Sources Of Galactic Cosmic Rays Research Articles

Search for Galactic cosmic ray sources: The multimessenger approach

The search for the sources of high-energy cosmic rays (CRs) has made significant progress the past decade. By including multimessenger methods, the general picture of the presence of a Galactic component at low energies and an extragalactic one at the highest energies has been strengthened. Yet, unambiguous proof of the exact origins of CRs is missing. In this review, the current scientific status on Galactic CR sources from theory and experimental data is summarized. In particular, the focus of this review lies on the search for photon and neutrino signals from the Galaxy and their theoretical interpretation in the context of the quest for the origin of high-energy cosmic rays. The use of multiwavelength data, from radio to TeV energies, as well as the option of coincident observations of different wavelength bands in order to pin-point the sources of Galactic CRs are discussed. Finally, the objectives for the field of astroparticles to reach the goal of unambiguously identifying Galactic cosmic ray sources within the next decades are presented.

Cosmic ray antiprotons from nearby cosmic accelerators

The antiproton flux measured by PAMELA experiment might have originated from Galactic sources of cosmic rays. These antiprotons are expected to be produced in the interactions of cosmic ray protons and nuclei with cold protons. Gamma rays are also produced in similar interactions inside some of the cosmic accelerators. We consider a few nearby supernova remnants observed by Fermi LAT. Many of them are associated with molecular clouds. Gamma rays have been detected from these sources which most likely originate in decay of neutral pions produced in hadronic interactions. The observed gamma ray fluxes from these SNRs are used to find out their contributions to the observed diffuse cosmic ray antiproton flux near the earth.

A hadronic explanation of the lepton anomaly

The rise in the positron fraction, observed by PAMELA, Fermi-LAT and most recently by AMS-02, has created a lot of interest, fuelled by speculations about an origin in dark matter annihilation in the Galactic halo. However, other channels, e.g. antiprotons or gamma-rays, now severely constrain dark matter interpretations, thus requiring astrophysical sources of positrons. We have investigated the possibility that supernova remnants, the most likely sources of Galactic cosmic rays, can in fact also produce a hard spectrum of secondary positrons, by spallation and acceleration at the shock. This mechanism is guaranteed if hadronic CRs are present and would also lead to observable signatures in other secondary channels like the boron-to-carbon or antiproton-to-proton ratios. If such features were borne out by upcoming AMS-02 data, this would rule out other explanations.

Recent Results in Cosmic Ray Physics and Their Interpretation

The last decade has been dense with new developments in the search for the sources of Galactic cosmic rays. Some of these developments have confirmed the tight connection between cosmic rays and supernovae in our Galaxy, through the detection of gamma rays and the observation of thin non-thermal X-ray rims in supernova remnants. Some other, such as the detection of features in the spectra of some chemicals opened new questions on the propagation of cosmic rays in the Galaxy and on details of the acceleration process. Here I will summarize some of these developments and their implications for our understanding of the origin of cosmic rays. I will also discuss some new avenues that are being pursued in testing the supernova origin of Galactic cosmic rays.

GALACTIC AND EXTRAGALACTIC SUPERNOVA REMNANTS AS SITES OF PARTICLE ACCELERATION

Supernova remnants, owing to their strong shock waves, are likely sources of Galactic cosmic rays. Studies of supernova remnants in X-rays and gamma rays provide us with new insights into the acceleration of particles to high energies. This paper reviews the basic physics of supernova remnant shocks and associated particle acceleration and radiation processes. In addition, the study of supernova remnant populations in nearby galaxies and the implications for Galactic cosmic ray distribution are discussed.

