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Register a new userObserving ultra-high energy cosmic rays with prototypes of the Fluorescence detector Array of Single-pixel Telescopes (FAST) in both hemispheres
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The origin and nature of ultra-high energy cosmic rays (UHECRs) are hot topics in the astroparticle physics community. The Fluorescence detector Array of Single-pixel Telescopes (FAST) is a design for a next-generation ground-based UHECR observatory, addressing the requirements for a large-area, low-cost detector suitable for measuring the properties of the highest energy cosmic rays with an unprecedented aperture. We have developed a full-scale prototype consisting of four 200 mm photomultiplier tubes at the focus of a segmented mirror of 1.6 m in diameter. Over the last three years, we have installed three prototypes at the Telescope Array Experiment in Utah, USA. These telescopes have been steadily taking data since installation. We report on preliminary results of the full-scale FAST prototypes, including measurements of UHECRs, and distant ultra-violet lasers used to study the atmospheric transparency. Furthermore, we discuss the installation of an additional identical FAST prototype at the Pierre Auger Observatory in Argentina. Possible benefits to the Telescope Array Experiment and the Pierre Auger Observatory include a comparison of the transparency of the atmosphere above both experiments, a study of the systematic uncertainty associated with their existing fluorescence detectors, and a cross-calibration of their energy and Xmax scales.
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The origin and nature of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays (UHECRs) remain an open question in astroparticle physics. Motivated by the need for an unprecedented aperture for further advancements, the Fluorescence detector Array of Single-pixel Telescopes (FAST) is a prospective next-generation, ground-based UHECR observatory that aims to cover a huge area by deploying a large array of low-cost fluorescence detectors. The full-scale FAST prototype consists of four 20 cm photomultiplier tubes at the focus of a segmented mirror 1.6 m in diameter. Over the last five years, three prototypes have been installed at the Telescope Array Experiment in Utah, USA, and one prototype at the Pierre Auger Observatory in Mendoza, Argentina, commencing remote observation of UHECRs in both hemispheres. We report on the latest results of these FAST prototypes, including telescope calibrations, atmospheric monitoring, ongoing electronics upgrades, development of sophisticated reconstruction methods, and UHECR detections.
The Fluorescence detector Array of Single-pixel Telescopes (FAST) is a design concept for a next-generation UHECR observatory, addressing the requirements for a large-area, low-cost detector suitable for measuring the properties of ultra-high energy cosmic rays (UHECRs), having energies exceeding $10^{19.5}$,eV, with an unprecedented aperture. We have developed a full-scale prototype consisting of four 200,mm diameter photo-multiplier tubes at the focus of a segmented mirror of 1.6,m in diameter. In October 2016, September 2017, and September 2018 we installed three such prototypes at the Black Rock Mesa site of the Telescope Array experiment in central Utah, USA. All three telescopes have been steadily taking data since installation. We report on the design and installation of these prototypes, and present some preliminary results, including measurements of artificial light sources, distant ultraviolet lasers, and UHECRs. Furthermore, we discuss some additional uses for these simplified low-cost fluorescence telescopes, including the facilitation of a systematic comparison of the transparency of the atmosphere above the Telescope Array experiment and the Pierre Auger Observatory, a study of the systematic uncertainty associated with the existing fluorescence detectors of these two experiments, and a cross-calibration of their energy and $X_{text{max}}$ scales.
Contributions of the Fluorescence detector Array of Single-pixel Telescopes (FAST) to the 35th International Cosmic Ray Conference, 12-20 July 2017, Busan, Korea
We present a measurement of the energy spectrum of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays performed by the Telescope Array experiment using monocular observations from its two new FADC-based fluorescence detectors. After a short description of the experiment, we describe the data analysis and event reconstruction procedures. Since the aperture of the experiment must be calculated by Monte Carlo simulation, we describe this calculation and the comparisons of simulated and real data used to verify the validity of the aperture calculation. Finally, we present the energy spectrum calculated from the merged monocular data sets of the two FADC-based detectors, and also the combination of this merged spectrum with an independent, previously published monocular spectrum measurement performed by Telescope Arrays third fluorescence detector (Abu-Zayyad {it et al.}, {Astropart. Phys.} 39 (2012), 109). This combined spectrum corroborates the recently published Telescope Array surface detector spectrum (Abu-Zayyad {it et al.}, {Astrophys. Journ.} 768 (2013), L1) with independent systematic uncertainties.
We propose a novel approach for observing cosmic rays at ultra-high energy ($>10^{18}$~eV) by repurposing the existing network of smartphones as a ground detector array. Extensive air showers generated by cosmic rays produce muons and high-energy photons, which can be detected by the CMOS sensors of smartphone cameras. The small size and low efficiency of each sensor is compensated by the large number of active phones. We show that if user adoption targets are met, such a network will have significant observing power at the highest energies.
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