Cosmic Rays: the most energetic particles in the universe

Note: Dean S. Edmonds, Sr. Memorial Lecture
Speaker: Jim Cronin, Nobel Laureate, Enrico Fermi Institute at the University of Chicago

When: April 10, 2007 (Tue), 03:15PM to 05:00PM (add to my calendar)
Hosted by: Lawrence Sulak

This event is part of the Physics Department Colloquia Series.

Dean S. Edmonds, Sr. Memorial Lecture

Single cosmic rays can have enormous energies, exceeding 20 joules each. This is a macroscopic energy packed in a microscopic particle. How Nature accomplishes this has been a mystery for more than 45 years. Recent experiments have attempted to solve this mystery, but they have had to work with a very low flux of these extremely high-energy cosmic rays – about one per km2 per century. The Pierre Auger Observatory is a new detector addressing this mystery. With a surface area of 3000 km2, it detects the shower of particles produced by a primary cosmic ray both on the ground and by the fluorescence light emitted in the atmosphere. Though the full observatory will be complete by the end of 2007, it has been recording cosmic rays as it has grown since January 2004. Preliminary results, as well as the prospects for the very near future, will be presented.