User:NCosme

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Information About Me

Hi, My name is Nicole Cosme and i am a junior at Sachem HS East.I love volcanoes and music and am looking forward to learning more about cosmic rays during this workshop. I am looking to research the correlation of cosmic rays and volcanoes or earthquakes. I am a violinist in the Sachem Chamber Orchestra. as a freshman, i placed 2nd in the cellular micro biology division of the galaxy fair at NYSSEF. i also participated in building cosmic ray detectors for my school.

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Day 1, July 7th

Radiation: 2 theories, electroscope discharge, faster in the presence of radiation

Theory 1: the source of the radiation was coming from outer space

Theorry 2: from the center of the earth

-Robert Milligan-center of the earth -Victor hess: proved that they were coming from outer space --balloons to about 5000m, noticed the electroscope discharge -Milligan named the radiation cosmic rays --historically classified into alpha, beta and gamma rays -1932-Carl Anderson found positive particles in cosmic rays (positrons) -Pierre Auger in 1937, discovered particle showers using 2 Geiger counters placed at large distances -By the late 40’s, different particles were found in cosmic rays-the birth of particle physics

Cloud chamber: ex. of a Cosmic ray collision: Baseball at 160 mph = 1020 eV

Plastic Scintillators -Photo Tube- transforms light into an electrical current

Most cosmic rays come from the Andromeda galaxy, 2.5 light years away

How cosmic rays affect us: the cosmic rays can alter the memory space of your computer, and change the charge of the particles in there -Journal of research and development; IBM; 1974 explained the effects of cosmic rays on computers, they were the first ones to explore the problem -Cosmic Rays induce Lightning, Nucleation, or Cloud Formation, Mutation, others -Cosmic Rays are affected by the sun-the Forbush effect -Cosmic Rays affect us in several ways, and their trajectory can be altered by change in the earth’s magnetosphere

Pierre Auger Observatory, Telescope Array are two major cosmic ray observatories

Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays may come from AGN

Research, Day 1, July 7th

Theory about Cosmic Rays and Earthquakes

However: My theory on this subject is: low energy cosmic rays as well as high energy cosmic rays have the ability to influence earthquakes. The way they do this is by penetrating through the depleted ozone layer, thus being a higher energy by having a smaller amount of pparticles to hit. When they strike the ground there is abuildup of energy from somewhere in the fault, presumably a pocket or hole. when enough energy is stored, the fault will slip, causing an earthquake.

Background Information About Cosmic Rays

Cosmic rays have an intensity (brightness) of about 1 muon (cm 2 min) and have a mean energy of a few GeV, so they can be harmful at high altitudes, with long exposure. Cosmic rays have also long inspired controversies; topics such as their origin, level of danger and relation to seismic activity have not yet been completely identified. Low energy cosmic rays are believed to come from the sun, from it’s chromosphere, whereas higher energy cosmic rays continue to baffle scientists; they theorize that cosmic rays are sent from deep in space, but do not know exactly where. (For a cosmic ray particle to be considered rare and ultra high energy, it must have an energy of 107-1010 eV.) The hypothesis for the source of these high energy cosmic rays is that a supernova produces shock waves which then energize the cosmic ray ions. Since these high energy cosmic rays are so powerful, they can’t be contained well, so the galaxy’s magnetic field sometimes loses control of them and sends them shooting off somewhere into space. From this information, scientists can conclude that there is a driving force working outside the galaxy which propels and controls cosmic rays with 1018 billion electron volts or greater. A cosmic ray said to have contained 20-40 billion electron volts, struck the atmosphere on December 3rd, 1959, and was said to have been the biggest and most powerful cosmic ray ever recorded to enter Earth’s atmosphere, it was said to have come from far out in space. (From Way out). This was followed nearly 40 years later (October 15th, 1991) by what is known amongst scientists as the “oh my god particle” which was measured at 3X1020 electronvolts, equivalent to about 50 joules — in other words, it was a subatomic particle with macroscopic kinetic energy equal to that of a baseball (140 g) which is moving at about 27 m/s (60 mph). As I mentioned previously, cosmic rays are emitted from supernovae, or the bursting of stars. Every 150 million years (approximately), the Earth passes through the Perseus arm of the Milky Way, where most supernovae tend to occur. Since we would be so close to these events, the chances of getting hit with not only cosmic rays, but high energy ones, are much more likely. Scientists have used paleoclimate records to conclude that the Earth enters a cooling period whenever we pass through this arm, telling them that the cosmic rays hitting us may also have an effect on our climate.

Background Information About Earthquakes

In 2004, Sumatra, which is a part of Malaysia, was struck by a tidal wave which was generated in the Indian Ocean. This wave was caused by a powerful 9.3 earthquake, which occurred at 00 hours, 58 minutes (universal time). Just a mere 44.6 hours later, a gamma ray burst was recorded, and was said to be the brightest gamma ray burst on records. This burst distorted the Earth’s ionosphere and matched the brightness of a full moon. According to author Paul LaViolette, a super wave passed through the galaxy, and along the way, possibly caused other supernovae to occur, which could have also produced a fallout of cosmic rays. This in itself does NOT prove the correlation of gamma ray bursts or cosmic rays and seismic activity. However, scientists have theorized that perhaps a gravity wave accompanied the incoming gamma rays and triggered the earthquake. (Gamma Ray Bursts, Gravity Waves, and Earthquakes). This theory has not been proven true yet, but scientists are still studying the facts.

Correlation of the Two Incidences

There are some incidences where cosmic ray bursts have occurred a few days before an earthquake. The 3 major ones that I have found as of right now are: August-December 1989, January 1997 and October 6th-14th 1991. All of these years were years of high energy cosmic ray bursts and earthquakes happening more frequently than in past years. 1989 especially; the earthquake history is extensive especially in California, with the famous magnitude 7.1 Loma Prieta earthquake in October. 1989 also was one of the years that saw uncanny cosmic ray data. From August to December, high energy cosmic rays were bombarding the planet.

Geography

There is a very high incidence of cosmic rays with an energy of 1000000000 eV striking the Earth in a designated area. as the particles gain energy, the incidences become smaller, such as two per year or two per century. one of the theories i have about places on the Earth that have a high number of cosmic ray activity is that with the amount of ozone depletion that there is today, there are less particles to hit, therefore there are going to be not necessarily more cosmic rays, but in fact less. These particles however, would have a higher energy because they would not encounter as many collisions in the atmosphere.

Forbush Decreases

A Forbush Decrease is generally when there is a significant decrease in the incidence of portruding cosmic ray particles. it is usually followed shortly afterwards by an increase in cosmic ray counts, which is slighly higher then the average counts. forbush decreases are generally preceded by CME's or Coronal Mass Ejections (bursts of gas and particles from the sun). Overall, the time that it takes for a Forbush decrease to occur is only a few hours, and the cosmic rays counts should return to normal after a few days. However, the intensity of the Forbush decrease depends on the size of the CME, it's intensity, and it's proximity to Earth. The percentages of cosmic rays that are reduced fluxuate between 3% and 30%. These decreases also seem to follow the 11-year sunspot cycle. During what is known as solar maximum, there are actually a higher coincedence of Forbush decreases, this means that it would be safer for space travel, because statistics prove that when astronauts travel during a Forbush decrease, they have been shielded from oncoming cosmic rays.

References: http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/10/12/236219

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forbush_decrease

Theory for the effects of atmospheric conditions on cosmic radiation penetration which affects seismic activity:

With a higher concentration of aerosols or pollutants in the atmosphere, it will begin to deplete, lessening the amount of molecules for the incoming cosmic rays to strike. If the cosmic rays don’t hit as many atoms in the atmosphere, and their subparticles don’t hit as many atoms, there will be a bigger subparticle, which has more energy, resulting in a higher magnitude earthquake. In areas where there is a high percentage of atmospheric depletion, and a fault line, stronger earthquakes will occur.

In Japan, pressure oscillations in the atmosphere were recorded after a strong earthquake on June 16th 1964. this has also been seen in 2001, when the aerosol parameters were reduced after an earthquake. this has probably left room for more high energy cosmic rays to enter the atmosphere and strike the Earth.

Day 2, July 8th

 coincidence chart
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coincidence chart

Day 3, July 9th

Configuration A:

Configuration B:

Most of the charts were random, the only one that had somewhat of a pattern was the graph for configuration B, where the SWR was repetitive.

