Propagation Of Galactic Cosmic Rays Research Articles

Origin of the break in the cosmic-ray electron plus positron spectrum at ∼1 TeV

Recent measurements of the cosmic-ray electron plus positron spectrum in several experiments have confirmed the presence of a break at ∼1 TeV. The origin of the break is still not clearly understood. In this work, we explored different possibilities for the origin, which include an electron source spectrum with a broken power law, a power law with an exponential or super-exponential cutoff, and the absence of potential nearby cosmic-ray sources. Based on the observed electron plus positron data from the DAMPE and the H.E.S.S experiments, and considering supernova remnants as the main sources of cosmic rays in the Galaxy, we find statistical evidence in favor of the scenario with a broken power-law source spectrum, with the best-fit source parameters obtained as Γ = 2.39 for the source spectral index, E0 ≈ 1.6 TeV for the break energy, and f = 1.59 × 1048 ergs for the amount of supernova kinetic energy injected into cosmic-ray electrons. This power-law break in the spectrum has been predicted for electrons confined inside supernova remnants after acceleration via diffusive shock acceleration process, and also indicated by the multi-wavelength study of supernova remnants. All of this evidence shows that the observed spectral break provides a strong indication of a direct link between cosmic-ray electrons and their sources. Our findings further show that electrons must undergo spectral changes while escaping the source region in order to reconcile the difference between the spectral index of electrons observed inside supernova remnants and that obtained from Galactic cosmic-ray propagation studies.

Propagation of Galactic Cosmic Rays in the Heliosphere during Minimum Solar Activity Periods

Propagation of Galactic Cosmic Rays in the Heliosphere during Minimum Solar Activity Periods

The Calorimetric Electron Telescope (CALET) on the International Space Station: Results from the first eight years on orbit

The Calorimetric Electron Telescope, CALET, is an astroparticle physics mission installed on the International Space Station, ISS. The primary objective of the mission is studying the details of galactic cosmic-ray acceleration and propagation, and searching for the possible nearby sources of high-energy electrons and dark matter signatures. The CALET experiment measure the flux of cosmic-ray electrons (including positrons) to 20 TeV, gamma-rays to 10 TeV and nuclei to 1000 TeV. The detector is an all-calorimetric instrument with a total vertical thickness of 30 radiation lengths and fine imaging capability, optimized for the measurement of the electron and positron (all-electron) spectrum well into the TeV energy region. It consists of a charge detector (CHD) with two layers of segmented plastic scintillators for the identification of cosmic-rays via a measurement of their charge over the range Z=1∼40, a 3 radiation length thick tungsten-scintillating fiber imaging calorimeter (IMC) and a 27 radiation length thick lead-tungstate calorimeter (TASC). The instrument was launched on August 19, 2015 to the ISS and installed on the Japanese Experiment Module-Exposed Facility. Since the start of operation in October, 2015, CALET has been collecting scientific data without any major interruption for more than eight years. The number of triggered events over 10 GeV is nearly 1.97 billion events as of November 30, 2023. In this paper, we present the results of the CALET mission so far, including the all-electron energy spectrum, the spectra of protons and other nuclei, gamma-ray observations, as well as the characterization of on-orbit performance. Some results on the electromagnetic counterpart search for LIGO/Virgo gravitational wave events and the observations of solar modulation and gamma-ray bursts are also included.

The galactic cosmic ray propagation in the heliosphere during solar activity minimum

The galactic cosmic ray propagation in the heliosphere during solar activity minimum

Deep learning cosmic ray transport from density maps of simulated, turbulent gas

The coarse-grained propagation of galactic cosmic rays (CRs) is traditionally constrained by phenomenological models of Milky Way CR propagation fit to a variety of direct and indirect observables; however, constraining the fine-grained transport of CRs along individual magnetic field lines—for instance, diffusive vs streaming transport models—is an unsolved challenge. Leveraging a recent training set of magnetohydrodynamic turbulent box simulations, with CRs spanning a range of transport parameters, we use convolutional neural networks (CNNs) trained solely on gas density maps to classify CR transport regimes. We find that even relatively simple CNNs can quite effectively classify density slices to corresponding CR transport parameters, distinguishing between streaming and diffusive transport, as well as magnitude of diffusivity, with class accuracies between 92% and 99%. As we show, the transport-dependent imprints that CRs leave on the gas are not all tied to the resulting density power spectra: classification accuracies are still high even when image spectra are flattened (85%–98% accuracy), highlighting CR transport-dependent changes to turbulent phase information. We interpret our results with saliency maps and image modifications, and we discuss physical insights and future applications.

