Solar wind gases, cosmic-ray spallation products and the irradiation history of Apollo 11 samples
Apollo 11 lunar soil irradiation history from solar wind rare gas abundances and cosmic ray spallation products
Lugmair, G. W.↗
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The effect of hot gas in early-type galaxies on the cosmic microwave background
The effects on the cosmic microwave background which are due to Compton scattering by the hot gas contained in early-type galaxies (the Sunyaev-Zeldovich effect) are computed. Using the known properties of the gas deduced from X-ray observations, it is found that the fractional attenuation DeltaT/T at the center of a gas-rich galaxy is likely to be less than 10 to the -5th, which is just below current limits of detectability. A distribution function is derived for the attenuation which is due to a population of early-type galaxies out to some redshift and the expected rms fluctuations in the background on subarcmin scales are computed. These fluctuations are comparable to those intrinsic to the microwave background in the 'cold dark matter' scenario on these angular scales, but they fall orders of magnitude below the detection limits and below the level of fluctuations expected from nonlinear density perturbations at the epoch of galaxy formation.
Trester, Jeffrey J.↗
A high resolution gas scintillation proportional counter for studying low energy cosmic X-ray sources
In recent years much effort has been devoted to the development of large area gas scintillation proportional counters (GSPCs) suitable for use in X-ray astronomy. The paper deals with a low-energy GSPC for use in detecting sub-keV X-rays from cosmic sources. This instrument has a measured energy resolution of 85 eV (FWHM) at 149 eV over a sensitive area of 5 sq cm. The development of imaging capability for this instrument is discussed. Tests are performed on the feasibility of using an arrangement of several phototubes placed adjacent to one another to determine event locations in a large flat counter. A simple prototype has been constructed and successfully operated.
Hamilton, T. T.↗
Gamma rays, cosmic rays, and galactic structure
Observations of cosmic and gamma radiation by SAS-2 satellite are summarized and analyzed to determine processes responsible for producing observed galactic radiation. In addition to the production of gamma rays in discrete galactic objects such as pulsars, there are three main mechanisms by which high-energy (greater than 100 MeV) radiation is produced by high-energy interactions involving cosmic rays in interstellar space. These processes, which produce what may be called diffuse galactic gamma-rays, are: (1) the decay of pi mesons produced by interactions of cosmic ray nucleons with interstellar gas nuclei; (2) the bremsstrahlung radiation produced by cosmic ray electrons interacting in the Coulomb fields of nuclei of interstellar gas atoms; and (3) Compton interactions between cosmic ray electrons and low-energy photons in interstellar space.
Stecker, F. W.↗
Production Rates for Noble-Gas Isotopes in Eucrites
To get cosmic-ray exposure ages of meteorites from measured concentrations of cosmic-ray-produced ("cosmogenic") noble-gas isotopes, production rates for those isotopes are needed. The best production rates take into consideration the composition of the meteorite and the "shielding" of the sample (the pre-atmospheric size and shape of the meteoroid and the sample s location in the meteoroid). For ordinary chondrites, there have been many sets of measurements to establish production systematics. The Ne-22/Ne-21 is often used to help to get shielding-dependent production rates. We report here numerical simulations for the production of isotopes of the light noble gases He, Ne, and Ar in both basaltic and cumulate eucrites for several sizes.
Reedy, R. C.↗
Diffuse fluxes of cosmic high energy neutrinos
Production spectra of high-energy neutrinos from galactic cosmic ray interactions with interstellar gas and extragalactic ultrahigh energy cosmic-ray interactions with microwave black-body photons are presented and discussed. These production processes involve the decay of charged pions and are thus related to the production of cosmic gamma-rays from the decay of neutral pions. Estimates of the neutrino fluxes from various diffuse cosmic sources are then made and the reasons fro significant differences with previous estimates are discussed. Predicted event rates for a DUMAND type detection system are significantly lower than early estimates indicated.
Stecker, F. W.↗
A satellite measurement of cosmic-ray abundances and spectra in the charge range 2 less than or equal to 7 less than or equal to 10
The composition of the nuclear component of the cosmic radiation was studied to yield information concerning the source, propagation, and confinement of cosmic rays within the galaxy. The first comprehensive satellite measurement is presented of cosmic-ray composition and spectra in the charge range 2 equal to or less than Z equal to or less than 10 using the geomagnetic field as a rigidity analyzer through the entire range of vertical cutoffs. The results indicate that the spectra of all the elements in the observed range are similar, and thus that various ratios of elemental abundances are nearly independent of rigidity over the range 2 equal to or less than P equal to or less than 15 GV. Calculations of the propagation of cosmic rays through the interstellar and interplanetary media predict that there should be a variation with rigidity of ratios of various elements, because of the charge-dependent effects of ionization of the interstellar gas by the cosmic rays. The absence of this variation can be explained by assuming a rigidity-dependent confinement of the cosmic rays in the galaxy.
