1. The Fitting Procedure for Longitudinal Shower Profiles Observed with the Fluorescence Detector of the Pierre Auger ObservatoryJosé Bellido, Andrej Filipčič, Jon Paul Lundquist, Shima Ujjani Shivashankara, Samo Stanič, Serguei Vorobiov, Danilo Zavrtanik, Marko Zavrtanik, 2023, published scientific conference contribution Abstract: The Pierre Auger Observatory uses fluorescence telescopes in conjunction with ground level
particle detectors to measure high-energy cosmic rays and reconstruct, with greater precision,
their arrival direction, their energy and the depth of shower maximum. The depth of shower
maximum is important to infer cosmic ray mass composition. The fluorescence detector is
capable of directly measuring the longitudinal shower development, which is used to reconstruct
the cosmic ray energy and the atmospheric depth of shower maximum. However, given the limited
field of view of the fluorescence detector, the shower profile is not always fully contained within
the detector observation volume. Therefore, considerations need to be taken in order to reconstruct
some events. In this contribution we will describe the method that the Pierre Auger Collaboration
uses to reconstruct the longitudinal profiles of showers and present the details of its performance,
namely its resolution and systematic uncertainties. Keywords: ultra-high-energy cosmic rays (UHECRs), Pierre Auger Observatory, extensive air showers, longitudinal shower profiles, shower maximum, fluorescence detectors Published in RUNG: 20.09.2023; Views: 48; Downloads: 0
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2. Bright blazar flares with CTAM. Cerruti, Saptashwa BHATTACHARYYA, Judit Pérez-Romero, Samo Stanič, Veronika VODEB, Serguei Vorobiov, Danilo Zavrtanik, Marko Zavrtanik, Miha ŽIVEC, 2023, published scientific conference contribution Abstract: The TeV extragalactic sky is dominated by blazars, radio-loud active galactic nuclei with a
relativistic jet pointing towards the Earth. Blazars show variability that can be quite exceptional
both in terms of flux (orders of magnitude of brightening) and time (down to the minute timescale).
This bright flaring activity contains key information on the physics of particle acceleration and
photon production in the emitting region, as well as the structure and physical properties of the
jet itself. The TeV band is accessed from the ground by Cherenkov telescopes that image the
pair cascade triggered by the interaction of the gamma ray with the Earth’s atmosphere. The
Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) represents the upcoming generation of imaging atmospheric
Cherenkov telescopes, with a significantly higher sensitivity and larger energy coverage with
respect to current instruments. It will thus provide us with unprecedented statistics on blazar
light-curves and spectra. In this contribution we present the results from realistic simulations of
CTA observations of bright blazar flares, taking as input state-of-the-art numerical simulations of
blazar emission models and including all relevant observational constraints. Keywords: active galactic nuclei (AGN), radio-loud AGN, blazars, blazar flares, cosmic particle acceleration, very-high-energy gamma-rays, Cherenkov Telescope Array Published in RUNG: 15.09.2023; Views: 99; Downloads: 2
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3. GCOS - The Global Cosmic Ray ObservatoryJoerg R. Hoerandel, Serguei Vorobiov, Danilo Zavrtanik, 2021, published scientific conference contribution (invited lecture) Abstract: Nature is providing particles with energies exceeding 100 EeV. Their existence imposes immediate questions: Are they ordinary particles, accelerated in extreme astrophysical environments, or are they annihilation or decay products of super-heavy dark matter or other exotic objects? If the particles are accelerated in extreme astrophysical environments, are their sources related to those of high-energy neutrinos, gamma rays, and/or gravitational waves, such as the recently observed mergers of compact objects? The particles can also be used to study physics processes at extreme energies; is Lorentz invariance still valid? Are the particles interacting according to the Standard
Model or are there new physics processes? The particles can be used to study hadronic interactions (QCD) in the kinematic forward direction; what is the cross section of protons at center-of-mass energies sqrt(s) > 100 TeV?