UHECR create charged particles in the atmosphere

the antenna is a dipole antenna

the electric field and the magnetic field are perpendicular

Field Concept-there is a force field between the positive and negative sources

Fields can exist almost anywhere once they're created

Resistance-ex: heat producers, reactants

General Info Every day, millions and billions of light years away, a star bursts, scattering particles across the universe; this is called a supernova. A supernova occurs when a star no longer has the ability to produce nuclear heat and it collapses, releasing a profuse amount of gravitational energy, which is absorbed by nuclear processes and used to heat the remnants of the star. Supernovae produce microscopic particles known as cosmic rays, which as they’re traveling, crash into our atmosphere and break into smaller particles called pions, kaons and mesons, which then decay into muons. Muons are comprised of hydrogen, helium, carbon, oxygen, iron, etc. These cosmic rays can also be used for earthquake detection and possibly prevention. Geological records and cosmic ray records have suggest that cosmic rays may have an effect on earthquakes. However, this is a very controversial topic and nothing has been proven yet. My theory on this subject is: low energy cosmic rays as well as high energy cosmic rays have the ability to influence earthquakes. The way they do this is by penetrating through the depleted ozone layer, thus being a higher energy. When they strike the ground there is a delayed reaction due to the decay rate, buildup of energy and inhibiting factors that the muon may encounter below the Earth’s surface. Cosmic rays have an intensity (brightness) of about 1 muon (cm 2 min) and have a mean energy of a few GeV, so they can be harmful at high altitudes, with long exposure. Cosmic rays have also long inspired controversies; topics such as their origin, level of danger and relation to seismic activity have not yet been completely identified. Low energy cosmic rays are believed to come from the sun, from it’s chromosphere, whereas higher energy cosmic rays continue to baffle scientists; they theorize that cosmic rays are sent from deep in space, but do not know exactly where. (For a cosmic ray particle to be considered rare and ultra high energy, it must have an energy of 107-1010 eV.) The hypothesis for the source of these high energy cosmic rays is that a supernova produces shock waves which then energize the cosmic ray ions. Since these high energy cosmic rays are so powerful, they can’t be contained well, so the galaxy’s magnetic field sometimes loses control of them and sends them shooting off somewhere into space. From this information, scientists can conclude that there is a driving force working outside the galaxy which propels and controls cosmic rays with 1018 billion electron volts or greater. A cosmic ray said to have contained 20-40 billion electron volts, struck the atmosphere on December 3rd, 1959, and was said to have been the biggest and most powerful cosmic ray ever recorded to enter Earth’s atmosphere, it was said to have come from far out in space. (From Way out). This was followed nearly 40 years later (October 15th, 1991) by what is known amongst scientists as the “oh my god particle” which was measured at 3X1020 electronvolts, equivalent to about 50 joules — in other words, it was a subatomic particle with macroscopic kinetic energy equal to that of a baseball (140 g) which is moving at about 27 m/s (60 mph). As I mentioned previously, cosmic rays are emitted from supernovae, or the bursting of stars. Every 150 million years (approximately), the Earth passes through the Perseus arm of the Milky Way, where most supernovae tend to occur. Since we would be so close to these events, the chances of getting hit with not only cosmic rays, but high energy ones, are much more likely. Scientists have used paleoclimate records to conclude that the Earth enters a cooling period whenever we pass through this arm, telling them that the cosmic rays hitting us may also have an effect on our climate.

Rays from Galactic sources During the period 1992-200812 metagalactic and galactic sources have been observed. Among them are galactic sources Crab Nebula (supernova remnant), CygnusX-3 (binary), Tycho's SNR (supernova remnant), Geminga (radio weak pulsar) and2129+47 (binary)