Brown, J. W.↗
Secondary antiprotons - A valuable cosmic-ray probe
Even in the absence of antiprotons in the primary cosmic rays, a flux of secondary antiprotons will be produced in collisions between cosmic rays and interstellar gas. The predicted antiproton fraction increases with increasing cosmic-ray confinement, so that observations of antiprotons will provide a probe of models of cosmic-ray confinement. It is shown that the expected antiproton fraction (for energies of at least about 10 GeV) ranges between 0.00023 for the 'leaky box' model and 0.0018 for the 'closed box' model. In addition, attention is called to the fact that a detection of cosmic-ray antiprotons at or above a level of 0.0002 will provide a valuable lower limit to the antiproton lifetime.
Steigman, G.↗
UV radiation field inside dense clouds - Its possible existence and chemical implications
Interstellar UV radiation cannot penetrate into the interior of dense clouds, and cosmic ray ionization is thought to be the sole driver of the gas phase chemistry. However, cosmic ray energy deposition also involves electronic excitation of the absorbing gas. It appears, therefore, possible that emissions resulting from these excitations might maintain a significant flux of chemically effective UV photons in the interior of dense clouds. The present investigation is concerned with this possibility, taking into account a simplified approach. This approach involves a consideration of Lyman and Werner band photons of molecular hydrogen and their relevance to C and CO chemistry. The results of this investigation suggest that a chemically significant flux of UV photons may exist inside dense clouds due to cosmic ray excitation of the various band systems of hydrogen. These photons would recover C I from the CO reservoir in dense clouds via photodissociation at an order of magnitude faster rate than that possible in connection with the reaction of CO with He(+).
Prasad, S. S.↗
SDSS-IV MaNGA: the chemical co-evolution of gas and stars in spiral galaxies
ABSTRACT We investigate archaeologically how the metallicity in both stellar and gaseous components of spiral galaxies of differing masses evolve with time, using data from the SDSS-IV MaNGA survey. For the stellar component, we can measure this evolution directly by decomposing the galaxy absorption-line spectra into populations of different ages and determining their metallicities. For the gaseous component, we can only measure the present-day metallicity directly from emission lines. However, there is a well-established relationship between gas metallicity, stellar mass, and star formation rate which does not evolve significantly with redshift; since the latter two quantities can be determined directly for any epoch from the decomposition of the absorption-line spectra, we can use this relationship to infer the variation in gas metallicity over cosmic time. Comparison of present-day values derived in this way with those obtained directly from the emission lines confirms the validity of the method. Application of this approach to a sample of 1619 spiral galaxies reveals how the metallicity of these systems has changed over the last 10 billion yr since cosmic noon. For lower-mass galaxies, both stellar and gaseous metallicity increase together, as one might expect in well-mixed fairly isolated systems. In higher-mass systems, the average stellar metallicity has not increased in step with the inferred gas metallicity, and actually decreases with time. Such disjoint behaviour is what one might expect if these more massive systems have accreted significant amounts of largely pristine gas over their lifetimes, and this material has not been well mixed into the galaxies.
79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
The stability of a self-gravitating, nonrotating gas layer with stellar, magnetic, and cosmic-ray components. I.
Abstract missing.
Kellman, S. A.↗
The stability of a self-gravitating, nonrotating gas layer with stellar, magnetic, and cosmic-ray components. II.
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Kellman, S. A.↗
Modeling Cosmic Reionization
The transformation of cold neutral intergalactic hydrogen into a highly ionized warm plasma marks the end of the cosmic dark ages and the beginning of the age of galaxies. The details of this process reflect the nature of the early sources of radiation and heat, the statistical characteristics of the large-scale structure of the Universe, the thermodynamics and chemistry of cosmic baryons, and the histories of star formation and black hole accretion. A number of massive data sets from new ground- and space-based instruments and facilities over the next decade are poised to revolutionize our understanding of primeval galaxies, the reionization photon budget, the physics of the intergalactic medium (IGM), and the fine-grained properties of hydrogen gas in the "cosmic web". In this review we survey the physics and key aspects of reionization-era modeling and describe the diverse range of computational techniques and tools currently available in this field.
