Related papers: Standard Cosmic Ray Energetics and Light Element P…
Historically cosmic rays have always been at the intersection of astrophysics with particle physics. This is still and especially true in current days where experimenters routinely observe atmospheric showers from particles whose energies…
We show that the luminosity of a star forming galaxy is capped by the production and subsequent expulsion of cosmic rays from its interstellar medium. By defining an Eddington luminosity in cosmic rays, we show that the star formation rate…
We study the evolution of stellar content and the chemical enrichment of the universe averaged over the whole population of galaxies by means of a series of chemo-spectrophotometric models that take into account the metallicity and dust…
Studies of nucleosynthesis in neutrino-driven winds from nascent neutron stars show that the elements from Sr through Ag with mass numbers A~88-110 are produced by charged-particle reactions (CPR) during the alpha-process in the winds.…
A critical review of the standard paradigm for the origin of Galactic cosmic rays is presented. Recent measurements of local and far-away cosmic rays reveal unexpected behaviours, which challenge the commonly accepted scenario. These recent…
Using recent measurements of the spectrum and chemical composition of the highest energy cosmic rays, we consider the sources of these particles. We find that the data strongly prefers models in which the sources of the ultra-high energy…
Molecular gas, modest in mass yet pivotal within the cosmic inventory, regulates baryon cycling as the immediate fuel for star formation. Across most of cosmic history, its reservoir has remained elusive, with only the tip of the iceberg…
The search for a theory of the origin of cosmic rays that may be considered as a standard, agreeable model is still ongoing. On one hand, much circumstantial evidence exists of the fact that supernovae in our Galaxy play a crucial role in…
Cosmic ray nuclei, cosmic ray electrons with energy above a few GeV, and the diffuse gamma-ray background radiation (GBR) above a few MeV, presumed to be extragalactic, could all have their origin or residence in our galaxy and its halo.…
Accurate measurements of the lateral distribution of extensive air showers produced by cosmic rays of energy greater than $10^{17}$ eV were made in the 1970s by Linsley. At the time, the state of knowledge about the best hadronic…
Cosmic ray particles with energies in excess of 10**(20) eV have been detected. The sources as well as the physical mechanism(s) responsible for endowing cosmic ray particles with such enormous energies are unknown. This report gives a…
The origin of the ultra high energy cosmic rays via annihilation of heavy stable, fermions "f", of the cosmological dark matter (DM) is studied. The particles in question are supposed to be created by the scalaron decays in $R^2$ modified…
The maximum cosmic ray energy achievable by acceleration by a relativistic blast wave is derived. It is shown that forward shocks from long GRB in the interstellar medium are powerful enough to produce the Galactic cosmic-ray component up…
We review the evidence for cosmic ray acceleration in the superbubble/hot phase of the interstellar medium, and discuss the implications for the composition of cosmic rays and the structure and evolution of the interstellar medium. We show…
Galactic cosmic rays are a ubiquitous source of ionisation of the interstellar gas, competing with UV and X-ray photons as well as natural radioactivity in determining the fractional abundance of electrons, ions and charged dust grains in…
The energy spectrum and mass composition of ultra-high energy cosmic rays inferred at the Pierre Auger Observatory are used to derive a benchmark scenario for the emission mechanisms at play in extragalactic accelerators as well as for…
Energetic gamma rays (GeV to TeV photon energy) have been detected toward several supernova remnants (SNR) that are associated with molecular clouds. If the gamma rays are produced mainly by hadronic processes rather than leptonic processes…
Three different models have been proposed for LiBeB production by cosmic rays: the CRI model in which the cosmic rays are accelerated out of an ISM of solar composition scaled with metallicity; the CRS model in which cosmic rays with…
The spectral shape of cosmic ray positrons and antiprotons has been accurately measured in the broad kinetic energy range 1-350 GeV. In the higher part of this range (E > 30 GeV) the e+ and pbar are both well described by power laws with…
The process that allows cosmic rays to escape from their sources and be released into the Galaxy is still largely unknown. The comparison between cosmic-ray electron and proton spectra measured at Earth suggests that electrons are released…