Since the prehistoric times, humans have begun to recognize what we know now as cosmic radiation or cosmic rays. As time progressed, people began to learn more and more about them like where they might have come from and what they cause. There are some suspicions that cosmic rays might have had some part in ancient religions and some people say evolution. From these rays, we can develop theories on things like supernovae and gamma radiation. The joint Soviet-American team claims that they saw an immense formation of glowing clouds in the Cygnus constellation about 150 light years away. This is the Cygnus Veil, Veil nebula. This event is questioned as to whether it brought cosmic rays to the Earth and made humanity evolve. Early humans evolved in Africa 200,000 years ago and evolved over time. Our ancestors were capable of making tools and technologies (suited for their time) to use for everyday life, such as jewelry, clothes and fishing hooks. But despite these inventions, there is something even more amazing. There were spontaneous evolutions that are believed to be brought about by sudden chemical changes or environmental factors in early humans during the Paleolithic age. These people were advanced in art and religion. They started a trend of cave paintings that spread across Europe. Denis Montgomery, a British anthropologist, states that these advancements might have been caused by a supernova explosion that occurred 35,000 years ago. This perhaps caused an increase in Cosmic Rays, which acted as a mutagen and affected the brains neurological processes. Bue he has been proven wrong, for, the Cygnus Veil is 1,800 rather than 150 light years away and the supernova occurred 5-8,000 years ago. There is no way that this could have affected homo sapiens 35,000 years ago. Dr. Aden Meinel told his colleagues in December 2005, that high levels of Beryllium10 were found in ice cores in Antarctica and Greenland. These were believed to have been responsible for sudden evolutionary changes in humans 40,000-35,000 years ago. He says that the source of the cosmic rays was from the Cats Eye Nebula in the constellation Draco. Dr. Meinel and his colleagues propose that this was once a binary system consisting of a super giant and an active black hole, spewing out jets of plasma or ionized gas at velocities close to the speed of light. The Cygnus constellation has been represented for many years in things like paintings and religion. People associated the constellation with the deepest part of caves, and no one knows why. Cygnus X-3 (a neutron star or a black hole) emits cosmic rays that are strong enough to penetrate deep underneath the ground. This was discovered when a rare, distinct form of cosmic rays were found in Minnesota. Cygnus X-3 was confirmed as the galaxys’ first blazer, which produces plasma jets which penetrate the Earths’ surface. Scientists think that early cave people were aware of the oncoming cosmis rays because they produce Cherenkov radiation, which appears as an objective burst of light as it passes through the water of the eye. Astronauts first discovered this in 1968 when they were aboard the Apollo 11. The astronauts could see flashes of light (which were cosmic rays coming through the Apollo 11 spacecraft) with their eyes open and closed. Scientists question whether the Paleolithic people saw these flashes of light underground and thought of them as a religious symbol. Scientists wonder when the next shower of cosmic particles will occur, for it has already happened 3 times this year already, and if it will affect us. Records from the Phanerozoic (past 545m.y.) indicate drastic changes in temperature called icehouses and greenhouses. These climate shifts were said to have been caused by environmental factors such as a shift in ocean currents, or atmospheric composition. Carbon Dioxide (CO2) is the most probable candidate for the climate change according to opinion, but research proves that it is an improbable source for pCO2 levels changing. Models have been constructed to show past climate records but the patterns aren’t stable and don’t correlate with the Paleoclimate records. There is however, evidence of relationships between cosmic ray activity and Paleoclimate records. These correlations suggest that extraterrestrial phenomena are to blame for the shift in climate. Cosmic ray fluxes are being observed as a cause because; they are affected by solar winds that can cause them to reach the Earth. The cosmic rays reaching the Earth then mix with the low altitude cloud cover, causing (in order), a brighter sun, enhanced thermal flux + solar wind, mutated CRF (cosmic ray flux), less low level clouds, less albedo and a warmer climate. CRFs also affect things like the atmospheric ionization rate and the formation of charged aerosols which may serve as cloud condensation nuclei. Despite this data, scientists are still missing a robust physical formulation for the solar-CRF-climate link. Scientists think that the CO2 may instead of driving the climate shift, be following it and acting like an amplifier for it. The pattern of climate in the Phanerozoic is not monotonous, but instead, unpredictable. This may help to explain some of the things that scientists anticipated. It has been said that the CRF reaching the planet has an extrinsic variability due to solar wind and it also has an intrinsic variability due to a variable interstellar environment. An example of this would be a nearby supernova which would deposit high levels of cosmic rays throughout the solar system causing things like major climate shifts. Nonetheless, scientists think that intrinsic CRF variations affect our climate the most. Scientists used diffusion model parameters to measure the amount of CRFs reaching the Earth. Scientists used models to represent the Earth, its climate variability factors and its record climates. They also have a way to rule out any incorrect data and find the correct one. Scientists found that the normalization parameter D varied between 3-12 degrees Celsius but they have no confirmed limit on the amplitude of variation of the CRF itself except for the lower limit of 2.5 for its maximum/minimum ratio. The “spiral arms” of the Milky Way have a jitter in their normal orbit, and at one point, they crossed. Scientists have made assumptions as to when they crossed paths and they assume that it was 30 million years ago, which was before the midpoint of the high CRF-climate episode. Scientists have said that it is entirely possible that none of the reconstructed Phanerozoic pCO2 curves are a replica of reality. They found that with none of the CO2 reconstructions can the doubling effect of CO2 on low latitude sea temperatures be larger than 1.9 degrees Celsius. They estimate it to be around 1.5 degrees Celsius. This research shows climate evolution on geologic time scales and the factors which influence it. It suggests that celestial actions may be to blame for climate shift, or that the Earth has a stabilitizing negative feedback mechanism in its atmosphere. The reason for this climate change is still pending, but there could be more evidence to test. Cosmic rays, as well as having a correlation with climate, have similarities to starlight. Cosmic rays are given as much energy as the stars. That doesn’t seem like a lot of energy, but you have to factor in that the stars are distant suns. The radiation is not intense, because cosmic ray particles can last for a long time, whereas starlight can only last for about 5,000-50,000 years. Cosmic rays last 1,000 times longer than stars and they only need 1/1,000 of the energy output of the stars. There is a certain type of cosmic rays called “primary” cosmic rays. These cosmic rays collide high up in the atmosphere and release small particles which fall down to the Earth. Studies show that these particles were made up of hydrogen, helium, carbon, oxygen, iron, etc. Cosmic rays are strong particles, they are strong enough to penetrate our atmosphere and shower down on us. Cosmic ray particles with extremely high energies are a very rare find, but when they explode, they release particles that can penetrate a mile underground. WOW! The thing that scientists are trying to find out about them is how they gain so much energy. Nobody knows exactly where cosmic rays come from but we know that they are not spread out evenly across the sky. The hypothesis for their source is a supernova that produces shock waves which energize the cosmic ray ions. A supernova occurs when a star no longer has the ability to produce nuclear heat and it collapses, releasing a gigantic amount of gravitational energy, which is absorbed by nuclear processes and used to heat the remnants of the star. Cosmic rays are moved and sometimes trapped by magnetic fields in space. Sometimes they collide with other matter in space and form a nuclear explosion which produces gamma rays. Gamma rays then may collide with the atmosphere, producing showers of gamma rays, electrons and positrons. These collisions produce Cherenkov light, (as I mentioned before) which indicate the presence of very high levels of gamma rays. Some of which collide in the atmosphere, and some of which collide in space. They each have a different “signature” which can be easily determined. Scientists have discovered a new way to observe these gamma ray activities, the HESS telescope array, HESS standing for high energy spectroscopic system and acknowledging victor Hess (the discoverer of cosmic rays in 1912). With this discovery, scientists will soon know more about the origin of cosmic radiation. There are two types of Cosmic Rays, “primary” cosmic rays and “secondary” cosmic rays. Primary cosmic rays are (generally) all particles that come from outer space. Secondary cosmic rays are particles which result from cosmic rays colliding with the atmosphere. The sun is a source of cosmic rays but they are low energy cosmic rays. These are the cosmic rays which cause the Aurora. In the northern hemisphere, this is called the Aurora Borealis, or the northern lights, in the southern hemisphere, it is known as the Aurora Australis. The sun also has an effect on high energy cosmic rays, or Galactic Cosmic Rays (GCRs). These rays come form interstellar space and are influenced by the heliosphere (made up of solar winds- plasma, loose protons and electrons) and by the suns magnetic field. The numbers of Cosmic Rays which reach the Earth depend on the suns activity. In the 11 year cycle that the sun undergoes, solar maximums (many sun spots) and solar minimums (fewer sun spots) which keep out or let in cosmic rays.