79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
Cosmic ray charge spectrometer.
Gas-filled Cerenkov radiation detector combined with solid detectors to measure charge and flux of relativistic cosmic rays
RELATIVISTIC PARTICLE↗
Cosmic-ray-modified stellar winds. II - A perturbation approach
A perturbation method is developed to describe the modification of a stellar wind flow with termination shock by the Galactic cosmic rays. The perturbation parameter epsilon used in the analysis is the ratio of the galactic cosmic-ray pressure to the thermal gas pressure at a large distance from the star. The positive galactic cosmic-ray pressure gradient serves to brake the outflowing stellar wind gas, particularly just upstream of the termination shock of the wind. A one-fluid polytropic model is used to describe the thermal stellar wind gas, with the coupling between the cosmic rays and the thermal gas being determined by an average hydrodynamical diffusion coefficient kappa describing the scattering of cosmic rays by magnetohydrodynamic waves traveling in the background flow. The analysis takes into account cosmic-ray modifications of the critical point of the wind, the thermal gas entropy constants on both sides of the shock, and the fluid velocity profile.
Ko, C. M.↗
Gamma rays, cosmic rays and galactic structure
Working primarily from the recent SAS-2 observations of galactic gamma rays, the relation of these observations to the large scale distribution of cosmic rays and interstellar gas in the galaxy is reviewed and reexamined. Starting with a discussion of production rates, the case for pion decay being the predominant production mechanism in the galactic disk above 100 MeV is reestablished and it is also pointed out that Compton gamma rays can be a significant source. To facilitate discussion, the concepts of four distinct galactic regions are defined, viz. the nebulodisk, ectodisk, radiodisk and exodisk. Bremsstrahlung and pion decay gamma rays are associated with the first two (primarily the first) regions, and Compton gamma rays and synchrotron radiation are associated with the latter two regions. On a large scale, the cosmic rays, interstellar gas (primarily H2 clouds in the inner galaxy) and gamma ray emissivity all peak in a region between 5 and 6 kpc from the galactic center. This correlation is related to correlation with other population I phenomena and is discussed in terms of the density wave concept of galactic structure. The singular nature of the HI distribution appears to follow the supernova remnant and pulsar distributions in the galaxy.
Stecker, F. W.↗
Gamma-rays, cosmic rays, and galactic structure
The relation of SAS-2 observations of galactic gamma-rays to the large scale distribution of cosmic rays and interstellar gas in the galaxy is reviewed. Starting with a discussion of production rates, the case for pion decay being the predominant production mechanism in the galactic disk above 100 MeV is reestablished, and it is also pointed out that Compton gamma-rays can be a significant source near l = 0. The concepts of four distinct galactic regions are defined, viz. the nebulodisk, ectodisk, radiodisk and exodisk. Bremsstrahlung and pion decay gamma-rays are associated with the first two (primarily the first) regions, and Compton gamma-rays and synchrotron radiation are associated with the latter two regions. On a large scale, the cosmic rays, interstellar gas (primarily H2 clouds in the inner galaxy) and gamma-ray emissivity all peak between 5 and 6 kpc from the galactic center. This correlation is related to correlation with other population I phenomena and is discussed in terms of the density wave concept of galactic structure.
Stecker, F. W.↗
Extraterrestrial high energy neutrino fluxes
Using the most recent cosmic ray spectra up to 2x10 to the 20th power eV, production spectra of high energy neutrinos from cosmic ray interactions with interstellar gas and extragalactic interactions of ultrahigh energy cosmic rays with 3K universal background photons are presented and discussed. Estimates of the fluxes from cosmic diffuse sources and the nearby quasar 3C273 are made using the generic relationship between secondary neutrinos and gammas and using recent gamma ray satellite data. These gamma ray data provide important upper limits on cosmological neutrinos. Quantitative estimates of the observability of high energy neutrinos from the inner galaxy and 3C273 above atmospheric background for a DUMAND type detector are discussed in the context of the Weinberg-Salam model with sq sin theta omega = 0.2 and including the atmospheric background from the decay of charmed mesons. Constraints on cosmological high energy neutrino production models are also discussed. It appears that important high energy neutrino astronomy may be possible with DUMAND, but very long observing times are required.
Stecker, F. W.↗