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1.
  • Acero, F., et al. (författare)
  • Prospects for Cherenkov Telescope Array Observations of the Young Supernova Remnant RX J1713.7-3946
  • 2017
  • Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - : Institute of Physics Publishing (IOPP). - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 840:2
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • We perform simulations for future Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) observations of RX J1713.7-3946, a young supernova remnant (SNR) and one of the brightest sources ever discovered in very high energy (VHE) gamma rays. Special attention is paid to exploring possible spatial (anti) correlations of gamma rays with emission at other wavelengths, in particular X-rays and CO/H I emission. We present a series of simulated images of RX J1713.7-3946 for CTA based on a set of observationally motivated models for the gamma-ray emission. In these models, VHE gamma rays produced by high-energy electrons are assumed to trace the nonthermal X-ray emission observed by XMM-Newton, whereas those originating from relativistic protons delineate the local gas distributions. The local atomic and molecular gas distributions are deduced by the NANTEN team from CO and H I observations. Our primary goal is to show how one can distinguish the emission mechanism(s) of the gamma rays (i.e., hadronic versus leptonic, or a mixture of the two) through information provided by their spatial distribution, spectra, and time variation. This work is the first attempt to quantitatively evaluate the capabilities of CTA to achieve various proposed scientific goals by observing this important cosmic particle accelerator.
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2.
  • Arias, M., et al. (författare)
  • Low-frequency radio absorption in Cassiopeia A
  • 2018
  • Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 612
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • Context. Cassiopeia A is one of the best-studied supernova remnants. Its bright radio and X-ray emission is due to shocked ejecta. Cas A is rather unique in that the unshocked ejecta can also be studied: through emission in the infrared, the radio-active decay of Ti-44, and the low-frequency free-free absorption caused by cold ionised gas, which is the topic of this paper. Aims. Free-free absorption processes are affected by the mass, geometry, temperature, and ionisation conditions in the absorbing gas. Observations at the lowest radio frequencies can constrain a combination of these properties. Methods. We used Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) Low Band Antenna observations at 30-77 MHz and Very Large Array (VLA) L-band observations at 1-2 GHz to fit for internal absorption as parametrised by the emission measure. We simultaneously fit multiple UV-matched images with a common resolution of 17 '' (this corresponds to 0.25 pc for a source at the distance of Cas A). The ample frequency coverage allows us separate the relative contributions from the absorbing gas, the unabsorbed front of the shell, and the absorbed back of the shell to the emission spectrum. We explored the effects that a temperature lower than the similar to 100-500 K proposed from infrared observations and a high degree of clumping can have on the derived physical properties of the unshocked material, such as its mass and density. We also compiled integrated radio flux density measurements, fit for the absorption processes that occur in the radio band, and considered their effect on the secular decline of the source. Results. We find a mass in the unshocked ejecta of M = 2.95 +/- 0.48 M-circle dot for an assumed gas temperature of T = 100 K. This estimate is reduced for colder gas temperatures and, most significantly, if the ejecta are clumped. We measure the reverse shock to have a radius of 114 '' +/- 6 '' and be centred at 23:23:26, +58:48:54 (J2000). We also find that a decrease in the amount of mass in the unshocked ejecta (as more and more material meets the reverse shock and heats up) cannot account for the observed low-frequency behaviour of the secular decline rate. Conclusions. To reconcile our low-frequency absorption measurements with models that reproduce much of the observed behaviour in Cas A and predict little mass in the unshocked ejecta, the ejecta need to be very clumped or the temperature in the cold gas needs to be low (similar to 10 K). Both of these options are plausible and can together contribute to the high absorption value that we find.
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3.
  • Becherini, Yvonne, et al. (författare)
  • The CoMET multiperspective event tracker for wide field-of-view gamma-ray astronomy
  • 2022
  • Ingår i: Proceedings of Science. - : Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA).
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • The ALTO project aims to build a particle detector array for very high energy gamma ray observations optimized for soft spectrum sources. The accurate reconstruction of gamma ray events, in particular their energies, using a surface array is an especially challenging problem at the low energies ALTO aims to optimize for. In this contribution, we leverage Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) to improve reconstruction performance at lower energies ( smaller 1 TeV ) as compared to the SEMLA analysis procedure, which is a more traditional method using mainly manually derived features.rnWe present performance figures using different network architectures and training settings, both in terms of accuracy and training time, as well as the impact of various data augmentation techniques.
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4.
  • Becherini, Yvonne, et al. (författare)
  • Very-High-Energy gamma-ray astronomy with the ALTO observatory
  • 2018
  • Ingår i: 35th International Cosmic Ray Conference;ICRC2017, Busan, Korea, July 10-20, 2017. - Trieste : Sissa Medialab.
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • ALTO is a concept/project in the exploratory phase since 2013 aiming to build a wide-field Very-High-Energy gamma-ray observatory at very high altitude in the Southern hemisphere. The operation of such an observatory will complement the Northern hemisphere observations performed by HAWC and will make possible the exploration of the central region of our Galaxy and the hunt for PeVatrons, and to search for extended Galactic objects such as the Vela Supernova Remnant and the Fermi bubbles. The ALTO project is aiming for a substantial improvement of the Water Cherenkov Detection Technique by increasing the altitude of the observatory in order to lower the energy threshold, by using a layer of scintillator below the water tank to optimize the signal over background discrimination, by minimizing the size of the tanks and having a more compact array to sample the air-shower footprints with better precision, and by using precise electronics which will provide time-stamped waveforms to improve the angular and energy resolution. ALTO is designed to have as low an energy threshold as possible so as to act as a fast trigger alert to other observatories -- primarily to the Southern part of CTA -- for transient Galactic and extra-galactic phenomena. The wide field-of-view resulting from the detection technique allows the survey of a large portion of the sky continuously, thus giving the possibility to access emission from Gamma-Ray Bursts, Active Galactic Nuclei and X-ray binary flares, and extended emissions of both Galactic (Vela SNR, Fermi bubbles) and extra-galactic (AGN radio lobes) origin. The ALTO observatory will be composed of about a thousand detection units, each of which consists of a Water Cherenkov Detector positioned above a liquid Scintillation Detector, distributed within an area of about 200 m in diameter. The project is in the design study phase which is soon to be followed by a prototyping phase. The ALTO concept, design study and expected sensitivity together with the prototype status and plans for final deployment in the Southern hemisphere will be the subjects of this presentation.
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5.
  • Bonardi, A., et al. (författare)
  • Study of the LOFAR radio self-trigger and single-station acquisition mode
  • 2018
  • Ingår i: 35th International Cosmic Ray Conference, ICRC 2017, 10-20 July 2017. - : Sissa Medialab Srl.
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • The LOw Frequency ARay (LOFAR) observatory is a multipurpose radio antenna array aimed to detect radio signals in the frequency range 10-240 MHz. Radio antennas are clustered into over 50 stations, and are spread along Central and Northern Europe. The LOFAR core, where the density of stations is highest, is instrumented with the LOfar Radboud air shower Array (LORA), covering an area of about 300 m diameter centered at the LOFAR core position. Since 2011 the LOFAR core has been used for detecting radio-signals associated to cosmic-ray air showers in the energy range 1016 - 1018 eV. Data acquisition is triggered by the LORA scintillator array, which provides energy, arrival direction, and core position estimates of the detected air shower too. Thus only the core of the LOFAR array is currently used for cosmic-ray detection. In order to extend the energy range of the detected cosmic rays, it is necessary to expand the effective collecting area to the whole LOFAR array. On this purpose, a detailed study about the LOFAR potentialities of working in self-trigger mode, i.e. with the cosmic-ray data acquisition trigger provided by the radio-antenna only, is presented here. A new method based on the intensity and the frequency spectrum for determining the air shower position to be implemented on LOFAR remote stations is presented too. © Copyright owned by the author(s) under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).
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6.
