Related papers: The mass composition of cosmic rays above 10^17 eV
Our knowledge of the mass composition of cosmic rays is deficient at all energies above 10^17. Here systematic differences between different measurements are discussed and, in particular, it is argued that there is no compelling evidence to…
The present situation with regard to experimental data on ultra high-energy cosmic rays is briefly reviewed. Whilst detailed knowledge of the shape of the energy spectrum is still lacking, it is clear that events above 10^20 eV do exist.…
Interpretation of the energy spectrum and arrival distribution of cosmic rays is complicated by lack of knowledge of the nature of the primaries. We review claims for the mass composition above 1017 eV where it can be determined only…
A brief review about the chemical composition of cosmic rays in the energy range 10^15 < E < 10^20 eV is given. While there is convincing evidence for an increasingly heavier composition above the knee, no clear picture has emerged at the…
Cosmic rays are the highest energy particles found in nature. Measurements of the mass composition of cosmic rays between 10^{17} eV and 10^{18} eV are essential to understand whether this energy range is dominated by Galactic or…
Investigations of the origin of cosmic rays are presented. Different methods are discussed: studies of cosmic gamma rays of energy from 30 MeV to about 10^15 eV (since photons point to their places of origin), studies of the mass…
We briefly review the status of cosmic ray studies between $10^{14}$ eV and the highest observed energies, namely a few times $10^{20}$ eV. Because of the rather low incident fluxes in this energy range, the studies mostly rely on ground…
Cosmic rays are relativistic particles that come to the Earth from outer space. Despite a great effort made in both experimental and theoretical research, their origin is still unknown. One of the main keys to understand their nature is the…
A review of several analyses is presented that forces the conclusion that the mass composition of the highest-energy cosmic rays is not proton-dominated. This deduction, combined with the use of a modern hadronic interaction model, should…
Cosmic rays with energies above $10^{18}$ eV are currently of considerable interest in astrophysics and are to be further studied in a number of projects which are either currently under construction or the subject of well-developed…
We give a summary of the theoretical attempts to make sense of the observational data concerning the highest energy cosmic rays, (E > 3x10^{19} eV).
This is a summary of a series of lectures on the current experimental and theoretical status of our understanding of origin and nature of cosmic radiation. Specific focus is put on ultra-high energy cosmic radiation above ~10^17 eV,…
The average mass composition of cosmic rays with primary energies between $10^{17}$eV and $10^{18}$eV has been studied using a hybrid detector consisting of the High Resolution Fly's Eye (HiRes) prototype and the MIA muon array.…
A new method of determining Primary Cosmic Ray mass composition is proposed. The method is based on quasi-localization of the integral equation for the Extensive Air Showers spectrum versus the total number of high energy muons ($E_\mu…
The greater part of this paper is concerned with a historical discussion of the development of the search for the origins of the highest-energy cosmic-rays together with a few remarks about future prospects. Additionally, in section 6, the…
The bulk of observed ultrahigh energy cosmic rays could be light or heavier elements, and originate from an either steady or transient population of sources. This leaves us with four general categories of sources. Energetic requirements set…
The detection of cosmic rays with energy around and in excess of $10^{20}$ eV raises many questions that future experiments will help answering to. I address here my view of some of these open issues, as they are now and as they might be…
The most energetic particles ever detected exceed $10^{20}$ eV in energy. Their existence represents at the same time a great challenge for particle physics and astrophysics, and a great promise of providing us for a probe of the validity…
The differential energy spectrum of cosmic rays from Cherenkov radiation measurements in EAS in the energy range of 10^15-10^20eV has been compared with an anomalous diffusion model for the particles in interstellar space having fractal…
It is proposed a new approach for estimating the composition of cosmic rays. It is found that the zenith angle distributions and muon components of EAS for energies E>10^19 eV and E>4.10^19 eV differ from each other. It is shown that the…