Magnetic Trapping of Galactic Cosmic Rays in the Outer Heliosheath and Their Preferential Entry into the Heliosphere

This paper examines the geometry of interstellar magnetic field lines close to the boundary of the heliosphere in the direction of the unperturbed local interstellar magnetic field, where the field lines are spread apart by the heliopause (HP). Such field parting establishes a region of weaker magnetic field of about 300 au in size in the northern hemisphere that acts as a giant magnetic trap affecting the propagation of galactic cosmic rays (GCRs). The choice of an analytic model of the magnetic field in the very local interstellar medium allows us to qualitatively study the resulting magnetic field draping pattern while avoiding unphysical dissipation across the HP-impeding numerical magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) models. We investigate GCR transport in the region exterior to the heliosphere, including the magnetic trap, subject to guiding center drifts, pitch angle scattering, and perpendicular diffusion. The transport coefficients were derived from Voyager 1 observations of magnetic turbulence in the VLISM. Our results predict a ring current of energetic ions drifting around the interior of the magnetic trap. It is also demonstrated that GCRs cross the HP for the first time preferentially through a crescent-shaped region between the magnetic trap and the upwind direction. The paper includes results of MHD modeling of the heliosphere that provide the coordinates of the center of the magnetic trap in ecliptic coordinates. In addition to the heliosphere, we examine several extreme field draping configurations that could describe the astrospheres of other stars.

Direct measurements of cosmic rays with the calorimetric electron telescope on the international space station

The CALorimetric Electron Telescope, CALET, has been measuring high-energy cosmic rays on the International Space Station since October 13, 2015. The scientific objectives addressed by the mission are to search for possible nearby sources of high-energy electrons and potential signatures of dark matter, and to investigate the details of galactic cosmic-ray acceleration and propagation. The calorimetric instrument, which is 30 radiation lengths or 1.3 proton interaction lengths thick with fine imaging capability, is optimized to measure cosmic-ray electrons by achieving large proton rejection and excellent energy resolution well into the TeV region. In addition, very wide dynamic range of energy measurement and individual charge identification capability enable us to measure proton and nuclei spectra from a few tens GeV to a PeV scale. Nearly 20 million cosmic-ray shower events over 10 GeV per month are triggered and the continuous observation has been kept without any major interruption since the start of operation. Using the data obtained over 6.5 years of operation, we will present a brief summary of the CALET observation including electron spectrum, and proton and nuclei spectra as well as the performance study on orbit with MC simulations.

Explaining the Hardening Structures of Helium Spectrum and Boron to Carbon Ratio through Different Propagation Models

Recently, a series of high-precision measurements by various experiments show that cosmic ray nuclei spectra begin to harden at ∼200 GV and the boron-to-carbon (B/C) ratio has a similar trend around the same energy. These anomalous structures possibly result from the journey of cosmic rays (CRs) from their sources to our solar system, which has important implications for our understanding of the origin and propagation of Galactic cosmic rays (GCRs). In this work, we investigate several propagation models and attempt to explain these anomalous observations. We have verified that an extension of the traditional propagation model taking into account spatially dependent propagation and secondary particle acceleration provides a more accurate description of the latest B/C ratio and the Helium flux data measured by DAMPE, CALET, and AMS-02.

Interpretations of the cosmic ray secondary-to-primary ratios measured by DAMPE

Precise measurements of the boron-to-carbon and boron-to-oxygen ratios by DAMPE show clear hardenings around $100$ GeV/n, which provide important implications on the production, propagation, and interaction of Galactic cosmic rays. In this work we investigate a number of models proposed in literature in light of the DAMPE findings. These models can roughly be classified into two classes, driven by propagation effects or by source ones. Among these models discussed, we find that the re-acceleration of cosmic rays, during their propagation, by random magnetohydrodynamic waves may not reproduce sufficient hardenings of B/C and B/O, and an additional spectral break of the diffusion coefficient is required. The other models can properly explain the hardenings of the ratios. However, depending on simplifications assumed, the models differ in their quality in reproducing the data in a wide energy range. The models with significant re-acceleration effect will under-predict low-energy antiprotons but over-predict low-energy positrons, and the models with secondary production at sources over-predict high-energy antiprotons. For all models high-energy positron excess exists.