  • Bonardi, Antonio, et al. (författare)
  • Towards real-time cosmic-ray identification with the LOw Frequency ARay
  • 2019
  • Ingår i: 8th International Conference on Acoustic and Radio EeV Neutrino Detection Activities (ARENA 2018). - : EDP Sciences. - 9782759890804 ; , s. 1-3
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • The radio signals emitted by Extensive Air Showers have been successfully used for the last decade by LOFAR to reconstruct the properties of the primary cosmic rays. Since an effective real-time recognition system for the very short radio pulses is lacking, cosmic-ray acquisition is currently triggered by an external array of particle detector, called LORA, limiting the LOFAR collecting area to the area covered by LORA. A new algorithm for the real-time cosmic-ray detection has been developed for the LOFAR Low Band Antenna, which are sensitive between 10 and 90 MHz, and is here presented together with the latest results.
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7.
  • Borwankar, Chinmay, et al. (författare)
  • Simulation studies of MACE-I : Trigger rates and energy thresholds
  • 2016
  • Ingår i: Astroparticle physics. - : Elsevier BV. - 0927-6505 .- 1873-2852. ; 84, s. 97-106
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • The MACE (Major Atmospheric Cherenkov Experiment) is an upcoming Very High Energy (VHE) gamma-ray telescope, based on imaging atmospheric Cherenkov technique, being installed at Hanle, a high altitude astronomical site in Ladakh, India. Here we present Monte Carlo simulation studies of trigger rates and threshold energies of MACE in the zenith angle range of 0 degrees-60 degrees for on-axis gamma-ray coming from point source and various cosmic ray species. We have simulated the telescope's response to gamma-rays, proton, electron and alpha initiated atmospheric Extensive Air Showers (EAS) in the broad energy range of 5 GeV to 20 TeV. For gamma-rays we consider power law and log parabolic spectra while other particles are simulated with their respective cosmic ray spectrum. Trigger rates and threshold energies are estimated for the trigger configuration of 4 Close Cluster Nearest Neighbour(CCNN) pixels as implemented in MACE hardware, in combination with single channel discriminator threshold ranging from 6-10 photo electrons (pe). We find that MACE can achieve the gamma-ray trigger energy threshold of similar to 17 GeV (4 CCNN, 9 pe) at 0 degrees zenith angle for power law spectrum. The total trigger rate at 0 degrees zenith is expected to be similar to 650 Hz, with protons contributing similar to 80% to it. For the zenith range of 0 degrees-40 degrees we find that the telescope can achieve gamma-gray trigger threshold energies of similar to 22 GeV at 20 degrees zenith angle and similar to 40 GeV at 40 degrees zenith angle. Integral rates are also almost constant for this zenith angle range. At zenith angle of 60 degrees, trigger energy threshold increases to similar to 173 GeV and total integral rate falls down to similar to 305 Hz. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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8.
  • Buitink, S., et al. (författare)
  • A large light-mass component of cosmic rays at 1017–1017.5 electronvolts from radio observations
  • 2016
  • Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 531:7592, s. 70-73
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • Cosmic rays are the highest-energy particles found in nature. Measurements of the mass composition of cosmic rays with energies of 1017–1018 electronvolts are essential to understanding whether they have galactic or extragalactic sources. It has also been proposed that the astrophysical neutrino signal1 comes from accelerators capable of producing cosmic rays of these energies2. Cosmic rays initiate air showers—cascades of secondary particles in the atmosphere—and their masses can be inferred from measurements of the atmospheric depth of the shower maximum3 (Xmax; the depth of the air shower when it contains the most particles) or of the composition of shower particles reaching the ground4. Current measurements5 have either high uncertainty, or a low duty cycle and a high energy threshold. Radio detection of cosmic rays6, 7, 8 is a rapidly developing technique9 for determining Xmax (refs 10, 11) with a duty cycle of, in principle, nearly 100 per cent. The radiation is generated by the separation of relativistic electrons and positrons in the geomagnetic field and a negative charge excess in the shower front6, 12. Here we report radio measurements of Xmax with a mean uncertainty of 16 grams per square centimetre for air showers initiated by cosmic rays with energies of 1017–1017.5 electronvolts. This high resolution in Xmax enables us to determine the mass spectrum of the cosmic rays: we find a mixed composition, with a light-mass fraction (protons and helium nuclei) of about 80 per cent. Unless, contrary to current expectations, the extragalactic component of cosmic rays contributes substantially to the total flux below 1017.5 electronvolts, our measurements indicate the existence of an additional galactic component, to account for the light composition that we measured in the 1017–1017.5 electronvolt range.
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9.
  • Buitink, S., et al. (författare)
  • Cosmic ray mass composition with LOFAR
  • 2018
  • Ingår i: 35th International Cosmic Ray Conference — ICRC2017. 10–20 July, 2017. Bexco, Busan, Korea. - Trieste, Italy : Sissa Medialab Srl.
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • The LOFAR radio telescope measures the radio emission from extensive air showers with unprecedented precision. In the dense core individual air showers are detected by hundreds of dipole antennas. By fitting the complex radiation pattern to Monte Carlo radio simulation codes we obtain measurements of the atmospheric depth of the shower maximum X max with a precision of < 20 g/cm 2 . This quantity is sensitive to the mass composition of cosmic rays. We discuss the first mass composition results of LOFAR and the improvements that are currently being made to enhance the accuracy of future analysis. Firstly, a more realistic treatment of the atmosphere will decrease the systematic uncertainties due to the atmosphere. Secondly, a series of upgrades to the LOFAR system will lead to increased effective area, duty cycle, and the possibility to extend the composition analysis down to the energy of 10 16.5 eV. © Copyright owned by the author(s) under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).
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10.
  • Buitink, S., et al. (författare)
  • Method for high precision reconstruction of air shower Xmax using two-dimensional radio intensity profiles
  • 2014
  • Ingår i: Physical Review D. - 1550-7998 .- 1550-2368. ; 90:8, s. 1-12
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • The mass composition of cosmic rays contains important clues about their origin. Accurate measurements are needed to resolve longstanding issues such as the transition from Galactic to extra-Galactic origin and the nature of the cutoff observed at the highest energies. Composition can be studied by measuring the atmospheric depth of the shower maximum Xmax of air showers generated by high-energy cosmic rays hitting the Earth’s atmosphere. We present a new method to reconstruct Xmax based on radio measurements. The radio emission mechanism of air showers is a complex process that creates an asymmetric intensity pattern on the ground. The shape of this pattern strongly depends on the longitudinal development of the shower. We reconstruct Xmax by fitting two-dimensional intensity profiles, simulated with CoREAS, to data from the Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) radio telescope. In the dense LOFAR core, air showers are detected by hundreds of antennas simultaneously. The simulations fit the data very well, indicating that the radiation mechanism is now well understood. The typical uncertainty on the reconstruction of Xmax for LOFAR showers is 17  g/cm2.
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11.
  • Buitink, Stijn, et al. (författare)
  • Searching for neutrino radio flashes from the Moon with LOFAR
  • 2013
  • Ingår i: 5th International Workshop on Acoustic and Radio EeV Neutrino Detection Activities. - : American Institute of Physics (AIP). ; , s. 27-31
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • Ultra-high-energy neutrinos and cosmic rays produce short radio flashes through the Askaryan effect when they impact on the Moon. Earthbound radio telescopes can search the Lunar surface for these signals. A new generation of lowfrequency, digital radio arrays, spearheaded by LOFAR, will allow for searches with unprecedented sensitivity. In the first stage of the NuMoon project, low-frequency observations were carried out with the Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope, leading to the most stringent limit on the cosmic neutrino flux above 1023 eV. With LOFAR we will be able to reach a sensitivity of over an order of magnitude better and to decrease the threshold energy.
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12.
  • Bylund, Tomas, et al. (författare)
  • Studies of Gamma-Ray Shower Reconstruction UsingDeep Learning
  • 2021
  • Ingår i: Proceedings of Science.