Supernovas were first explored in 1572 by a Danish astronomer and nobleman named Tycho Brahe and 400 years later rediscovered by a man in California, Fritz Zwicky. Zwicky implied that a star will gain density until it is so dense, it explodes. Then, in 1960, Fred Hoyle and Willy Fowler came up with the idea that a star lets out hydrogen and helium fuel and converts it into carbon and oxygen. The transformation results in a huge blast of energy and it produces radioactive nickel 56. Though there are supernovae that show no signs of hydrogen, both of these theories prove to be correct. In both cases, the stars are reduced to a cloud of gaseous debris, and a hyperdense neuron star or a black hole in some extreme cases. White dwarf stars are the result of a star similar to the sun exploding. Hoyle and Fowler say that if a white dwarf star orbits another star too closely, then a supernova will occur. Scientists cannot stimulate a supernova in a lab, it has to be recreated on a computer, because it is far too complex to perform in a lab, researchers are just learning to create supernovae on the computer now. An unexpected comparison has come about for supernovae. Scientists compare supernovae with car engines. They say that both have to fuse chemicals together to spark an ignition, and after that comes turbulence. They are also similar through the process of detonation, when, for stars, the star is incinerated and all that is left of it are fused elements, such as nickel and iron. Researchers have found a code to study chemical combustion and weather. They chose to study turbulence, and kinetic energy. No one understands yet what starts the ignition of a white dwarf star, and why deflagration only leaves a small portion of the star, at most, unchanged, when it should be leaving a large portion of the star unchanged. They also have yet to discover why both deflagration and detonation occur in thermonuclear supernovae and why there is a variety of explosions. The other type of supernovae is more complicated to explain. The result of the explosion varies each time. For example, some supernovae may have hydrogen, and some may not. The biggest and most powerful supernovae produce long lasting gamma ray bursts. Core-collapse supernovae are the prime candidates for producing heavy elements such as gold, lead, thorium, and uranium. But do such conditions that are needed to produce these elements exist? The core of a stellar core is comprised mostly of iron and its structural integrity is maintained by quantum repulsion between electrons. The electrons then get squeezed into the nuclei, where they react with the protons to form neutrinos and electron neutrinos. Then, the remaining particles (neutrons and protons) are packed together and are supposed to stop the explosion, but instead, the effect is reversed and they cause an explosion. The question is, how does the star actually blow itself apart. The neutrinos are suspected to have a burst of energy to cause an explosion. This on its own wouldn’t be enough to cause a supernova, unless, the stars are spherically symmetrical and a lopsided explosion results, which would explain why supernovae are so disfigured. Because the explosion results more to one side, the neutron star is pushed out to the side. Researchers still have not figured out how supernovae occur, and they haven’t got any models that show sufficient realism to the explosions. Maybe in the years to come, they will explore the mystery that is supernovae and understand how they work.

