that around 99% of the PMTs will complete their operation without failure, ensuring the success of the mission as far as TIDs and SETs radiation is concerned. PMTs suffer basically due to high brightness effects, reducing the transmittance of the crystal window. However, the result of this study, taking into account the values produced by the model based on the TID, as well as the darkening of the glass, show similar values in terms of degradation. Therefore, as a preliminary result, it is possible to conclude that the TID model proposed here for PMTs can be “validated”.
•Current methods and Space standards for the reliability analysis were evaluated.•New techniques to assess space radiation impact on electronic components are proposed.•Techniques suitable for reliability analysis of PMTs devoted to space applications.•Techniques developed can be used to enhance current reliability analysis standards.
An authentication study of the Italian PDO (protected designation of origin) olive oil Chianti Classico, based on near-infrared and UV-Visible spectroscopy, an artificial nose and an artificial ...tongue, with a set of samples representative of the whole Chianti Classico production and a considerable number of samples from a close production area (Maremma) was performed. The non-specific signals provided by the four fingerprinting analytical techniques, after a proper pre-processing, were used for building class models for Chianti Classico oils. The outcomes of classical class-modelling techniques like soft independent modelling of class analogy and quadratic discriminant analysis--unequal dispersed classes were compared with those of two techniques recently introduced into Chemometrics: multivariate range modelling and CAIMAN analogues modelling methods.
A Forbush decrease (FD) is a sudden drop of cosmic-ray intensity arising as an effect of coronal mass ejection (CME) propagation in interplanetary space. The different physical properties of each CME ...cause variability in the FDs observed by scientific instruments. A comprehensive study of both phenomena is required to properly understand the processes involved in FDs. Most of the current studies in this field use experimental data obtained by ground-based apparatus that measure the flux of cosmic rays via their interaction with Earth’s atmosphere. Direct measurements in space of FDs are rather rare. In this work, we present the results obtained by the spacecraft-borne experiment
Payload for Antimatter Matter Exploration and Light-nuclei Astrophysics
(PAMELA). The experiment took data from 15 June 2006 until January 2016. A series of FDs during the period 2006 – 2013 were studied. Only significant events with amplitude ≥ 10% for the proton flux
R
=
1.1
– 2.9 GV were taken into account. The dependencies of the recovery times on the particle rigidity were obtained for FD events generated by halo-type CMEs.
Mini-EUSO is a high sensitivity imaging telescope that observes the Earth from the ISS in the ultraviolet band (2904÷430 nm), through the UV-transparent window in the Russian Zvezda module. The ...instrument, launched in 2019 as part of the ESA mission Beyond, has a field of view of 44°, a spatial resolution on the Earth surface of 6.3 km and a temporal resolution of 2.5 microseconds. The telescope detects UV emissions of cosmic, atmospheric and terrestrial origin on different time scales, from a few microseconds upwards. Mini-EUSO main detector optics is composed of two Fresnel lenses focusing light onto an array of 36 Hamamatsu multi-anode photomultiplier tubes, for a total of 2304 pixels. The telescope also contains: two ancillary cameras to complement measurements in the near infrared and visible ranges, an array of Silicon-PhotoMultipliers and UV sensors to manage night-day transitions. In this work we will describe the in-flight operations and performances of the various instruments in the first months after launch.
Abstract
We present a study of the solar-cycle variations of >80 MeV proton flux intensities in the lower edge of the inner radiation belt, based on the measurements of the Payload for Antimatter ...Matter Exploration and Light-nuclei Astrophysics (PAMELA) mission. The analyzed data sample covers an ∼8 yr interval from 2006 July to 2014 September, thus spanning from the decaying phase of the 23rd solar cycle to the maximum of the 24th cycle. We explored the intensity temporal variations as a function of drift shell and proton energy, also providing an explicit investigation of the solar modulation effects at different equatorial pitch angles. PAMELA observations offer new important constraints for the modeling of low-altitude particle radiation environment at the highest trapping energies.
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