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • The ALTO project aims to build a particle detector array for very high energy gamma ray observations optimized for soft spectrum sources. The accurate reconstruction of gamma ray events, in particular their energies, using a surface array is an especially challenging problem at the low energies ALTO aims to optimize for. In this contribution, we leverage Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) to improve reconstruction performance at lower energies ( smaller 1 TeV ) as compared to the SEMLA analysis procedure, which is a more traditional method using mainly manually derived features.rnWe present performance figures using different network architectures and training settings, both in terms of accuracy and training time, as well as the impact of various data augmentation techniques.
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13.
  • Coenen, T., et al. (författare)
  • The LOFAR pilot surveys for pulsars and fast radio transients
  • 2014
  • Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 570, s. 1-16
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • We have conducted two pilot surveys for radio pulsars and fast transients with the Low-Frequency Array (LOFAR) around 140 MHz and here report on the first low-frequency fast-radio burst limit and the discovery of two new pulsars. The first survey, the LOFAR Pilot Pulsar Survey (LPPS), observed a large fraction of the northern sky, ~ 1.4 × 104 deg2, with 1 h dwell times. Each observation covered ~75 deg2 using 7 independent fields formed by incoherently summing the high-band antenna fields. The second pilot survey, the LOFAR Tied-Array Survey (LOTAS), spanned ~600 deg2, with roughly a 5-fold increase in sensitivity compared with LPPS. Using a coherent sum of the 6 LOFAR “Superterp” stations, we formed 19 tied-array beams, together covering 4 deg2 per pointing. From LPPS we derive a limit on the occurrence, at 142 MHz, of dispersed radio bursts of < 150 day-1 sky-1, for bursts brighter than S> 107  Jy for the narrowest searched burst duration of 0.66 ms. In LPPS, we re-detected 65 previously known pulsars. LOTAS discovered two pulsars, the first with LOFAR or any digital aperture array. LOTAS also re-detected 27 previously known pulsars. These pilot studies show that LOFAR can efficiently carry out all-sky surveys for pulsars and fast transients, and they set the stage for further surveying efforts using LOFAR and the planned low-frequency component of the Square Kilometer Array.
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14.
  • Corstanje, A., et al. (författare)
  • LOFAR : Detecting Cosmic Rays with a Radio Telescope
  • 2011
  • Ingår i: Proceedings of the 32nd International Cosmic Ray Conference. - : International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP). ; , s. 192-195
  • Konferensbidrag (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
    • LOFAR (the Low Frequency Array), a distributed digital radio telescope with stations in the Netherlands, Germany, France, Sweden, and the United Kingdom, is designed to enable full-sky monitoring of transient radio sources. These capabilities are ideal for the detection of broadband radio pulses generated in cosmic ray air showers. The core of LOFAR consists of 24 stations within 4 square kilometers, and each station contains 96 low-band antennas and 48 high-band antennas. This dense instrumentation will allow detailed studies of the lateral distribution of the radio signal in a frequency range of 10-250 MHz. Such studies are key to understanding the various radio emission mechanisms within the air shower, as well as for determining the potential of the radio technique for primary particle identification. We present the status of the LOFAR cosmic ray program, including the station design and hardware, the triggering and filtering schemes, and our initial observations of cosmic-ray-induced radio pulses.
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15.
  • Corstanje, A., et al. (författare)
  • The effect of the atmospheric refractive index on the radio signal of extensive air showers
  • 2017
  • Ingår i: Astroparticle physics. - : Elsevier. - 0927-6505 .- 1873-2852. ; 89, s. 23-29
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • For the interpretation of measurements of radio emission from extensive air showers, an important systematic uncertainty arises from natural variations of the atmospheric refractive index n. At a given altitude, the refractivity N = 10(6) (n - 1) can have relative variations on the order of 10% depending on temperature, humidity, and air pressure. Typical corrections to be applied to N are about 4%. Using CoREAS simulations of radio emission from air showers, we have evaluated the effect of varying N on measurements of the depth of shower maximum X-max. For an observation band of 30-80 MHz, a difference of 4% in refractivity gives rise to a systematic error in the inferred X-max between 3.5 and 11 g/cm(2), for proton showers with zenith angles ranging from 15 to 50 degrees. At higher frequencies, from 120 to 250 MHz, the offset ranges from 10 to 22 g/cm(2). These offsets were found to be proportional to the geometric distance to X-max. We have compared the results to a simple model based on the Cherenkov angle. For the 120-250 MHz band, the model is in qualitative agreement with the simulations. In typical circumstances, we find a slight decrease in X-max compared to the default refractivity treatment in CoREAS. While this is within commonly treated systematic uncertainties, accounting for it explicitly improves the accuracy of X-max measurements. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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16.
  • Corstanje, A., et al. (författare)
  • The effect of the atmospheric refractive index on the radio signal of extensive air showers using Global Data Assimilation System (GDAS)
  • 2018
  • Ingår i: 35th International Cosmic Ray Conference, ICRC 2017, 10-20 July 2017, Bexco, Busan, Korea. - : Sissa Medialab Srl.
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • One of the major systematic uncertainties in the measurement of Xmax from radio emission of EAS arises from variations of the refractive index in the atmosphere. The refractive index n varies with temperature, humidity and pressure, and the variations can be on the order of 10% for (n-1) at a given altitude. The effect of a varying refractive index on Xmax measurements is evaluated using CoREAS: a microscopic simulation of the radio emission from the individual particles in the cascade simulated with CORSIKA. We discuss the resulting offsets in Xmax for different frequency regimes, and compare them to a simple physical model. Under typical circumstances, the offsets in Xmax range from 4-11 g/cm2 for the 30-80 MHz frequency band. Therefore, for precise measurements it is required to include atmospheric data at the time and place of observation of the air shower into the simulations. The aim is to implement this in the next version of CoREAS/CORSIKA using the Global Data Assimilation System (GDAS), a global atmospheric model based on meteorological measurements and numerical weather predictions. This can then be used to re-evaluate the air shower measurements of the LOFAR radio telescope. © Copyright owned by the author(s) under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).
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17.
  • Corstanje, A., et al. (författare)
  • The shape of the radio wavefront of extensive air showers as measured with LOFAR
  • 2015
  • Ingår i: Astroparticle physics. - : Elsevier BV. - 0927-6505 .- 1873-2852. ; 61, s. 22-31
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • Extensive air showers, induced by high energy cosmic rays impinging on the Earth’s atmosphere, produce radio emission that is measured with the LOFAR radio telescope. As the emission comes from a finite distance of a few kilometers, the incident wavefront is non-planar. A spherical, conical or hyperbolic shape of the wavefront has been proposed, but measurements of individual air showers have been inconclusive so far. For a selected high-quality sample of 161 measured extensive air showers, we have reconstructed the wavefront by measuring pulse arrival times to sub-nanosecond precision in 200 to 350 individual antennas. For each measured air shower, we have fitted a conical, spherical, and hyperboloid shape to the arrival times. The fit quality and a likelihood analysis show that a hyperboloid is the best parameterization. Using a non-planar wavefront shape gives an improved angular resolution, when reconstructing the shower arrival direction. Furthermore, a dependence of the wavefront shape on the shower geometry can be seen. This suggests that it will be possible to use a wavefront shape analysis to get an additional handle on the atmospheric depth of the shower maximum, which is sensitive to the mass of the primary particle.
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18.
  • Corstanje, A., et al. (författare)
  • Timing calibration and spectral cleaning of LOFAR time series data
  • 2016
  • Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 590
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • We describe a method for spectral cleaning and timing calibration of short voltage time series data from individual radio interferometer receivers. It makes use of the phase differences in Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) spectra across antenna pairs. For strong, localized terrestrial sources these are stable over time, while being approximately uniform-random for a sum over many sources or for noise. Using only milliseconds-long datasets, the method finds the strongest interfering transmitters, a first-order solution for relative timing calibrations, and faulty data channels. No knowledge of gain response or quiescent noise levels of the receivers is required. With relatively small data volumes, this approach is suitable for use in an online system monitoring setup for interferometric arrays. We have applied the method to our cosmic-ray data collection, a collection of measurements of short pulses from extensive air showers, recorded by the LOFAR radio telescope. Per air shower, we have collected 2 ms of raw time series data for each receiver. The spectral cleaning has a calculated optimal sensitivity corresponding to a power signal-to-noise ratio of 0.08 (or -11 dB) in a spectral window of 25 kHz, for 2 ms of data in 48 antennas. This is well sufficient for our application. Timing calibration across individual antenna pairs has been performed at 0.4 ns precision; for calibration of signal clocks across stations of 48 antennas the precision is 0.1 ns. Monitoring differences in timing calibration per antenna pair over the course of the period 2011 to 2015 shows a precision of 0.08 ns, which is useful for monitoring and correcting drifts in signal path synchronizations. A cross-check method for timing calibration is presented, using a pulse transmitter carried by a drone flying over the array. Timing precision is similar, 0.3 ns.
