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Register a new userStudying the Temporal Variation of the Cosmic-Ray Sun Shadow Using IceCube Data
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The shadowing effect of the Moon and Sun in TeV cosmic rays has been measured with high statistical significance by several experiments. Unlike particles from directions close to the Moon, however, charged particles passing by the neighborhood of the Sun are affected not only by the geomagnetic but also by the solar near- and interplanetary-magnetic field. Since the latter undergoes a well-known 11-year cycle -- during which it can become highly disordered -- the cosmic-ray shadow cast by the Sun as observed on Earth is expected to change over time. We present an update of the analysis of the cosmic-ray Moon and Sun shadows using data taken with the IceCube Neutrino Observatory. With a median energy after quality cuts of approximately $50-60,$TeV, depending on the cosmic-ray flux model used, primary cosmic rays inducing events which pass IceCubes Sun shadow filter have a comparatively high energy. While the results for the Moon shadow confirm the stability of the IceCube observatory, the results for the Sun shadow exhibit a clear variation correlating with solar activity and theoretical models of the solar magnetic field.
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We report on the observation of a deficit in the cosmic ray flux from the directions of the Moon and Sun with five years of data taken by the IceCube Neutrino Observatory. Between May 2010 and May 2011 the IceCube detector operated with 79 strings deployed in the glacial ice at the South Pole, and with 86 strings between May 2011 and May 2015. A binned analysis is used to measure the relative deficit and significance of the cosmic ray shadows. Both the cosmic ray Moon and Sun shadows are detected with high statistical significance ($>10sigma$) for each year. The results for the Moon shadow are consistent with previous analyses and verify the stability of the IceCube detector over time. This work represents the first observation of the Sun shadow with the IceCube detector. We show that the cosmic ray shadow of the Sun varies with time. These results open the possibility to study cosmic ray transport near the Sun with future data from IceCube.
ANTARES is the largest undersea neutrino telescope and it has been taking data in its final configuration for more than ten years. On their journey to the Earth, cosmic rays can be absorbed by celestial objects, like the Sun, leading to a deficit in the atmospheric muon flux measured by the ANTARES detector, the so-called Sun shadow effect. This phenomenon can be used to evaluate fundamental telescope characteristics: the detector angular resolution and pointing accuracy. This work describes the study of the Sun shadow effect using the ANTARES data collected between 2008 and 2017. The statistical significance of the Sun shadow observation is $3.7sigma$ and the estimated angular resolution value of the ANTARES telescope for downward-going muons is $0.59^{circ} pm 0.10^{circ}$, which is consistent with the expectations obtained from the Monte Carlo simulations and also with the estimation from the Moon shadow analysis of 2007-2016 years. No evidence of systematic pointing shift is found and the resulting pointing accuracy is consistent with the expectations.
The ANTARES detector is an undersea neutrino telescope in the Mediterranean Sea. The search for point-like neutrino sources is one of the main goals of the ANTARES telescope, requiring a reliable method to evaluate the detector angular resolution and pointing accuracy. This work describes the study of the Sun shadow effect with the ANTARES detector. The shadow is the deficit in the atmospheric muon flux in the direction of the Sun caused by the absorption of the primary cosmic rays. This analysis is based on the data collected between 2008 and 2017 by the ANTARES telescope. The observed statistical significance of the Sun shadow detection is $3.7sigma$, with an estimated angular resolution of $0.59^circpm0.10^circ$ for downward-going muons. The pointing accuracy is found to be consistent with the expectations and no evidence of systematic pointing shifts is observed.
Observations of the time-dependent cosmic-ray Sun shadow have been proven as a valuable diagnostic for the assessment of solar magnetic field models. In this paper, seven years of IceCube data are compared to solar activity and solar magnetic field models. A quantitative comparison of solar magnetic field models with IceCube data on the event rate level is performed for the first time. Additionally, a first energy-dependent analysis is presented and compared to recent predictions. We use seven years of IceCube data for the Moon and the Sun and compare them to simulations on data rate level. The simulations are performed for the geometrical shadow hypothesis for the Moon and the Sun and for a cosmic-ray propagation model governed by the solar magnetic field for the case of the Sun. We find that a linearly decreasing relationship between Sun shadow strength and solar activity is preferred over a constant relationship at the 6.4sigma level. We test two commonly used models of the coronal magnetic field, both combined with a Parker spiral, by modeling cosmic-ray propagation in the solar magnetic field. Both models predict a weakening of the shadow in times of high solar activity as it is also visible in the data. We find tensions with the data on the order of $3sigma$ for both models, assuming only statistical uncertainties. The magnetic field model CSSS fits the data slightly better than the PFSS model. This is generally consistent with what is found previously by the Tibet AS-gamma Experiment, a deviation of the data from the two models is, however, not significant at this point. Regarding the energy dependence of the Sun shadow, we find indications that the shadowing effect increases with energy during times of high solar activity, in agreement with theoretical predictions.
We report on the observation of a significant deficit of cosmic rays from the direction of the Moon with the IceCube detector. The study of this Moon shadow is used to characterize the angular resolution and absolute pointing capabilities of the detector. The detection is based on data taken in two periods before the completion of the detector: between April 2008 and May 2009, when IceCube operated in a partial configuration with 40 detector strings deployed in the South Pole ice, and between May 2009 and May 2010 when the detector operated with 59 strings. Using two independent analysis methods, the Moon shadow has been observed to high significance (> 6 sigma) in both detector configurations. The observed location of the shadow center is within 0.2 degrees of its expected position when geomagnetic deflection effects are taken into account. This measurement validates the directional reconstruction capabilities of IceCube.
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