1. Antarctic balloon-borne detector of high-energy cosmic rays (SPHERE project)
- Author
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W. Tkaczyk, Dmitry Chernov, L. A. Kuzmichev, T. I. Sysoeva, S. P. Chernikov, O. A. Maksimuk, M. I. Panasyuk, M. H. Finger, S. A. Slavatinsky, S. B. Shaulov, E. E. Korosteleva, R.A. Antonov, and M. Sonsky
- Subjects
Physics ,Radiation ,Air shower ,Astrophysics::High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena ,Detector ,Astrophysics::Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics ,Curved mirror ,Astronomy ,Satellite ,Cosmic ray ,Ultra-high-energy cosmic ray ,Cherenkov radiation ,Starlight - Abstract
The experiment SPHERE is based on a A.E. Chudakov's suggestion to use a new method for investigations of the energy spectrum of ultrahigh-energy primary cosmic rays. A small device lifted up off a snowed surface of the Earth detects Cherenkov light of an extensive air shower that is reflected from the surface. A contemporary status of the experiment SPHERE, a description of the method, the first measurements of the background night starlight in the region of the Russian Antarctic station Novolazarevskaya are presented. A relatively simple detector SPHERE-2 including a spherical mirror of the diameter 1.5 m and a 100-pixel retina is developed for Antarctic balloon-borne measurements of the cosmic ray spectrum. A long-time winter flight makes it possible to measure the spectrum above 10 20 eV . A comparison with satellite and ISS projects of the nearest future shows that efficiency of this detector is sufficiently high.
- Published
- 2006