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19.
  • Dhar, V. K., et al. (författare)
  • ANN based energy estimation procedure and energy spectrum of the Crab Nebula as measured by the TACTIC gamma-ray telescope
  • 2005
  • Ingår i: 29th International Cosmic Ray Conference Pune (2005). ; , s. 179-182
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • A novel energy reconstruction procedure based on the utilization of Articial Neural Network has been developedfor the TACTIC atmospheric Cerenkov imaging telescope to estimate the energy of the primary gammaraysin the TeV energy range. The procedure uses a 3:20:1 conguration of the ANN with resilient backpropagationtraining algorithm to estimate the energy of a-ray like event on the basis of its image SIZE,DISTANCE and zenith angle. The results obtained by using the CORSIKA code simulated data suggest theenergy resolution of the telescope is40for retaining90of the-ray events in a particular energybin which is comparable to the energy resolution of other single element imaging telescopes. Details of theenergy estimation procedure along with results obtained by determining the Crab Nebula energy spectrum inthe energy range 1-16 TeV as measured by the TACTIC telescope are presented in the paper.
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21.
  • Fallows, Richard A., et al. (författare)
  • A LOFAR observation of ionospheric scintillation from two simultaneous travelling ionospheric disturbances
  • 2020
  • Ingår i: Journal of Space Weather and Space Climate. - : EDP Sciences. - 2115-7251. ; 10
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • This paper presents the results from one of the first observations of ionospheric scintillation taken using the Low-Frequency Array (LOFAR). The observation was of the strong natural radio source Cassiopeia A, taken overnight on 18-19 August 2013, and exhibited moderately strong scattering effects in dynamic spectra of intensity received across an observing bandwidth of 10-80 MHz. Delay-Doppler spectra (the 2-D FFT of the dynamic spectrum) from the first hour of observation showed two discrete parabolic arcs, one with a steep curvature and the other shallow, which can be used to provide estimates of the distance to, and velocity of, the scattering plasma. A cross-correlation analysis of data received by the dense array of stations in the LOFAR "core" reveals two different velocities in the scintillation pattern: a primary velocity of similar to 20-40 ms(-1) with a north-west to south-east direction, associated with the steep parabolic arc and a scattering altitude in the F-region or higher, and a secondary velocity of similar to 110 ms(-1) with a north-east to south-west direction, associated with the shallow arc and a scattering altitude in the D-region. Geomagnetic activity was low in the mid-latitudes at the time, but a weak sub-storm at high latitudes reached its peak at the start of the observation. An analysis of Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) and ionosonde data from the time reveals a larger-scale travelling ionospheric disturbance (TID), possibly the result of the high-latitude activity, travelling in the north-west to south-east direction, and, simultaneously, a smaller-scale TID travelling in a north-east to south-west direction, which could be associated with atmospheric gravity wave activity. The LOFAR observation shows scattering from both TIDs, at different altitudes and propagating in different directions. To the best of our knowledge this is the first time that such a phenomenon has been reported.
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22.
  • Garsden, H., et al. (författare)
  • LOFAR sparse image reconstruction
  • 2015
  • Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 575:A90
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • Context. The LOw Frequency ARray (LOFAR) radio telescope is a giant digital phased array interferometer with multiple antennas distributed in Europe. It provides discrete sets of Fourier components of the sky brightness. Recovering the original brightness distribution with aperture synthesis forms an inverse problem that can be solved by various deconvolution and minimization methods.Aims. Recent papers have established a clear link between the discrete nature of radio interferometry measurement and the “compressed sensing” (CS) theory, which supports sparse reconstruction methods to form an image from the measured visibilities. Empowered by proximal theory, CS offers a sound framework for efficient global minimization and sparse data representation using fast algorithms. Combined with instrumental direction-dependent effects (DDE) in the scope of a real instrument, we developed and validated a new method based on this framework.Methods. We implemented a sparse reconstruction method in the standard LOFAR imaging tool and compared the photometric and resolution performance of this new imager with that of CLEAN-based methods (CLEAN and MS-CLEAN) with simulated and real LOFAR data.Results. We show that i) sparse reconstruction performs as well as CLEAN in recovering the flux of point sources; ii) performs much better on extended objects (the root mean square error is reduced by a factor of up to 10); and iii) provides a solution with an effective angular resolution 2−3 times better than the CLEAN images.Conclusions. Sparse recovery gives a correct photometry on high dynamic and wide-field images and improved realistic structures of extended sources (of simulated and real LOFAR datasets). This sparse reconstruction method is compatible with modern interferometric imagers that handle DDE corrections (A- and W-projections) required for current and future instruments such as LOFAR and SKA.
  •  
23.
  • Girard, J. N., et al. (författare)
  • Imaging Jupiter’s radiation belts down to 127 MHz with LOFAR
  • 2016
  • Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 587
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • Context. With the limited amount of in situ particle data available for the innermost region of Jupiter’s magnetosphere, Earth-based observations of the giant planets synchrotron emission remain the sole method today of scrutinizing the distribution and dynamical behavior of the ultra energetic electrons magnetically trapped around the planet. Radio observations ultimately provide key information about the origin and control parameters of the harsh radiation environment.Aims. We perform the first resolved and low-frequency imaging of the synchrotron emission with LOFAR. At a frequency as low as 127 MHz, the radiation from electrons with energies of ~1–30 MeV are expected, for the first time, to be measured and mapped over a broad region of Jupiter’s inner magnetosphere.Methods. Measurements consist of interferometric visibilities taken during a single 10-hour rotation of the Jovian system. These visibilities were processed in a custom pipeline developed for planetary observations, combining flagging, calibration, wide-field imaging, direction-dependent calibration, and specific visibility correction for planetary targets. We produced spectral image cubes of Jupiter’s radiation belts at the various angular, temporal, and spectral resolutions from which flux densities were measured.Results. The first resolved images of Jupiter’s radiation belts at 127–172 MHz are obtained with a noise level ~20–25 mJy/beam, along with total integrated flux densities. They are compared with previous observations at higher frequencies. A greater extent of the synchrotron emission source (≥4 RJ) is measured in the LOFAR range, which is the signature – as at higher frequencies – of the superposition of a “pancake” and an isotropic electron distribution. Asymmetry of east-west emission peaks is measured, as well as the longitudinal dependence of the radial distance of the belts, and the presence of a hot spot at λIII = 230° ± 25°. Spectral flux density measurements are on the low side of previous (unresolved) ones, suggesting a low-frequency turnover and/or time variations of the Jovian synchrotron spectrum.Conclusions. LOFAR proves to be a powerful and flexible planetary imager. In the case of Jupiter, observations at 127 MHz depict the distribution of ~1–30 MeV energy electrons up to ~4–5 planetary radii. The similarities of the observations at 127 MHz with those at higher frequencies reinforce the conclusion that the magnetic field morphology primarily shapes the brightness distribution features of Jupiter’s synchrotron emission, as well as how the radiating electrons are likely radially and latitudinally distributed inside about 2 planetary radii. Nonetheless, the detection of an emission region that extends to larger distances than at higher frequencies, combined with the overall lower flux density, yields new information on Jupiter’s electron distribution, and this information may ultimately shed light on the origin and mode of transport of these particles.
