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Advanced Thin Ionization Calorimeter (ATIC) Balloon ExperimentDuring grant NAG5-5064, Louisiana State University (LSU) led the ATIC team in the development, construction, testing, accelerator validation, pre-deployment integration and flight operations of the Advanced Thin Ionization Calorimeter (ATIC) Balloon Experiment. This involved interfacing among the ATIC collaborators (UMD, NRL/MSFC, SU, MSU, WI, SNU) to develop a new balloon payload based upon a fully active calorimeter, a carbon target, a scintillator strip hodoscope and a pixilated silicon solid state detector for a detailed investigation of the very high energy cosmic rays to energies beyond 10(exp 14) eV/nucleus. It is in this very high energy region that theory predicts changes in composition and energy spectra related to the Supernova Remnant Acceleration model for cosmic rays below the "knee" in the all-particle spectrum. This report provides a documentation list, details the anticipated ATIC science return, describes the particle detection principles on which the experiment is based, summarizes the simulation results for the system, describes the validation work at the CERN SPS accelerator and details the balloon flight configuration. The ATIC experiment had a very successful LDB flight from McMurdo, Antarctica in 12/00 - 1/01. The instrument performed well for the entire 15 days. Preliminary data analysis shows acceptable charge resolution and an all-particle power law energy deposition distribution not inconsistent with previous measurements. Detailed analysis is underway and will result in new data on the cosmic ray charge and energy spectra in the GeV - TeV energy range. ATIC is currently being refurbished in anticipation of another LDB flight in the 2002-03 period.
Document ID
20010097885
Acquisition Source
Wallops Flight Facility
Document Type
Other
Authors
Wefel, John P.
(Louisiana State Univ. Baton Rouge, LA United States)
Guzik, T. Gregory
(Louisiana State Univ. Baton Rouge, LA United States)
Date Acquired
September 7, 2013
Publication Date
January 14, 2001
Subject Category
Space Radiation
Report/Patent Number
LSU-7011
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NAG5-5064
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.
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