These questions are addressed at present by installations like the Telescope Array and the Pierre Auger Observatory. After the year 2030, a next-generation observatory will be needed to study the physics and properties of the highest-energy particles in Nature, building on the knowledge harvested from the existing observatories. It should have an aperture at least an order of magnitude bigger than the existing observatories.
Recently, more than 200 scientists from around the world came together to discuss the future of the
field of multi-messenger astroparticle physics beyond the year 2030. Ideas have been discussed
towards the physics case and possible scenarios for detection concepts of the Global Cosmic Ray
Observatory - GCOS. A synopsis of the key results discussed during the brainstorming workshop
will be presented. Keywords: ultra-high-energy cosmic rays, Pierre Auger Observatory, Telescope Array, Global Cosmic Ray
Observatory (GCOS) project Published in RUNG: 13.09.2023; Views: 134; Downloads: 3
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4. Low-luminosity jetted AGN as particle multi-messenger sourcesAnita Reimer, Margot Boughelilba, Lukas Merten, Paolo Da Vela, Jon Paul Lundquist, Serguei Vorobiov, 2023, published scientific conference contribution abstract Abstract: The detection of cosmic gamma rays, high-energy neutrinos and cosmic rays (CRs) signal the existence of environments in the Universe that allow particle acceleration to extremely high energies. These observable signatures from putative CR sources are the result of in-source acceleration of particles, their energy and time-dependent transport including interactions in an evolving environment and their escape from source, in addition to source-to-Earth propagation.
Low-luminosity AGN jets constitute the most abundant persistent jet source population in the local Universe. The dominant subset of these, Fanaroff-Riley 0 (FR0) galaxies, have recently been proposed as sources contributing to the ultra-high-energy cosmic ray (UHECR) flux observed on Earth. This presentation assesses the survival, workings and multi-messenger signatures of UHECRs in low-luminosity jet environments, with focus on FR0 galaxies. For this purpose we use our recently developed, fully time-dependent CR particle and photon propagation framework which takes into account all relevant secondary production and energy loss processes, allows for an evolving source environment and efficient treatment of transport non-linearities due to the produced particles/photons being fed back into the simulation chain.
Finally, we propagate UHE cosmic-ray nuclei and secondary cosmogenic photons and neutrinos from FR0 galaxies to Earth for several extragalactic magnetic field scenarios using the CRPropa3 framework, and confront the resulting energy spectra and composition on Earth with the current observational situation. Keywords: multi-messenger astrophysics, ultra-high-energy cosmic rays (UHECRs), very-high-energy gamma-rays, very-high-energy neutrinos, active galactic nuclei (AGN), low-luminosity jetted AGN, Fanaroff-Riley 0 (FR0) galaxies, UHECR acceleration, UHECR propagation, cosmic magnetic fields Published in RUNG: 13.09.2023; Views: 128; Downloads: 2
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5. Investigating the VHE Gamma-ray Sources Using Deep Neural NetworksVeronika VODEB, Saptashwa BHATTACHARYYA, Giacomo Principe, Gabrijela Zaharijaš, Roberto Ruiz Austri, Fiorenzo Stoppa, Sascha Caron, Dmitry Malyshev, 2023, published scientific conference contribution Abstract: The upcoming Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) will dramatically improve the point-source sensitivity compared to the current Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes (IACTs). One of the key science projects of CTA will be a survey of the whole Galactic plane (GPS) using both southern and northern observatories, specifically focusing on the inner galactic region. We extend a deep learning-based image segmentation software pipeline (autosource-id) developed on Fermi-LAT data to detect and classify extended sources for the simulated CTA GPS. Using updated instrument response functions for CTA (Prod5), we test this pipeline on simulated gamma-ray sources lying in the inner galactic region (specifically 0∘Keywords: Deep Neural Network, Cosmic-rays, CTA, Classification Published in RUNG: 31.08.2023; Views: 128; Downloads: 2