The origin of galactic cosmic rays

One century ago Viktor Hess carried out several balloon flights that led him to conclude that the penetrating radiation responsible for the discharge of electroscopes was of extraterrestrial origin. One century from the discovery of this phenomenon seems to be a good time to stop and think about what we have understood about Cosmic Rays. The aim of this review is to illustrate the ideas that have been and are being explored in order to account for the observable quantities related to cosmic rays and to summarize the numerous new pieces of observation that are becoming available. In fact, despite the possible impression that development in this field is somewhat slow, the rate of new discoveries in the last decade or so has been impressive, and mainly driven by beautiful pieces of observation. At the same time scientists in this field have been able to propose new, fascinating ways to investigate particle acceleration inside the sources, making use of multifrequency observations that range from the radio, to the optical, to X-rays and gamma rays. These ideas can now be confronted with data. I will mostly focus on supernova remnants as the most plausible sources of Galactic cosmic rays, and I will review the main aspects of the modern theory of diffusive particle acceleration at supernova remnant shocks, with special attention for the dynamical reaction of accelerated particles on the shock and the phenomenon of magnetic field amplification at the shock. Cosmic ray escape from the sources is discussed as a necessary step to determine the spectrum of cosmic rays at the Earth. In the end of this review I will also discuss the phenomenon of cosmic ray acceleration at shocks propagating in partially ionized media and the implications of this phenomenon in terms of width of the Balmer line emission.

Cosmic ray acceleration in hypernova remnants expanding in wind bubbles of Wolf-Rayet progenitor stars

The determination of the origin of cosmic rays with observed energies in excess of 1017 eV that exceed the expected energies of cosmic rays accelerated by supernova remnants in the galaxy is a pressing problem in modern astrophysics. Hypernova remnants are one of the possible galactic sources of cosmic rays with energies of up to 1019 eV. Hypernovae constitute a class of extremely powerful supernova explosions, whose supposed progenitors are massive Wolf-Rayet stars. We analyze the special aspects of acceleration of cosmic rays in hypernova remnants that expand in wind bubbles of Wolf-Rayet progenitor stars. We show that these cosmic rays may attain maximum energies of 1018 eV even with a relatively conservative choice of acceleration parameters and account for tens of percent of the total cosmic ray flux observed in the vicinity of the earth in the energy range of 1016–1018 eV if the galactic hypernova explosion rate in the modern epoch reaches ṄS ∼ 10−4 year−1.

Galactic PeV neutrinos

The IceCube experiment has detected two neutrinos with energies between 1 and 10PeV. They might have originated from Galactic or extragalactic sources of cosmic rays. In the present work we consider hadronic interactions of the diffuse very high energy cosmic rays with the interstellar matter within our Galaxy to explain the PeV neutrino events detected in IceCube. We also expect PeV gamma ray events along with the PeV neutrino events if the observed PeV neutrinos were produced within our Galaxy in hadronic interactions. PeV gamma rays are unlikely to reach us from sources outside our Galaxy due to pair production with cosmic background radiation fields. We suggest that in future with simultaneous detections of PeV gamma rays and neutrinos it would be possible to distinguish between Galactic and extragalactic origins of very high energy neutrinos.

Acceleration of cosmic rays by young core-collapse supernova remnants

Context. Supernova remnants (SNRs) are thought to be the primary candidates for the sources of Galactic cosmic rays. According to the diffusive shock acceleration theory, SNR shocks produce a power-law spectrum with an index of s = 2, perhaps nonlinearly modified to harder spectra at high energy. Observations of SNRs often indicate particle spectra that are softer than that and show features not expected from classical theory. Known drawbacks of the standard approach are the assumption that SNRs evolve in a uniform environment, and that the reverse shock does not accelerate particles. Relaxing these assumptions increases the complexity of the problem, because one needs reliable hydrodynamical data for the plasma flow as well as good estimates for the magnetic field (MF) at the reverse shock. Aims. We show that these two factors are especially important when modeling young core-collapse SNRs that evolve in a complicated circumstellar medium shaped by the winds of progenitor stars. Methods. We used high-resolution numerical simulations for the hydrodynamical evolution of the SNR. Instead of parametrizations of the MF profiles inside the SNR, we followed the advection of the frozen-in MF inside the SNR, and thus obtained the B-field value at all locations, in particular at the reverse shock. To model cosmic-ray acceleration we solved the cosmic-ray transport equation in test-particle approximation. Results. We find that the complex plasma-flow profiles of core-collapse SNRs significantly modify the particle spectra. Additionally, the reverse shock strongly affects the emission spectra and the surface brightness.

