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2003-2004 USAP
Field Season
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Aeronomy & Astrophysics
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Dr. Vladimir Papitashvili
Program Manager
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A-125-M
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NSF/OPP
NSF/NASA agreement
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Station:
McMurdo Station
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RPSC POC:
Curt LaBombard
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Research Site(s):
McMurdo Station, Williams Field
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Dates in Antarctica:
Late October to mid February
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Tracer-Lite II: Transition Radiation Array for Cosmic Energetic Radiation, a balloon borne instrument
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Photo not available.
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Deploying Team Members:
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Maximo Ave
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Patrick (Jojo) Boyle
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Eugene Drag
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Andrew Frederic Romero-Wolf
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Jöerg Hörandel
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Wayne Johnson
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Gary (gak) Kelderhouse
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Dietrich Müller
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Richard Northrop
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Dave Pernic
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Andrew Romero-Wolf
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Simon Swordy
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Mark Thoma
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Scott Wakely
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Research Objectives:
The origin of high-energy cosmic rays remains a mystery. To solve this mystery, it is important to know the energy spectrum of cosmic rays at the source, which is known to be different from the observed energy spectrum, at least over a narrow range of energies. Examining the chemical composition of cosmic rays at high energies provides the only means of determining the cosmic ray spectrum at the source. The steeply falling energy spectrum of cosmic rays requires long observation times with large detectors. The Transition Radiation Array for Cosmic Energetic Radiation (TRACER) was constructed for long-duration balloon flights around the polar circle. It will study the abundance of elements from oxygen to iron in the cosmic ray spectrum up to approximately 10 tera electron volts/nucleon. Such information can be used to constrain models of cosmic ray propagation and acceleration.
The instrument requires careful handling and storage. During its trip from Port Hueneme to Williams Field, its temperature must remain between 0° C and +40° C. Project members will arrive in Antarctica at intervals as the mission unfolds: one will arrive early to help unload, transport, and store the instrument. Then, others will arrive to unpack it and prepare it for flight. Once that stage is complete, different personnel will be responsible for monitoring the flight. After the flight, still other personnel will take part in the recovery phase, dismantle the instrument, and pack it for return shipment to Port Hueneme.
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