Cosmic rays have an intensity (brightness) of about 1 muon (cm 2 min) and have a mean energy of a few GeV, so they can be harmful at high altitudes, with long exposure. Cosmic rays have also long inspired controversies; topics such as their origin, level of danger and relation to seismic activity have not yet been completely identified. Low energy cosmic rays are believed to come from the sun, from it’s chromosphere, whereas higher energy cosmic rays continue to baffle scientists; they theorize that cosmic rays are sent from deep in space, but do not know exactly where. (For a cosmic ray particle to be considered rare and ultra high energy, it must have an energy of 107-1010 eV.) The hypothesis for the source of these high energy cosmic rays is that a supernova produces shock waves which then energize the cosmic ray ions. Since these high energy cosmic rays are so powerful, they can’t be contained well, so the galaxy’s magnetic field sometimes loses control of them and sends them shooting off somewhere into space. From this information, scientists can conclude that there is a driving force working outside the galaxy which propels and controls cosmic rays with 1018 billion electron volts or greater. A cosmic ray said to have contained 20-40 billion electron volts, struck the atmosphere on December 3rd, 1959, and was said to have been the biggest and most powerful cosmic ray ever recorded to enter Earth’s atmosphere, it was said to have come from far out in space. (From Way out). This was followed nearly 40 years later (October 15th, 1991) by what is known amongst scientists as the “oh my god particle” which was measured at 3X1020 electronvolts, equivalent to about 50 joules — in other words, it was a subatomic particle with macroscopic kinetic energy equal to that of a baseball (140 g) which is moving at about 27 m/s (60 mph). As I mentioned previously, cosmic rays are emitted from supernovae, or the bursting of stars. Every 150 million years (approximately), the Earth passes through the Perseus arm of the Milky Way, where most supernovae tend to occur. Since we would be so close to these events, the chances of getting hit with not only cosmic rays, but high energy ones, are much more likely. Scientists have used paleoclimate records to conclude that the Earth enters a cooling period whenever we pass through this arm, telling them that the cosmic rays hitting us may also have an effect on our climate.

Analysis of Cosmic Ray Data, from 5/2/08-5/7/08

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Day 4, July 10th

Cosmic Ray Analysis

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Solar Flare Residual Analysis

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Summary

i'm very glad i came to the Mariachi workshop this year, i learned so much about how to detect and analyze cosmic ray events. this will really come in handy for my future research next year. i also learned that scientists also happen to be awesome at family feud and hadron hold 'em.