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6. The UHECR-FR0 Radio Galaxy Connection: A Multi-Messenger Study of Energy Spectra/Composition Emission and Intergalactic Magnetic Field PropagationJon Paul Lundquist, Lukas Merten, Serguei Vorobiov, Margot Boughelilba, Anita Reimer, Paolo Da Vela, Fabrizio Tavecchio, Giacomo Bonnoli, Chiara Righi, 2023, published scientific conference contribution Abstract: This study investigates low luminosity Fanaroff-Riley Type 0 (FR0) radio galaxies as a potentially
significant source of ultra-high energy cosmic rays (UHECRs). Due to their much higher prevalence
in the local universe compared to more powerful radio galaxies (about five times more than
FR-1s), FR0s may provide a substantial fraction of the total UHECR energy density. To determine
the nucleon composition and energy spectrum of UHECRs emitted by FR0 sources, simulation
results from CRPropa3 are fit to Pierre Auger Observatory data. The resulting emission spectral
indices, rigidity cutoffs, and nucleon fractions are compared to recent Auger results. The FR0 simulations
include the approximately isotropic distribution of FR0 galaxies and various intergalactic
magnetic field configurations (including random and structured fields) and predict the fluxes of
secondary photons and neutrinos produced during UHECR propagation through cosmic photon
backgrounds. This comprehensive simulation allows for investigating the properties of the FR0
sources using observational multi-messenger data. Keywords: ultra-high energy cosmic rays (UHECRs), UHECR propagation, CRPropa, active galactic nuclei (AGN), jetted AGN, FR0 radio galaxies, Pierre Auger Observatory, UHECR energy spectrum, UHECR mass composition Published in RUNG: 24.08.2023; Views: 168; Downloads: 2
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7. CR-ENTREES - Cosmic-Ray ENergy TRansport in timE-Evolving astrophysical SettingsAnita Reimer, Lukas Merten, Margot Boughelilba, Paolo Da Vela, Serguei Vorobiov, Jon Paul Lundquist, 2023, published scientific conference contribution Abstract: In order to understand observable signatures from putative cosmic-ray (CR) sources in-source
acceleration of particles, their energy and time-dependent transport including interactions in an
evolving environment and their escape from source have to be considered, in addition to sourceto-
Earth propagation.
We present the code CR-ENTREES (Cosmic-Ray ENergy TRansport in timE-Evolving astrophysical
Settings) that evolves the coupled time- and energy-dependent kinetic equations for cosmicray
nucleons, pions, muons, electrons, positrons, photons and neutrinos in a one-zone setup of
(possibly) non-constant size, with user-defined particle and photon injection laws. All relevant
interactions, particle/photon escape and adiabatic losses are considered in a radiation-dominated,
magnetized astrophysical environment that is itself evolving in time. Particle and photon interactions
are pre-calculated using event generators assuring an accurate interactions and secondary
particle production description. We use the matrix multiplication method for fast radiation and
particle energy transport which allows also an efficient treatment of transport non-linearities due
to the produced particles/photons being fed back into the simulation chain.
Examples for the temporal evolution of the non-thermal emission from AGN jet-like systems with
focus on proton-initiated pair cascades inside an expanding versus straight jet emission region, are
further presented. Keywords: cosmic rays (CRs), CR energy transport, CR interactions, modeling Published in RUNG: 24.08.2023; Views: 155; Downloads: 2
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8. Efficient Modeling of Heavy Cosmic Rays Propagation in Evolving Astrophysical EnvironmentsL. Merten, P. Da Vela, A. Reimer, M. Boughelilba, J. P. Lundquist, S. Vorobiov, J. Becker Tjus, 2023, published scientific conference contribution Abstract: We present a new energy transport code that models the time dependent and non-linear evolution
of spectra of cosmic-ray nuclei, their secondaries, and photon target fields. The software can inject
an arbitrary chemical composition including heavy elements up to iron nuclei. Energy losses and
secondary production due to interactions of cosmic ray nuclei, secondary mesons, leptons, or
gamma-rays with a target photon field are available for all relevant processes, e.g., photo-meson
production, photo disintegration, synchrotron radiation, Inverse Compton scattering, and more.