  •  
24.
  • Godambe, S. V., et al. (författare)
  • Very High Energy Gamma-ray and Near Infrared observations of 1ES2344+514 with TACTIC and MIRO Telescopes
  • 2005
  • Ingår i: 29th International Cosmic Ray Conference Pune (2005).
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • 1ES2344+514 (z = 0.04) is one of the rst BL Lac objects to be reported as an extreme synchrotron blazar withsynchotron peak energy reaching up to 100keV and was discovered as a source of Very High Energy (VHE)gamma- rays by the Whipple group in 1995. Subsequently, it was observed by the HEGRA group in 1997/98and 2002. We have recently (Oct.- Dec. 2004) observed the 1ES2344+514 using the imaging element of theTACTIC array and have collected data for 53 hours in on/off mode. The source was also observed in nearinfrared bands J, H and K, for some nights using NICMOS-3 array mounted on 1.2m MIRO infrared telescope.Such a study is expected to provide clues to the dominance or otherwise of the Compton component. Afterdetailed analysis of the TACTIC data we have placed an upper limit of    photons cmsata 3condence level on the gamma-ray ux from the source. In the near infrared band the source shows lowlevel variations without any aring activity.
  •  
25.
  • Godambe, S. V., et al. (författare)
  • Very high energy γ-ray and near infrared observations of 1ES2344+514 during 2004 05
  • 2007
  • Ingår i: Journal of Physics G. - : IOP Publishing. - 0954-3899 .- 1361-6471. ; 34, s. 1683-1695
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • We have observed the BL Lac object 1ES2344+514 (z = 0.044) in very high energy (VHE) gamma-ray and near-infrared wavelength bands with TACTIC and MIRO telescopes, respectively. The observations were made from 18th October to 9th December 2004 and 27th October 2005 to 1st January 2006. Detailed analysis of the TACTIC data indicates the absence of a statistically significant gamma-ray signal both in overall data and on a nightly basis from the source direction. We estimate an upper limit of I(≥1.5 TeV) ≤ 3.84 × 10−12 photons cm−2 s−1 at a 3σ confidence level on the integrated γ-ray flux. In addition, we have also compared TACTIC TeV light curves with those of the RXTE ASM (2–12 keV) for the contemporary period and find that there are no statistically significant increases in the signal strengths from the source in both these energy regions. During 2004 IR observations, 1ES2344+514 shows low level (0.06 magnitude) day-to-day variation in both, J and H bands. However, during the 2005 observation epoch, the source brightens up by about 0.41 magnitude from its October 2005 level J magnitude = 12.64 to J = 12.23 on December 6, 2005. It then fades by about 0.2 magnitude during 6 to 10 December, 2005. The variation is seen in both, J and H, bands simultaneously. The light travel time arguments suggest that the emission region size is of the order of 1017 cm.
  •  
26.
  • Godambe, S. V., et al. (författare)
  • Very high energy γ-ray observations of Mrk 501 using the TACTIC imaging γ-ray telescope during 2005 06
  • 2008
  • Ingår i: Journal of Physics G. - : IOP Publishing. - 0954-3899 .- 1361-6471. ; 35:6
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • In this paper we report on the Markarian 501 results obtained during our TeV γ-ray observations from 11 March to 12 May 2005 and 28 February to 7 May 2006 for 112.5 h with the TACTIC γ-ray telescope. During 2005 observations for 45.7 h, the source was found to be in a low state and we have placed an upper limit of 4.62 × 10−12 photons cm−2 s−1 at 3σ level on the integrated TeV γ-ray flux above 1 TeV from the source direction. However, during 2006 observations for 66.8 h, detailed data analysis revealed the presence of a TeV γ-ray signal from the source with a statistical significance of 7.5σ above Eγ≥ 1 TeV. The time-averaged differential energy spectrum of the source in the energy range 1–11 TeV is found to match well with the power-law function of the form (dΦ/dE = f0E−Γ) with f0 = (1.66 ± 0.52) × 10−11 cm−2 s−1 TeV−1 and Γ = 2.80 ± 0.27.
  •  
27.
  • Hare, B. M., et al. (författare)
  • LOFAR Lightning Imaging : Mapping Lightning With Nanosecond Precision
  • 2018
  • Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research - Atmospheres. - : American Geophysical Union (AGU). - 2169-897X .- 2169-8996. ; 123:5, s. 2861-2876
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • Lightning mapping technology has proven instrumental in understanding lightning. In this work we present a pipeline that can use lightning observed by the LOw-Frequency ARray (LOFAR) radio telescope to construct a 3-D map of the flash. We show that LOFAR has unparalleled precision, on the order of meters, even for lightning flashes that are over 20km outside the area enclosed by LOFAR antennas (approximate to 3,200km(2)), and can potentially locate over 10,000 sources per lightning flash. We also show that LOFAR is the first lightning mapping system that is sensitive to the spatial structure of the electrical current during individual lightning leader steps.
  •  
28.
  • Heald, G. H., et al. (författare)
  • The LOFAR Multifrequency Snapshot Sky Survey (MSSS) : I. Survey description and first results
  • 2015
  • Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 582, s. 1-22
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • We present the Multifrequency Snapshot Sky Survey (MSSS), the first northern-sky Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) imaging survey. In this introductory paper, we first describe in detail the motivation and design of the survey. Compared to previous radio surveys, MSSS is exceptional due to its intrinsic multifrequency nature providing information about the spectral properties of the detected sources over more than two octaves (from 30 to 160 MHz). The broadband frequency coverage, together with the fast survey speed generated by LOFAR’s multibeaming capabilities, make MSSS the first survey of the sort anticipated to be carried out with the forthcoming Square Kilometre Array (SKA). Two of the sixteen frequency bands included in the survey were chosen to exactly overlap the frequency coverage of large-area Very Large Array (VLA) and Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT) surveys at 74 MHz and 151 MHz respectively. The survey performance is illustrated within the MSSS Verification Field (MVF), a region of 100 square degrees centered at (α,δ)J2000 = (15h,69°). The MSSS results from the MVF are compared with previous radio survey catalogs. We assess the flux and astrometric uncertainties in the catalog, as well as the completeness and reliability considering our source finding strategy. We determine the 90% completeness levels within the MVF to be 100 mJy at 135 MHz with 108″ resolution, and 550 mJy at 50 MHz with 166″ resolution. Images and catalogs for the full survey, expected to contain 150 000–200 000 sources, will be released to a public web server. We outline the plans for the ongoing production of the final survey products, and the ultimate public release of images and source catalogs.
  •  
29.
  • Horandel, Jorg R., et al. (författare)
  • The mass composition of cosmic rays measured with LOFAR
  • 2017
  • Ingår i: RICAP16, 6TH ROMA INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON ASTROPARTICLE PHYSICS. - : EDP Sciences.
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • High-energy cosmic rays, impinging on the atmosphere of the Earth initiate cascades of secondary particles, the extensive air showers. The electrons and positrons in the air shower emit electromagnetic radiation. This emission is detected with the LOFAR radio telescope in the frequency range from 30 to 240 MHz. The data are used to determine the properties of the incoming cosmic rays. The radio technique is now routinely used to measure the arrival direction, the energy, and the particle type (atomic mass) of cosmic rays in the energy range from 10(17) to 10(18) eV. This energy region is of particular astrophysical interest, since in this regime a transition from a Galactic to an extra-galactic origin of cosmic rays is expected. For illustration, the LOFAR results are used to set constraints on models to describe the origin of high-energy cosmic rays.
  •  
30.
