Inferred Cosmic-Ray Spectrum from Fermi Large Area Telescope $\gamma$ -Ray Observations of Earth’s Limb

Journal Article · Thu Apr 17 00:00:00 EDT 2014 · Physical Review Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.112.151103· OSTI ID:1356529

Ackermann, M.; Ajello, M.; Albert, A.; Allafort, A.; Baldini, L.; Barbiellini, G.; Bastieri, D.; Bechtol, K.; Bellazzini, R.; Blandford, R. D.; Bloom, E. D.; Bonamente, E.; Bottacini, E.; Bouvier, A.; Brandt, T. J.; Brigida, M.; Bruel, P.; Buehler, R.; Buson, S.; Caliandro, G. A. ; Cameron, R. A.; Caraveo, P. A.; Cecchi, C.; Charles, E.; Chaves, R. C. G.; Chekhtman, A.; Chiang, J.; Chiaro, G.; Ciprini, S.; Claus, R.; Cohen-Tanugi, J.; Conrad, J.; Cutini, S.; Dalton, M.; D’Ammando, F.; de Angelis, A.; de Palma, F.; Dermer, C. D.; Digel, S. W.; Di Venere, L.; do Couto e Silva, E.; Drell, P. S.; Drlica-Wagner, A.; Favuzzi, C.; Fegan, S. J.; Ferrara, E. C.; Focke, W. B.; Franckowiak, A.; Fukazawa, Y.; Funk, S.; Fusco, P.; Gargano, F.; Gasparrini, D.; Germani, S.; Giglietto, N.; Giordano, F.; Giroletti, M.; Glanzman, T.; Godfrey, G.; Gomez-Vargas, G. A.; Grenier, I. A.; Grove, J. E.; Guiriec, S.; Gustafsson, M.; Hadasch, D.; Hanabata, Y.; Harding, A. K.; Hayashida, M.; Hayashi, K.; Hewitt, J. W.; Horan, D.; Hou, X.; Hughes, R. E.; Inoue, Y.; Jackson, M. S.; Jogler, T.; Jóhannesson, G.; Johnson, A. S.; Kamae, T.; Kawano, T.; Knödlseder, J.; Kuss, M.; Lande, J.; Larsson, S.; Latronico, L.; Longo, F.; Loparco, F.; Lovellette, M. N.; Lubrano, P.; Mayer, M.; Mazziotta, M. N.; McEnery, J. E.; Mehault, J.; Michelson, P. F.; Mitthumsiri, W.; Mizuno, T.; Moiseev, A. A.; Monte, C.; Monzani, M. E.; Morselli, A.; Moskalenko, I. V.; Murgia, S.; Nemmen, R.; Nuss, E.; Ohsugi, T.; Okumura, A.; Orienti, M.; Orlando, E.; Ormes, J. F.; Paneque, D.; Panetta, J. H.; Perkins, J. S.; Pesce-Rollins, M.; Piron, F.; Pivato, G.; Porter, T. A.; Rainò, S.; Rando, R.; Razzano, M.; Razzaque, S.; Reimer, A.; Reimer, O.; Ritz, S.; Roth, M.; Schaal, M.; Schulz, A.; Sgrò, C.; Siskind, E. J.; Spandre, G.; Spinelli, P.; Strong, A. W.; Takahashi, H.; Takeuchi, Y.; Thayer, J. G.; Thayer, J. B.; Thompson, D. J.; Tibaldo, L.; Tinivella, M.; Torres, D. F.; Tosti, G.; Troja, E.; Tronconi, V.; Usher, T. L.; Vandenbroucke, J.; Vasileiou, V.; Vianello, G.; Vitale, V.; Werner, M.; Winer, B. L.; Wood, K. S.; Wood, M.; Yang, Z.

Accurate measurements of cosmic-ray (CR) species by ATIC-2, CREAM, and PAMELA recently reveal an unexpected hardening in the proton and He spectra above a few hundred GeV, a gradual softening of the spectra just below a few hundred GeV, and a harder spectrum of He compared to that of protons. These newly discovered features may offer a clue to the origin of high-energy CRs. Here, we use the Fermi Large Area Telescope observations of the γ -ray emission from Earth’s limb for an indirect measurement of the local spectrum of CR protons in the energy range ~ 90 GeV – 6 TeV (derived from a photon energy range 15 GeV–1 TeV). Our analysis shows that single power law and broken power law spectra fit the data equally well and yield a proton spectrum with index 2.68 ± 0.04 and 2.61 ± 0.08 above ~ 200 GeV , respectively.

• Research Organization: SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory (SLAC), Menlo Park, CA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• Contributing Organization: Fermi LAT Collaboration
• Grant/Contract Number: AC02-76SF00515
• OSTI ID: 1356529
• Journal Information: Physical Review Letters, Vol. 112, Issue 15; ISSN 0031-9007
• Publisher: American Physical Society (APS)
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS