Related papers: Features in the Cosmic Ray Energy Spectrum Observe…
The interaction of Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays (UHECRs) with the atoms of the atmosphere can occur at center-of-mass energies that surpass 100 TeV, while present human-made accelerators go up to 13 TeV. Therefore it provides a unique…
The sharp change in slope of the ultrahigh energy cosmic ray (UHECR) spectrum around 10^18.6 eV (the ankle), combined with evidence of a light but extragalactic component near and below the ankle and intermediate composition above, has…
We consider the astrophysical implications of the diffusion equation solution for Ultra-High Energy Cosmic Rays (UHECR) in the expanding universe, obtained in paper I (V.Berezinsky & A.Gazizov, ApJ 643 (2006) 8). The UHECR spectra are…
We discuss the most recent developments in our understanding of the acceleration and propagation of cosmic rays up to the highest energies. In particular we specialize our discussion to three issues: 1) developments in the theory of…
Cosmic rays around the knee are generally believed to be of galactic origin. Observations on their energy spectrum and chemical composition are important for understanding the acceleration and propagation of these cosmic rays. In addition,…
Observation of Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays (UHECR) -whose energy exceeds $10^20$eV- is still a puzzle for modern astrophysics. The transfer of more than 16 Joules to a microscopic particle can hardly be achieved, even in the most powerful…
We explore scenarios where the highest energy cosmic rays (HECR) are produced by new particle physics near the grand unification scale. Using detailed numerical simulations of extragalactic cosmic and gamma-ray propagation, we show the…
We investigate the detection of exotic massive strongly interacting hadrons (uhecrons) in ultra high energy cosmic ray telescopes. The conclusion is that experiments such as the Pierre Auger Observatory have the potential to detect these…
We present the cosmic neutrino detecting potential of the Telescope Array for quasihorizontally downward and upward air showers initiated by very high energy neutrinos penetrating the air and the Earth respectively. We adopted model…
We consider the recent results on UHECR (Ultra High Energy Cosmic Ray) composition and their distribution in the sky from ten EeV energy (the dipole anisotropy) up to the highest UHECR energies and their clustering maps: UHECR have been…
Taking advantage of recent technical progress which has overcome some of the difficulties encountered in the 1960's in the radio detection of extensive air showers induced by ultra high energy cosmic rays (UHECR), a new experimental…
The Southern part of the Pierre Auger Observatory is nearing completion, and has been in stable operation since January 2004 while it has grown in size. The large sample of data collected so far has led to a significant improvement in the…
Cosmic rays are a sample of solar, galactic and extragalactic matter. Their origin and properties are one of the most intriguing question in modern astrophysics. The most energetic events and active objects in the Universe: supernovae…
The origin of the particles in the highest energy end of the cosmic ray spectrum is discussed in the context of the wider problem of the origin of the whole cosmic radiation as observed at the Earth. In particular we focus our attention on…
The field of UHECRs (Ultra-High energy cosmic Rays) and the understanding of particle acceleration in the cosmos, as a key ingredient to the behaviour of the most powerful sources in the universe, is of outmost importance for astroparticle…
The energies of cosmic rays, fully ionized charged nuclei, extend over a wide range up to 10^20 eV. A particularly interesting energy region spans from 10^14 to 10^18 eV, where the all-particle energy spectrum exhibits two interesting…
Large-scale accretion shocks around massive clusters of galaxies, generically expected in hierarchical scenarios of cosmological structure formation, are shown to be potential sources of the observed ultrahigh energy cosmic rays (UHECRs) by…
It has been speculated that the recently detected ultra-high energy cosmic rays may originate from the decays of relic particles with mass of order $10^{12}$ GeV clustered in the halo of our Galaxy. This hypothesis can be tested through…
The origin of the highest energy cosmic rays is still unknown. The discovery of their sources will reveal the workings of the most energetic astrophysical accelerators in the universe. Current observations show a spectrum consistent with an…
We briefly discuss some open problems and recent developments in the investigation of the origin and propagation of ultra high energy cosmic rays (UHECRs).