Time Dependence of 50–250 MeV Galactic Cosmic-Ray Protons between Solar Cycles 24 and 25, Measured by the High-energy Particle Detector on board the CSES-01 Satellite

Time-dependent energy spectra of galactic cosmic rays (GCRs) carry crucial information regarding their origin and propagation throughout the interstellar environment. When observed at the Earth, after traversing the interplanetary medium, such spectra are heavily affected by the solar wind and the embedded solar magnetic field permeating the inner sectors of the heliosphere. The activity of the Sun changes significantly over an 11 yr solar cycle—and so does the effect on cosmic particles; this translates into a phenomenon called solar modulation. Moreover, GCR spectra during different epochs of solar activity provide invaluable information for a complete understanding of the plethora of mechanisms taking place in various layers of the Sun’s atmosphere and how they evolve over time. The High-Energy Particle Detector (HEPD-01) has been continuously collecting data since 2018 August, during the quiet phase between solar cycles 24 and 25; the activity of the Sun is slowly but steadily rising and is expected to peak around 2025/2026. In this paper, we present the first spectra for ∼50–250 MeV galactic protons measured by the HEPD-01 instrument—placed on board the CSES-01 satellite—from 2018 August to 2022 March over a one-Carrington-rotation time basis. Such data are compared to the ones from other spaceborne experiments, present (e.g., EPHIN, Parker Solar Probe) and past (PAMELA), and to a state-of-the-art three-dimensional model describing the GCRs propagation through the heliosphere.

New measurement of the elemental fragmentation cross sections of 218 MeV/nucleon Si28 on a carbon target

Elemental fragmentation cross sections (EFCSs) of stable and unstable nuclides have been investigated with various projectile-target combinations at a wide range of incident energies. These data are critical to constrain and develop the theoretical reaction models and to study the propagation of galactic cosmic rays (GCR). In this work, we present a new EFCS measurement for $^{28}$Si on carbon at 218~MeV/nucleon performed at the Heavy Ion Research Facility (HIRFL-CSR) complex in Lanzhou. The impact of the target thickness has been well corrected to derive an accurate EFCS. Our present results with charge changes $\Delta Z$ = 1-6 are compared to the previous measurements and to the predictions from the models modified EPAX2, EPAX3, FRACS, ABRABLA07, NUCFRG2, and IQMD coupled with GEMINI (IQMD+GEMINI). All the models fail to describe the odd-even staggering strength in the elemental distribution, with the exception of the IQMD+GEMINI model, which can reproduce the EFCSs with an accuracy of better than 3.5\% for $\Delta Z\leq5$. The IQMD+GEMINI analysis shows that the odd-even staggering in EFCSs occurs in the sequential statistical decay stage rather than in the initial dynamical collision stage. This offers a reasonable approach to understand the underlying mechanism of fragmentation reactions.

Galactic Cosmic-Ray Propagation in the Inner Heliosphere: Improved Force-field Model

A key goal of heliophysics is to understand how cosmic rays propagate in the solar system’s complex, dynamic environment. One observable is solar modulation, i.e., how the flux and spectrum of cosmic rays change as they propagate inward. We construct an improved force-field model, taking advantage of new measurements of magnetic power spectral density by Parker Solar Probe to predict solar modulation within the Earth’s orbit. We find that modulation of cosmic rays between the Earth and Sun is modest, at least at solar minimum and in the ecliptic plane. Our results agree much better with the limited data on cosmic-ray radial gradients within Earth’s orbit than past treatments of the force-field model. Our predictions can be tested with forthcoming direct cosmic-ray measurements in the inner heliosphere by Parker Solar Probe and Solar Orbiter. They are also important for interpreting the gamma-ray emission from the Sun due to scattering of cosmic rays with solar matter and photons.

Galactic cosmic ray propagation: sub-PeV diffuse gamma-ray and neutrino emission

The Tibet ASγ experiment just reported their measurement of sub-PeV diffuse gamma-ray emission from the Galactic disk, with the highest energy up to 957 TeV. These diffuse gamma rays are most likely the hadronic origin by cosmic ray (CR) interaction with interstellar gas in the galaxy. This measurement provides direct evidence to the hypothesis that the Galactic Cosmic Rays (GCRs) can be accelerated beyond PeV energies. In this work, we try to explain the sub-PeV diffuse gamma-ray spectrum with different CR propagation models. We find that there is a tension between the sub-PeV diffuse gamma-ray and the local CR spectrum. To describe the sub-PeV diffuse gamma-ray flux, it generally requires larger local CR flux than measurement in the knee region. We further calculate the PeV neutrino flux from the CR propagation model. Even all of these sub-PeV diffuse gamma rays originate from the propagation, the Galactic Neutrinos (GNs) only account for less than ∼15% of observed flux, most of which are still from extragalactic sources.