UNDERSTANDING TeV-BAND COSMIC-RAY ANISOTROPY

We investigate the temporal and spectral correlations between flux and anisotropy fluctuations of TeV-band cosmic rays in the light of recent data taken with IceCube. We find that for a conventional distribution of cosmic-ray sources the dipole anisotropy is higher than observed, even if source discreteness is taken into account. Moreover, even for a shallow distribution of galactic cosmic-ray sources and a reacceleration model, fluctuations arising from source discreteness provide a probability only of the order of 10% that the cosmic-ray anisotropy limits of the recent IceCube analysis are met. This probability estimate is nearly independent of the exact choice of source rate, but generous for a large halo size. The location of the intensity maximum far from the Galactic Center is naturally reproduced.

Particle acceleration and non-thermal emission during the V407 Cygni nova outburst

On March 2010, the symbiotic binary V407 Cyg erupted as a result of a nova explosion. The event gave rise to a two-week long burst of >100MeV gamma-rays detected by Fermi/LAT, a unique observation testifying to particle acceleration in the system. The outburst can be considered a scaled-down supernova, with short dynamical time scale, and thus can constitute a test case for theories of the origin of galactic cosmic rays. We aim at determining the properties of the accelerated particles and identifying the origin of the high-energy radiation. We developed a model for diffusive shock acceleration and non-thermal emission in V407 Cyg, complemented by an evaluation of the thermal emission from the shocked plasma. We considered both leptonic and hadronic contributions to the non-thermal processes, and investigated the effect of many binary and nova parameters. The gamma-ray emission is mostly of leptonic origin and arises predominantly from inverse-Compton scattering of the nova light. Upscattering of the red giant photons is a minor contribution. Matching the light curve requires gas accumulation in the vicinity of the white dwarf, as a consequence of wind accretion, while the spectrum imposes particle scattering close to the Bohm limit in the upstream equipartition magnetic field. The nova accelerated protons (respectively electrons) with energies up to ~300GeV (respectively ~20GeV), for a total non-thermal energy 10^43 erg after two weeks, representing ~10% of the initial nova kinetic energy. The electron-to-proton ratio at injection is 6%. The V407 Cyg eruption can be understood from the same principles that are invoked for particle acceleration in supernova remnants, although without the need for strong magnetic field amplification. The population of novae in symbiotic systems is a negligible source of Galactic cosmic rays, and most likely not a class of TeV-emitters.

Detection of the Characteristic Pion-Decay Signature in Supernova Remnants

Cosmic rays are particles (mostly protons) accelerated to relativistic speeds. Despite wide agreement that supernova remnants (SNRs) are the sources of galactic cosmic rays, unequivocal evidence for the acceleration of protons in these objects is still lacking. When accelerated protons encounter interstellar material, they produce neutral pions, which in turn decay into gamma rays. This offers a compelling way to detect the acceleration sites of protons. The identification of pion-decay gamma rays has been difficult because high-energy electrons also produce gamma rays via bremsstrahlung and inverse Compton scattering. We detected the characteristic pion-decay feature in the gamma-ray spectra of two SNRs, IC 443 and W44, with the Fermi Large Area Telescope. This detection provides direct evidence that cosmic-ray protons are accelerated in SNRs.

The supernova remnant W51C: a plausible source of galactic cosmic rays?