  • Horneffer, A., et al. (författare)
  • Cosmic ray and neutrino measurements with LOFAR
  • 2010
  • Ingår i: Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A. - : Elsevier BV. - 0168-9002 .- 1872-9576. ; 617:1-3, s. 482-483
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • LOFAR is a new radio telescope being built in the Netherlands. It can detect cosmic particles by measuring radio pulses from air showers and by searching for radio pulses from particle cascades in the moon. The high density of radio antennas in the core and the excellent calibration will make LOFAR an unique tool to study the radio properties of single air showers and thus test and refine our theoretical understanding of the radio emission process in them. In addition LOFAR will be able to observe the moon with high sensitivity at low frequencies and search for particles interacting in the lunar regolith. This will give it unprecedented sensitivity to cosmic rays or neutrinos at energies around 1022eV. Triggering for both detection methods means detecting a short radio pulse and discriminating real events from radio interference. At LOFAR we will search for pulses in the digital data stream either from single antennas or from already beam-formed data and pick out real events from pulse form data. In addition we will have a small scintillator array to test and confirm the performance of the radio only trigger, and to provide additional measurements for the air shower reconstruction and analysis.
  •  
31.
  • Jelic, V., et al. (författare)
  • Initial LOFAR observations of epoch of reionization windows II. Diffuse polarized emission in the ELAIS-N1 field
  • 2014
  • Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 568, s. A101-
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • Aims. This study aims to characterise the polarized foreground emission in the ELAIS-N1 field and to address its possible implications or extracting of the cosmological 21 cm signal from the LOw-Frequency ARray - Epoch of Reionization (LOFAR-EoR) data Methods. We used the high band antennas of LOFAR to image this region and RM-synthesis to unravel structures of polarized emission at high Galactic latitudes. Results. The brightness temperature of the detected Galactic emission is on average similar to 4 K in polarized intensity and covers the range from -10 to +13 rad m(-2) in Faraday depth, The total polarized intensity and polarization angle show a wide range of morphological features. We have also used the Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope (WSRT) at 350 MHz to image the same region. The LOFAR and WSRT images show a similar complex morphology at comparable brightness levels, but their spatial correlation is very low. The fractional polarization at 150 MHz, expressed as a percentage of the total intensity, amounts to approximate to 1.5%. There is no indication of diffuse emission in total intensity in the interferometric data. in line with results at higher frequencies Conclusions. The wide frequency range. high angular resolution, and high sensitivity make LOFAR an exquisite instrument for studying Galactic polarized emission at a resolution of similar to 1-2 rad m(-2) in Faraday depth. The different polarized patterns observed at 150 MHz and 350 MHz are consistent with different source distributions along the line of sight wring in a variety of Faraday thin regions of emission. The presence of polarized foregrounds is a serious complication for epoch of reionization experiments. To avoid the leakage of polarized emission into total intensity, which can depend on frequency, we need to calibrate the instrumental polarization across the field of view to a small fraction of 1%.
  •  
32.
  • Koul, R., et al. (författare)
  • The TACTIC atmospheric Cherenkov imaging telescope
  • 2007
  • Ingår i: Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A. - : Elsevier BV. - 0168-9002 .- 1872-9576. ; 578:3, s. 548-564
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • The TACTIC (TeV Atomospheric Cherenkov Telescope with Imaging Camera) γγ-ray telescope, equipped with a light collector of area ∼9.5m2 and a medium resolution imaging camera of 349 pixels, has been in operation at Mt. Abu, India, since 2001. This paper describes the main features of its various subsystems and its overall performance with regard to (a) tracking accuracy of its two-axes drive system, (b) spot size of the light collector, (c) back-end signal processing electronics and topological trigger generation scheme, (d) data acquisition and control system and (e) relative and absolute gain calibration methodology. Using a trigger field-of-view of 11×1111×11 pixels (∼3.4∘×3.4∘)(∼3.4∘×3.4∘), the telescope records a cosmic ray event rate of ∼2.5Hz at a typical zenith angle of 15∘15∘. Monte Carlo simulation results are also presented in the paper for comparing the expected performance of the telescope with actual observational results. The consistent detection of a steady signal from the Crab Nebula above ∼1.2TeV energy, at a sensitivity level of ∼5.0σ∼5.0σ in ∼25h, alongwith excellent matching of its energy spectrum with that obtained by other groups, reassures that the performance of the TACTIC telescope is quite stable and reliable. Furthermore, encouraged by the detection of strong γγ-ray signals from Mrk 501 (during 1997 and 2006 observations) and Mrk 421 (during 2001 and 2005–2006 observations), we believe that there is considerable scope for the TACTIC telescope to monitor similar TeV γγ-ray emission activity from other active galactic nuclei on a long-term basis.
  •  
33.
  • Moldón, J., et al. (författare)
  • The LOFAR long baseline snapshot calibrator survey
  • 2015
  • Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 574
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • Aims. An efficient means of locating calibrator sources for international LOw Frequency ARray (LOFAR) is developed and used to determine the average density of usable calibrator sources on the sky for subarcsecond observations at 140 MHz.Methods. We used the multi-beaming capability of LOFAR to conduct a fast and computationally inexpensive survey with the full international LOFAR array. Sources were preselected on the basis of 325 MHz arcminute-scale flux density using existing catalogues. By observing 30 different sources in each of the 12 sets of pointings per hour, we were able to inspect 630 sources in two hours to determine if they possess a sufficiently bright compact component to be usable as LOFAR delay calibrators.Results. More than 40% of the observed sources are detected on multiple baselines between international stations and 86 are classified as satisfactory calibrators. We show that a flat low-frequency spectrum (from 74 to 325 MHz) is the best predictor of compactness at 140 MHz. We extrapolate from our sample to show that the sky density of calibrators that are sufficiently bright to calibrate dispersive and non-dispersive delays for the international LOFAR using existing methods is 1.0 per square degree.Conclusions. The observed density of satisfactory delay calibrator sources means that observations with international LOFAR should be possible at virtually any point in the sky provided that a fast and efficient search, using the methodology described here, is conducted prior to the observation to identify the best calibrator.
  •  
34.
  • Morosan, D. E., et al. (författare)
  • LOFAR tied-array imaging of Type III solar radio bursts
  • 2014
  • Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 568, s. articl no. A67-
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • Context. The Sun is an active source of radio emission which is often associated with energetic phenomena such as solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs). At low radio frequencies (
  •  
35.
  • Mulrey, K., et al. (författare)
  • Calibration of the LOFAR low-band antennas using the Galaxy and a model of the signal chain
  • 2019
  • Ingår i: Astroparticle physics. - : Elsevier. - 0927-6505 .- 1873-2852. ; 111, s. 1-11
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • The LOw-Frequency ARray (LOFAR) is used to make precise measurements of radio emission from extensive air showers, yielding information about the primary cosmic ray. Interpreting the measured data requires an absolute and frequency-dependent calibration of the LOFAR system response. This is particularly important for spectral analyses, because the shape of the detected signal holds information about the shower development. We revisit the calibration of the LOFAR antennas in the range of 30-80 MHz. Using the Galactic emission and a detailed model of the LOFAR signal chain, we find an improved calibration that provides an absolute energy scale and allows for the study of frequency dependent features in measured signals. With the new calibration, systematic uncertainties of 13% are reached, and comparisons of the spectral shape of calibrated data with simulations show promising agreement. (C) 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
  •  
36.
  • Mulrey, K., et al. (författare)
  • Expansion of the LOFAR radboud air shower array
  • 2018
  • Ingår i: Proceedings of Science. - : Sissa Medialab Srl.
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • The LOFAR Radboud Air Shower Array (LORA) consists of 20 plastic scintillators and is situated at the core of the LOFAR radio telescope. LORA detects particles from extensive air showers and triggers the read-out of the LOFAR antennas. The dense LOFAR antenna spacing allows for detailed sampling of the radio emission generated in extensive air showers, which yields high precision reconstruction of cosmic ray properties and information about the shower development. We discuss the proposed expansion of LORA, including the addition of scintillator units and the implementation of triggering algorithms that will probe more details of the radio emission and detect lower energy showers without introducing a composition bias, which is important for studying the origin of cosmic rays.
  •  
37.