The strong suppression of galactic cosmic rays reaching AU Mic b, c, and Prox Cen b

ABSTRACT The propagation of Galactic cosmic rays is well understood in the context of the Solar system but is poorly studied for M dwarf systems. Quantifying the flux of cosmic rays reaching exoplanets is important since cosmic rays are relevant in the context of life. Here, we calculate the Galactic cosmic ray fluxes in AU Mic and Prox Cen planetary systems. We propagate the Galactic cosmic rays using a 1D cosmic ray transport model. We find for Prox Cen b, AU Mic b, and AU Mic c that the Galactic cosmic ray fluxes are strongly suppressed and are lower than the fluxes reaching Earth. We include in our models, for the first time for a star other than the Sun, the effect of radial particle drift due to gradients and curvatures in the stellar magnetic field. For Prox Cen, we find that the inclusion of particle drift leads to less suppression of Galactic cosmic rays fluxes than when it is excluded from the model. In the case of AU Mic we explore two different wind environments, with a low and high stellar wind mass-loss rate. For AU Mic, the particle drift also leads to less suppression of the Galactic cosmic ray fluxes but it is only significant for the high mass-loss rate scenario. However, both wind scenarios for AU Mic suppress the Galactic cosmic rays strongly. Overall, careful modelling of stellar winds is needed to calculate the Galactic cosmic ray fluxes reaching exoplanets. The results found here can be used to interpret future exoplanet atmosphere observations and in atmospheric models.

Galactic cosmic ray propagation: sub-PeV diffuse gamma-ray and neutrino emission

The Tibet ASγ experiment just reported their measurement of sub-PeV diffuse gamma-ray emission from the Galactic disk, with the highest energy up to 957 TeV. These diffuse gamma rays are most likely the hadronic origin by cosmic ray (CR) interaction with interstellar gas in the galaxy. This measurement provides direct evidence to the hypothesis that the Galactic Cosmic Rays (GCRs) can be accelerated beyond PeV energies. In this work, we try to explain the sub-PeV diffuse gamma-ray spectrum with different CR propagation models. We find that there is a tension between the sub-PeV diffuse gamma-ray and the local CR spectrum. To describe the sub-PeV diffuse gamma-ray flux, it generally requires larger local CR flux than measurement in the knee region. We further calculate the PeV neutrino flux from the CR propagation model. Even all of these sub-PeV diffuse gamma rays originate from the propagation, the Galactic Neutrinos (GNs) only account for less than ∼ 15% of observed flux, most of which are still from extragalactic sources.

The transport of galactic cosmic rays in heliosphere: The HelMod model compared with other commonly employed solar modulation models

HelMod model allows one to describe how solar modulation affects the propagation of galactic cosmic rays (GCRs) through the heliosphere by solving the Parker transport equation. HelMod provides modulated spectra for protons and nuclei during high and low solar activity periods, in the inner and outer heliosphere, at Earth location and outside the ecliptic plane, as well as at different distances from Sun in the inner and outer heliosphere. The GCRs mainly constitute the high-energy population of the so-called space radiation environment. Modulated cosmic-ray spectra of protons and nuclei, obtained from HelMod and other solar modulation codes were compared to the AMS–02 spectra ranging from GeV up to TeV energies. Concerning other commonly used solar modulation models, HelMod modulated spectra are available over the entire rigidity range and observation period of AMS–02 mission. A quantitative comparison among models was carried out using ΔΦ, i.e., the relative difference between the experimental and simulated fluences, and ηRMS, i.e., the error-weighted root mean square of the relative difference between AMS–02 experimental data and simulated differential intensities. HelMod was found to achieve a good agreement over the full set of experimental data with, typically, ΔΦ within ±2.5% and ηRMS within 5%. Usually larger or, in a few cases, much larger values for ΔΦ and ηRMS were found for the other models.

