Cosmic ray observations by CARPET detector installed in central Saudi Arabia-preliminary results

Abstract

In 2017 CARPET cosmic ray detector was installed at KACST (King Abulaziz City for Science and Technology) at Riyadh (latitude 24.67, longitude 46.74; alt. 613 m; geomagnetic cuttoff rigidity Rc = 14.4 GV) Saudi Arabia. The detector was built as part of the international scientific collaboration between the P.N. Lebedev Physical Institute (LPI, Moscow, Russia) and KACST. The CARPET is sensitive to the low energy secondary component of the cosmic rays (CR). The main goal of this detector is to measure and study the CR variations and investigate their correlations with solar activity and atmospheric phenomena (e.g. thundercloud activity, thunderstorms, etc.). The detector performance was tested and showed comparable results to our existing 1 m2 scintillator and multi-wire detectors. In this paper a brief description of this instrument will be given. Correlation analyses between the CARPET data and atmospheric variables will be carried out and established. Short term periodicities of the CR recorded by CARPET were investigated and recognized. The obtained periodicities are in agreement with those reported by different researchers. Long-term data from CARPET can be a useful tool to investigate several types of CR variations resulting from solar activity or atmospheric processes.