The resulting x-ray fluxes can be fed back into the simulation chain to correct the initial photon
targets, resulting in a non-linear treatment of the energy transport. The modular structure of the
code facilitates simple extension of interaction or target field models.
We will show how the software can be used to improve predictions of observables in various
astrophysical sources such as jetted active galactic nuclei (AGN). Since the software can model
the propagation of heavy ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays inside the source it can precisely predict
the chemical composition at the source. This will also refine predictions of neutrino emissions
–– they strongly depend on the chemical composition. This helps in the future to optimize the
selection and analyses of data from the IceCube neutrino observatory with the aim to enhance the
sensitivity of IceCube and reduce the number of trial factors. Keywords: cosmic rays (CRs), CR energy transport, CR interactions, energy losses, modeling Published in RUNG: 24.08.2023; Views: 157; Downloads: 2
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9. Constraining the sources of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays across and above the ankle with the spectrum and composition data measured at the Pierre Auger ObservatoryA. Abdul Halim, Andrej Filipčič, Jon Paul Lundquist, Shima Ujjani Shivashankara, Samo Stanič, Serguei Vorobiov, Danilo Zavrtanik, Marko Zavrtanik, 2023, original scientific article Abstract: In this work we present the interpretation of the energy spectrum and mass composition data as measured by the Pierre Auger Collaboration above 6 × 10[sup]17 eV. We use an astrophysical model with two extragalactic source populations to model the hardening of the cosmic-ray flux at around 5 × 10[sup]18 eV (the so-called "ankle" feature) as a transition between these two components. We find our data to be well reproduced if sources above the ankle emit a mixed composition with a hard spectrum and a low rigidity cutoff. The component below the ankle is required to have a very soft spectrum and a mix of protons and intermediate-mass nuclei. The origin of this intermediate-mass component is not well constrained and it could originate from either Galactic or extragalactic sources. To the aim of evaluating our capability to constrain astrophysical models, we discuss the impact on the fit results of the main experimental systematic uncertainties and of the assumptions about quantities affecting the air shower development as well as the propagation and redshift distribution of injected ultra-high-energy cosmic rays (UHECRs). Keywords: ultra-high-energy cosmic rays (UHECRs), Pierre Auger Observatory, extensive air showers, UHECR propagation, UHECR energy spectrum, UHECR mass composition Published in RUNG: 18.08.2023; Views: 167; Downloads: 3
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10. Search for photons above 10[sup]19 eV with the surface detector of the Pierre Auger ObservatoryP. Abreu, Andrej Filipčič, Jon Paul Lundquist, Shima Ujjani Shivashankara, Samo Stanič, Serguei Vorobiov, Danilo Zavrtanik, Marko Zavrtanik, Lukas Zehrer, 2023, original scientific article Abstract: We use the surface detector of the Pierre Auger Observatory to search for air showers initiated by photons with an energy above 10[sup]19 eV. Photons in the zenith angle range from 30 deg. to 60 deg. can be identified in the overwhelming background of showers initiated by charged cosmic rays through the broader time structure of the signals induced in the water-Cherenkov detectors of the array and the steeper lateral distribution of shower particles reaching ground. Applying the search method to data collected between January 2004 and June 2020, upper limits at 95% CL are set to an E[sup]-2 diffuse flux of ultra-high energy photons above 10[sup]19 eV, 2 × 10[sup]19 eV and 4 × 10[sup]19 eV amounting to 2.11 × 10[sup]-3, 3.12 × 10[sup]-4 and 1.72 × 10[sup]-4 km-2 sr-1 yr-1, respectively. While the sensitivity of the present search around 2 × 10[sup]19 eV approaches expectations of cosmogenic photon fluxes in the case of a pure-proton composition, it is one order of magnitude above those from more realistic mixed-composition models. The inferred limits have also implications for the search of super-heavy dark matter that are discussed and illustrated. Keywords: ultra-high-energy (UHE) cosmic rays, UHE photons, Pierre Auger Observatory, extensive air showers, water Cherenkov detectors Published in RUNG: 18.08.2023; Views: 172; Downloads: 3
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