Supernova remnants are a probable site of acceleration of particles via diffusive shock processes. High energies carried by electrons or protons are radiated into photons detectable from radio to γ rays. MAGIC has recently observed W51C, one of the most luminous galactic supernova remnants, and completed its spectrum between 50 GeV and 5 TeV. We modelled different processes for high energy photon emission of this source, and compared the predictions with the measured spectral energy distribution. It is plausible that hadrons are accelerated in the expansion front of this source, in interaction with the surrounding molecular cloud, and photons are produced in the decay of neutral mesons created in hadronic collisions.

On the Galactic Center being the main source of galactic cosmic rays as evidenced by recent cosmic ray and gamma ray observations

We revisit the idea that the Galactic Center (GC) is the dominant source of galactic cosmic rays (GCRs), based on a series of new observational evidence. A unified model is proposed to explain the new phenomena of GCRs and γ-rays simultaneously. The GCRs are thought to be accelerated during past activities of the GC. The pair production process of GCRs in the strong radiation field due to the GC activity is responsible for the knee structure of the CR spectra. A fraction of e+e− produced by pair production interactions can be reaccelerated in the induced bipolar jets and be transported into the halo, leaving the Fermi γ-ray bubbles and WMAP microwave haze as the remnant signal. Finally, the CRs diffuse in the bulge could further interact with the interstellar medium to produce low energy e+e−. After cooling down, these positrons may annihilate to produce the 511 keV line emission as discovered by INTEGRAL.

The origin of cosmic rays and TeV gamma-ray astronomy

Cosmic rays are accelerated to high energies in Galactic and extragalactic objects like Supernova remnants (SNR) and active galactic nuclei (AGN). How these accelerators work and how e cient they accel- erate di erent types of particles to energies of 10 15 eV or beyond, is 100 years after the discovery of cosmic rays by Victor Hess, still unknown. Gamma rays trace cosmic rays at their site of acceleration and give crucial information on the nature and inner workings of these extreme objects. Gamma rays can be used to find the sources of cosmic rays and to determine their type, age and dynamics. We review in these proceedings the observational techniques and recent findings on gamma-ray emission from Supernova remnants. In 1912, the Austrian physicist Victor F. Hess discovered by means of several balloon ascents the particle popula- tion in the universe of highest energy: cosmic rays. Their energy spectrum can be described by a power law cov- ering 10 order of magnitudes in energy (up to 10 20 eV) and about 30 orders of magnitude in flux. Cosmic rays consist mainly of nuclei like protons, helium and heav- ier types up to iron. Supernova remnants (SNRs) have been the prime candidates as sources of galactic cosmic rays since the 1960s. The working hypothesis is that a 10% conversion of the blast wave's energy into relativis- tic particles during the lifetime of a SNR are enough to fill the Galaxy with cosmic rays up to about 10 15 eV. To- day, there is much unequivocal evidence for the accelera- tion of cosmic rays in SNRs from observations at di er- ent wavelengths: the expansion measurements in X-rays (1); observation of magnetic field amplification as byprod- uct of particle acceleration (2); dynamical measurements of shock positions and shock temperature (3) and non- thermal emission in gamma rays (e.g.(4)). The mechanism of di usive shock acceleration is a solid theoretical base for the production of cosmic rays by SNRs. Gamma rays can be used to trace and identify high- energy particles at or close to their acceleration site. The di erent production mechanisms for gamma rays depend on energy and type of the parent particle population and the surrounding photon, magnetic and matter fields. High- energy protons can produce gamma rays through proton- proton or proton-gamma interaction, where secondary neutral pions decay into high-energy photons. Long-living secondary particles in these interactions can initiate parti- cle cascades where photons can be produced through pair production or synchrotron radiation. High-energy leptons

Distances of Galactic supernova remnants

AbstractSupernova remnants (SNRs) play a key role in understanding supernovae explosion mechanisms, exploring the likely sources of Galactic cosmic rays and the chemical enrichment of interstellar medium (ISM). Reliable distance determinations to Galactic SNRs are key to obtain their basic parameters, such as size, age, explosion energy, which helps us to study their environment and interstellar medium. We review the methods to determine the distances to SNRs and highlight the kinematic distance measurement by Hi absorption and CO emission observations.

