Abstract

The High Altitude Research Platform (HARP) will utilize a suite of instruments to measure cosmic rays up to an altitude of 35 km. The first of these, the Aware Electronics Model RM-60 Pro Geiger Counter, has been tested in multiple Taylor University balloon launches. Its primary purpose is to determine the amount of cosmic radiation (ions, gamma rays, subatomic particles) at different altitudes. The most recent daytime launch took place on March 9, 2013 and gathered count rate data from an altitude of 0 to 20 km. The count rate from 0 to 4000 meters was unexpectedly constant at an average of approximately 0.2 cps (counts per second). As the balloon flew past 4000 m, the count rate increased until it reached a maximum of approximately 14 cps at a height of about 19 km. The second instrument that was flown was the Vernier Radiation Monitor. It has similar dimensions to the aforementioned Geiger counter (cylinder of diameter 15.20 mm, height 40.78 mm, and volume 7400 mm3) yet is more compact. It will be shielded with lead to define the field-of-view. The Vernier sensor will be mounted on the outside of the launch pod so that it will measure the count rate without obstruction. Signal processing, including the Boxcar Averaging Method, has been employed in the analysis of the current data. The second launch took place at night on April 22, 2013 and reached altitudes greater than 30 km. On June 5, 2013, a third daytime launch collected data using the Vernier sensor. The results of the daytime and nighttime launches have been compared and synthesized to further investigate cosmic radiation. This diverse number of instruments allowed us to examine cosmic rays from multiple different angles and achieve significant new results.

How to Cite:

Melendez, J. A. & Smith, C. J., (2013) “Cosmic Ray Measurement and Analysis”, Academic High Altitude Conference 2013(1). doi: https://doi.org/10.31274/ahac.5597