The Rigidity Dependence of Galactic Cosmic-Ray Fluxes and Its Connection With the Diffusion Coefficient

Thanks to tremendous experimental efforts, galactic cosmic-ray fluxes are being measured up to the unprecedented percent precision level. The logarithmic slope of these fluxes is a crucial quantity that promises us information on the diffusion properties and the primary or secondary nature of the different species. However, these measured slopes are sometimes interpreted in the pure diffusive regime, guiding to misleading conclusions. In this paper, we have studied the propagation of galactic cosmic rays by computing the fluxes of species between H and Fe using the USINE code and considering all the relevant physical processes and an updated set of cross-section data. We show that the slope of the well-studied secondary-to-primary B/C ratio is distinctly different from the diffusion coefficient slope, by an offset of ∼0.2 in the rigidity range in which the AMS-02 data reach their best precision (several tens of GV). Furthermore, we have demonstrated that none of the species from H to Fe follows the expectations of the pure-diffusive regime. We argue that these differences arise from propagation processes such as fragmentation, convection, and reacceleration, which cannot be neglected. On this basis, we also provide predictions for the spectral slope of elemental fluxes not yet analysed by the AMS collaboration.

Forecasting of cosmic rays intensities with HelMod Model

HelMod model allows one to describe how solar modulation affects the propagation of galactic cosmic rays (GCR) through the heliosphere with an accuracy of the level of actual experimental uncertainties. The GCRs mainly constitute the high energy population of the so-called space radiation environment. The model treats the physical processes involved in solar modulation, like diffusion, particle drift, convection and adiabatic energy losses, and it embeds a description of both the inner and outer heliosphere. To obtain the modulated intensities, the model requires the knowledge of a few time-dependent heliospheric quantities, i.e., sunspot number, tilt angle of the neutral current sheet, solar wind speed and density, and interplanetary magnetic field. Using historical records, we present a template-based procedure that allows one to predict the heliospheric parameters for coming years, and, in turn, the forecasted modulated spectra. The forecasting templates reconstruct the typical time variation along with solar cycles and may be tuned to the current solar cycle. We estimate that the uncertainty of the forecasted cosmic rays intensity is below 5% (±10% at 68% C.L.) on average for short time predictions (up to 4 years), and below 15% (±(20-25)% at 68% C.L.) for long time predictions (up to 11 years).

Analytic modeling of recurrent Forbush decreases caused by corotating interaction regions

Context.On scales of days, the galactic cosmic ray (GCR) flux is affected by coronal mass ejections and corotating interaction regions (CIRs), causing so-called Forbush decreases and recurrent Forbush decreases (RFDs), respectively.Aims.We explain the properties and behavior of RFDs recorded at about 1 au that are caused by CIRs generated by solar wind high-speed streams (HSSs) that emanate from coronal holes.Methods.We employed a convection-diffusion GCR propagation model based on the Fokker-Planck equation and applied it to solar wind and interplanetary magnetic field properties at 1 au.Results.Our analysis shows that the only two effects that are relevant for a plausible overall explanation of the observations are the enhanced convection effect caused by the increased velocity of the HSS and the reduced diffusion effect caused by the enhanced magnetic field and its fluctuations within the CIR and HSS structure. These two effects that we considered in the model are sufficient to explain not only the main signatures of RFDs, but also the sometimes observed “over-recovery” and secondary dips in RFD profiles. The explanation in terms of the convection-diffusion GCR propagation hypothesis is tested by applying our model to the observations of a long-lived CIR that recurred over 27 rotations in 2007–2008.Conclusions.Our analysis demonstrates a very good match of the model results and observations.

Ultrahigh-energy diffuse gamma-ray emission from cosmic-ray interactions with the medium surrounding acceleration sources

The diffuse $\gamma$-ray spectrum at sub-PeV energy region has been measured for the first time by the Tibet-AS$\gamma$ experiment. It will shed new light on the understanding of origin and propagation of Galactic cosmic rays at very high energies. It has been pointed out that the traditional cosmic ray propagation model based on low energy measurements undershoot the new data, and modifications of the model with new ingredients or alternative propagation framework is required. In this work, we propose that the hadronic interactions between freshly accelerated cosmic rays and the medium surrounding the sources, which was neglected in the traditional model, can naturally account for the Tibet-AS$\gamma$ diffuse emission. We show that this scenario gives a consistent description of other secondary species such as the positron spectrum, the boron-to-carbon ratio, and the antiproton-to-proton ratio. As a result, the electron spectrum above 10 TeV will have a hardening due to this secondary component, which may be tested by future measurements.