Radio Observations of Supernova 1987A

AbstractSupernovae and their remnants are believed to be prodigious sources of Galactic cosmic rays and interstellar dust. Understanding the mechanisms behind their surprisingly high production rate is helped by the study of nearby young supernova remnants. There has been none better in modern times than SN1987A, for which radio observations have been made for over a quarter of a century. We review extensive observations made with the Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) at centimetre wavelengths. Emission at frequencies from 1 to 100 GHz is dominated by synchrotron radiation from an outer shock front which has been growing exponentially in strength from day 3000, and is currently sweeping around the circumstellar ring at about 4000 km s−1. Three dimensional models of the propagation of the shock into the circumstellar medium are able to reproduce the main observational features of the remnant, and their evolution. We find that up to 4% of the electrons encountered by the shock are accelerated to relativistic energies. High-frequency ALMA observations will break new ground in the understanding of dust and molecule production.

Supernova remnants and the origin of cosmic rays

AbstractSupernova remnants have long been considered to be the dominant sources of Galactic cosmic rays. For a long time the prime evidence consisted of radio synchrotron radiation from supernova remnants, indicating the presence of electrons with energies of several GeV. However, in order to explain the cosmic ray energy density and spectrum in the Galaxy supernova remnant should use 10% of the explosion energy to accelerate particles, and about 99% of the accelerated particles should be protons and other atomic nuclei.Over the last decade a lot of progress has been made in providing evidence that supernova remnant can accelerate protons to very high energies. The evidence consists of, among others, X-ray synchrotron radiation from narrow regions close to supernova remnant shock fronts, indicating the presence of 10-100 TeV electrons, and providing evidence for amplified magnetic fields, gamma-ray emission from both young and mature supernova remnants. The high magnetic fields indicate that the condition for accelerating protons to >1015 eV are there, whereas the gamma-ray emission from some mature remnants indicate that protons have been accelerated.

Extragalactic and galactic sources: New evidence, new challenges, new opportunities

Recent data bring in sharper focus the issue of relative contributions of galactic and extragalactic sources of ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays. On the one hand, there is some new evidence, from gamma-ray observations of blazars, that cosmic rays are, indeed, accelerated in AGNs. On the other hand, recent measurements of composition reported by Pierre Auger Observatory can be explained by a contribution of transient galactic sources, such as past GRBs and hypernovae, if nuclei accelerated in such events get trapped in the turbulent galactic magnetic fields. The likely contamination of UHECR data by the nuclei from past galactic stellar explosions creates new challenges for cosmic-ray astronomy. At the same time, it creates new opportunities for reconstructing galactic magnetic fields, understanding the history of transient galactic phenomena, and for using gamma rays to identify astrophysical nuclear accelerators outside Milky Way.

ANISOTROPY OF TeV COSMIC RAYS AND OUTER HELIOSPHERIC BOUNDARIES

Cosmic rays in the energy range from about 10's GeV to several 100's TeV are observed on Earth with an energy-dependent anisotropy of order 0.01-0.1%, and a consistent topology that appears to significantly change at higher energy. The nearest and most recent galactic cosmic ray sources might stochastically dominate the observation and possibly explain a change in orientation of the anisotropy as a function of energy. However, the diffusion approximation is not able to explain its non-dipolar structure and, in particular, the significant contribution of small angular scale features. Particle propagation within the mean free path in the local interstellar medium might have a major role in determining the properties of galactic cosmic rays, such as their arrival distribution. In particular, scattering on perturbations induced in the local interstellar magnetic field by the heliosphere wake, may cause a re-distribution of anisotropic cosmic rays below about 100 TeV toward the direction of the elongated heliotail and of the local interstellar magnetic field in the outer heliosphere. Such scattering processes are considered responsible of the observed TeV cosmic ray global anisotropy and its fine angular structure.