  • Mulrey, K., et al. (författare)
  • Updated Calibration of the LOFAR Low-Band Antennas
  • 2019
  • Ingår i: 8th International Conference on Acoustic and Radio EeV Neutrino Detection Activities (ARENA 2018). - : EDP Sciences. - 9782759890804 ; , s. 1-3
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • The LOw-Frequency ARray (LOFAR) telescope measures radio emission from air showers. In order to interpret the data, an absolute, frequency dependent calibration is required. Due to a growing need for a better understanding of the measured frequency spectrum, we revisit the calibration of the LOFAR antennas in the range of 30-80 MHz. Using the galactic radio emission and a detailed model of the LOFAR signal chain, we find a calibration that provides an absolute energy scale and allows us to study frequency dependent features in measured air shower signals.
  •  
38.
  • Nelles, A., et al. (författare)
  • A new way of air shower detection : measuring the properties of cosmic rays with LOFAR
  • 2015
  • Ingår i: Journal of Physics, Conference Series. - : IOP Publishing. - 1742-6588 .- 1742-6596. ; 632:1, s. 1-11
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • High-energy cosmic rays impinging onto the atmosphere of the Earth initiate cascades of secondary particles: extensive air showers. Many of the particles in a shower are electrons and positrons. During the development of the air shower and by interacting with the geomagnetic field, the electromagnetic cascade creates radiation, which we detect at frequencies of tens of MHz with the LOFAR radio telescope in the Netherlands. After many years of struggling to understand the emission mechanisms, the radio community has achieved the breakthrough. We are now able to determine direction, energy, and type of the shower- inducing primary particle from the radio measurements. The large number of antennas at LOFAR allows us to have a high precision and very detailed measurements. We will elaborate on the shower reconstruction, a precise description of the intensity of the radio signal at ground level (at frequencies from 10 to 240 MHz), a precise measurement of the shape of the radio wavefront, and on the reconstruction of the shower energy.
  •  
39.
  • Nelles, A., et al. (författare)
  • Calibrating the absolute amplitude scale for air showers measured at LOFAR
  • 2015
  • Ingår i: Journal of Instrumentation. - 1748-0221 .- 1748-0221. ; 10
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • Air showers induced by cosmic rays create nanosecond pulses detectable at radio frequencies. These pulses have been measured successfully in the past few years at the LOw-Frequency ARray (LOFAR) and are used to study the properties of cosmic rays. For a complete understanding of this phenomenon and the underlying physical processes, an absolute calibration of the detecting antenna system is needed. We present three approaches that were used to check and improve the antenna model of LOFAR and to provide an absolute calibration of the whole system for air shower measurements. Two methods are based on calibrated reference sources and one on a calibration approach using the diffuse radio emission of the Galaxy, optimized for short data-sets. An accuracy of 19% in amplitude is reached. The absolute calibration is also compared to predictions from air shower simulations. These results are used to set an absolute energy scale for air shower measurements and can be used as a basis for an absolute scale for the measurement of astronomical transients with LOFAR.
  •  
40.
  • Nelles, Anna, et al. (författare)
  • Detecting radio emission from air showers with LOFAR
  • 2013
  • Ingår i: 5th International Workshop on Acoustic and Radio EeV Neutrino Detection Activities. - : American Institute of Physics (AIP). ; , s. 105-110
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • LOFAR (the Low Frequency Array) is the largest radio telescope in the world for observing low frequency radio emission from 10 to 240 MHz. In addition to its use as an interferometric array, LOFAR is now routinely used to detect cosmic ray induced air showers by their radio emission. The LOFAR core in the Netherlands has a higher density of antennas than any dedicated cosmic ray experiment in radio. On an area of 12 km2 more than 2300 antennas are installed. They measure the radio emission from air showers with unprecedented precision and, therefore, give the perfect opportunity to disentangle the physical processes which cause the radio emission in air showers. In parallel to ongoing astronomical observations LOFAR is triggered by an array of particle detectors to record time-series containing cosmic-ray pulses. Cosmic rays have been measured with LOFAR since June 2011. We present the results of the first year of data.
  •  
41.
  • Nelles, A., et al. (författare)
  • Measuring a Cherenkov ring in the radio emission from air showers at 110-190 MHz with LOFAR
  • 2015
  • Ingår i: Astroparticle physics. - : Elsevier BV. - 0927-6505 .- 1873-2852. ; 65, s. 11-21
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • Measuring radio emission from air showers offers a novel way to determine properties of the primary cosmic rays such as their mass and energy. Theory predicts that relativistic time compression effects lead to a ring of amplified emission which starts to dominate the emission pattern for frequencies above ∼100∼100 MHz. In this article we present the first detailed measurements of this structure. Ring structures in the radio emission of air showers are measured with the LOFAR radio telescope in the frequency range of 110–190 MHz. These data are well described by CoREAS simulations. They clearly confirm the importance of including the index of refraction of air as a function of height. Furthermore, the presence of the Cherenkov ring offers the possibility for a geometrical measurement of the depth of shower maximum, which in turn depends on the mass of the primary particle.
  •  
42.
  •  
43.
  • Oonk, J. B. R., et al. (författare)
  • Discovery of carbon radio recombination lines in absorption towards Cygnus A
  • 2014
  • Ingår i: Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0035-8711 .- 1365-2966. ; 437:4, s. 3506-3515
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • We present the first detection of carbon radio recombination line absorption along the line of sight to Cygnus A. The observations were carried out with the Low Frequency Array in the 33–57 MHz range. These low-frequency radio observations provide us with a new line of sight to study the diffuse, neutral gas in our Galaxy. To our knowledge this is the first time that foreground Milky Way recombination line absorption has been observed against a bright extragalactic background source. By stacking 48 carbon α lines in the observed frequency range we detect carbon absorption with a signal-to-noise ratio of about 5. The average carbon absorption has a peak optical depth of 2 × 10−4, a line width of 10 km s−1 and a velocity of +4 km s−1 with respect to the local standard of rest. The associated gas is found to have an electron temperature Te ∼ 110 K and density ne ∼ 0.06 cm−3. These properties imply that the observed carbon α absorption likely arises in the cold neutral medium of the Orion arm of the Milky Way. Hydrogen and helium lines were not detected to a 3σ peak optical depth limit of 1.5 × 10−4 for a 4 km s−1 channel width. Radio recombination lines associated with Cygnus A itself were also searched for, but are not detected. We set a 3σ upper limit of 1.5 × 10−4 for the peak optical depth of these lines for a 4 km s−1 channel width.
  •  
44.
  • Orrù, E., et al. (författare)
  • Wide-field LOFAR imaging of the field around the double-double radio galaxy B1834+620 : A fresh view on a restarted AGN and doubeltjes
  • 2015
  • Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 584, s. 1-12
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • Context. The existence of double-double radio galaxies (DDRGs) is evidence for recurrent jet activity in active galactic nuclei (AGN), as expected from standard accretion models. A detailed study of these rare sources provides new perspectives for investigating the AGN duty cycle, AGN-galaxy feedback, and accretion mechanisms. Large catalogues of radio sources, on the other hand, provide statistical information about the evolution of the radio-loud AGN population out to high redshifts.Aims. Using wide-field imaging with the LOFAR telescope, we study both a well-known DDRG as well as a large number of radio sources in the field of view.Methods. We present a high resolution image of the DDRG B1834+620 obtained at 144 MHz using LOFAR commissioning data. Our image covers about 100 square degrees and contains over 1000 sources.Results. The four components of the DDRG B1834+620 have been resolved for the first time at 144 MHz. Inner lobes were found to point towards the direction of the outer lobes, unlike standard FR II sources. Polarized emission was detected at +60 rad m-2 in the northern outer lobe. The high spatial resolution allows the identification of a large number of small double-lobed radio sources; roughly 10% of all sources in the field are doubles with a separation smaller than 1′.Conclusions. The spectral fit of the four components is consistent with a scenario in which the outer lobes are still active or the jets recently switched off, while emission of the inner lobes is the result of a mix-up of new and old jet activity. From the presence of the newly extended features in the inner lobes of the DDRG, we can infer that the mechanism responsible for their formation is the bow shock that is driven by the newly launched jet. We find that the density of the small doubles exceeds the density of FR II sources with similar properties at 1.4 GHz, but this difference becomes smaller for low flux densities. Finally, we show that the significant challenges of wide-field imaging (e.g., time and frequency variation of the beam, directional dependent calibration errors) can be solved using LOFAR commissioning data, thus demonstrating the potential of the full LOFAR telescope to discover millions of powerful AGN at redshift z ~ 1.
