Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy
Scientific paper
Nov 1988
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1988phdt.........3d&link_type=abstract
Ph.D. Thesis Los Alamos National Lab., NM.
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astronomy
1
Gamma Ray Astronomy, Gamma Ray Bursts, Pulsars, Energy Spectra, Muons, Radiation Counters
Scientific paper
The Cygnus experiment, consisting of an extensive air shower detector and a muon detector, was built at Los Alamos, New Mexico (latitude 36 N, longitude 107 W, altitude 2310 meters), to search for point sources of ultra-high energy (greater than 10 to the 14th eV) particles. These particles must be long-lived neutral particles because of the long source distances and the presence of the intragalactic magnetic field. Gamma rays are the most likely candidates because of the short neutron lifetime and the small neutrino cross section. Therefore, the muon content of the source showers is examined to determine if these events are muon poor as is expected for gamma-initiated showers. The data set from April 1986 to July 1987 is searched for continual emission from Cygnus X-3 and Hercules X-1, and an upper bound to flux is determined for both sources. The flux limit for Cygnus X-3, 2.0 x 10 to the 13th/sq cm/sec above 50 TeV, is lower than previous ultra-high energy observations. Hercules X-1 has never been observed continually at ultra-high energies. Cygnus X-3 is observed for a shorter interval of time, beginning on 17 April 1986 and ending 1 June 1986. There is one chance in 300 that the observation is due to a random fluctuation. The signal is correlated with the 4.8 hour orbital period, and the muon content of the showers in the signal is inconsistent with the conventional prediction of gamma-initiated showers. An episodic signal is also reported for Hercules X-1, and it consists of two bursts of less than one hour duration on 24 July 1986. The probability is one chance in 12,000 that this observation is not associated with Hercules X-1. The signal is pulsed at frequency near, but significantly different from, the X-ray pulsar frequency. The muon content of the signal showers is also anomalous, assuming the showers are initiated by gamma rays.
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