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45.
  • Pilia, M., et al. (författare)
  • Wide-band, low-frequency pulse profiles of 100 radio pulsars with LOFAR
  • 2016
  • Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 586
  • Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
    • Context. LOFAR offers the unique capability of observing pulsars across the 10−240  MHz frequency range with a fractional bandwidth of roughly 50%. This spectral range is well suited for studying the frequency evolution of pulse profile morphology caused by both intrinsic and extrinsic effects such as changing emission altitude in the pulsar magnetosphere or scatter broadening by the interstellar medium, respectively.Aims. The magnitude of most of these effects increases rapidly towards low frequencies. LOFAR can thus address a number of open questions about the nature of radio pulsar emission and its propagation through the interstellar medium.Methods. We present the average pulse profiles of 100 pulsars observed in the two LOFAR frequency bands: high band (120–167 MHz, 100 profiles) and low band (15–62 MHz, 26 profiles). We compare them with Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope (WSRT) and Lovell Telescope observations at higher frequencies (350 and 1400 MHz) to study the profile evolution. The profiles were aligned in absolute phase by folding with a new set of timing solutions from the Lovell Telescope, which we present along with precise dispersion measures obtained with LOFAR.Results. We find that the profile evolution with decreasing radio frequency does not follow a specific trend; depending on the geometry of the pulsar, new components can enter into or be hidden from view. Nonetheless, in general our observations confirm the widening of pulsar profiles at low frequencies, as expected from radius-to-frequency mapping or birefringence theories.
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46.
  • Rannot, R. C., et al. (författare)
  • TeV gamma-ray Observations of the Blazar Markarian 421 from January to April 2004 with TACTIC Imaging Element
  • 2005
  • Ingår i: 29th International Cosmic Ray Conference Pune (2005). ; , s. 355-358
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • We have observed the blazar Markarian 421 (z=0.031 ) with the TACTIC gamma- ray telescope having thresholdenergy of 1.5TeV at Mt. Abu Rajasthan India from January to April 2004. Observations were made intracking mode for a total of 84(on) /16 (off-source) hours with its imaging element equipped with a 349- pixelPMTs camera. During this period, we nd an evidence of a TeV gamma-ray signal with a statistical signi-cance of 6.8. The differential energy spectrum derived in the energy range 2 - 9 TeV is well represented bya simple power law, with a differential spectral index of 2.800.20.
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47.
  • Rossetto, L., et al. (författare)
  • Characterisation of the radio frequency spectrum emitted by high energy air showers with LOFAR
  • 2018
  • Ingår i: 35th International Cosmic Ray Conference, ICRC2017. - Trieste : Sissa Medialab Srl.
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • The high number density of radio antennas at the LOFAR core in Northern Netherlands allows to detect radio signals emitted by extensive air showers in the energy range 1016 - 1018 e V, and to characterise the geometry of the observed cascade in a detailed way. The radio signal emitted by extensive air showers along their propagation in the atmosphere has been studied in the 30 - 70 MHz frequency range. The study has been conducted on real data and simulated showers. Regarding real data, cosmic ray radio signals detected by LOFAR since 2011 have been analysed. For simulated showers, the CoREAS code, a plug-in of the CORSIKA particle simulation code, has been used. The results show a clear dependence of the frequency spectrum on the distance to the shower axis for both real data and simulations. In particular, the spectrum flatten at a distance around 100 m from the shower axis, where the coherence of the radio signal is maximum. This behaviour could also be used to reconstruct the position of the shower axis at ground. A correlation between the frequency spectrum and the geometrical distance to the depth of the shower maximum Xmax has also been investigated. The final aim of this study is to find a method to improve the inferred information of primary cosmic rays with radio antennas, in view of affirming the radio detection technique as reliable method for the study of extensive air showers. © Copyright owned by the author(s) under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).
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48.
  • Rossetto, Laura, et al. (författare)
  • Latest results on the analysis of the radio frequency spectrum emitted by high energy air showers with LOFAR
  • 2019
  • Ingår i: 8th International Conference on Acoustic and Radio EeV Neutrino Detection Activities (ARENA 2018). - : EDP Sciences. - 9782759890804 ; , s. 1-3
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • The LOw Frequency ARay (LOFAR) is a multi-purpose radio antenna array aimed to detect radio signals in the frequency range 10 - 240 MHz, covering a large surface in Northern Europe with a higher density in the Netherlands. Analytical calculations and simulation studies performed in the 2000s indicate a dependence of the radio frequency spectrum on cosmic-ray characteristics. The high number density of radio antennas at the LOFAR core allows to characterise the observed cascade in a detailed way. The radio signal emitted by air showers in the atmosphere has been studied accurately in the 30 - 80 MHz frequency range. The analysis has been conducted on simulated events and on real data detected by LOFAR since 2011. The final aim of this study is to find an independent method to infer information of primary cosmic rays for improving the reconstruction of primary particle parameters. Results show a strong dependence of the frequency spectrum on the distance to the shower axis for both real data and simulations. Furthermore, results show that this method is very sensitive to the precision in reconstructing the position of the shower axis at ground, and to different antenna calibration procedures. A correlation between the frequency spectrum and geometrical distance to the shower maximum development X-max has also been investigated.
  •  
49.
  • Rossetto, L., et al. (författare)
  • Measurement of cosmic rays with LOFAR
  • 2016
  • Ingår i: XIV INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON TOPICS IN ASTROPARTICLE AND UNDERGROUND PHYSICS (TAUP 2015), PTS 1-7. - : Institute of Physics Publishing (IOPP).
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • The LOw Frequency ARay (LOFAR) is a multipurpose radio -antenna array aimed to detect radio signals in the 10 - 240 MHz frequency range, covering a large surface in Northern Europe with a higher density in the Northern Netherlands. Radio emission in the atmosphere is produced by cosmic -ray induced air showers through the interaction of charged particles with the Earth magnetic field. The detection of radio signals allows to reconstruct several properties of the observed cascade. We review here all important results achieved in the last years. We proved that the radio -signal distribution at ground level is described by a two-dimensional pattern, which is well fitted by a double Gaussian function. The radio -signal arrival time and polarization have been measured, thus providing additional information on the extensive air shower geometry, and on the radio emission processes. We also showed that the radio signal reaches ground in a thin, curved wavefront which is best parametrized by a hyperboloid shape centred around the shower axis. Radio emission has also been studied under thunderstorm conditions and compared to fair weather conditions. Moreover, by using a hybrid reconstruction technique, we performed mass composition measurements in the energy range 10(17) - 10(18) eV.
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50.
  • Sapru, M. L., et al. (författare)
  • Threshold energy estimate of the proposed MACE gamma-ray telescope at Hanle
  • 2005
  • Ingår i: 29th International Cosmic Ray Conference Pune (2005). ; , s. 263-266
  • Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
    • The fact that EGRET detected over 250 objects above 100 MeV while only a handful of sources have beendetected above 100 GeV indicates that there is a good chance of detecting a signicant number of these sources(particularly those which do not show a signature of steepening or cut off up to a few GeV), if the thresholdenergy of ground based telescopes is lowered to20 GeV. In the present study, we report the threshold energyestimate of the MACE (Major Atmospheric Cerenkov Experiment) imaging telescope, proposed to be installedin the campus of Indian Astronomical Observatory at Hanle (32.8N, 78.9E, 4200m asl). The results ofthe Monte Carlo simulations carried out with CORSIKA code, suggest that using a pixel threshold of4peand a nearest neighbour quadruplet trigger,-ray energy threshold of15GeV is achievable by the MACEtelescope. Details of the simulation work for estimating the threshold energy along with results obtained arepresented in this paper.
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