About This Project

Cosmic rays are accelerated particles (99% nuclei of atoms) with two main origins: Solar and Galactic. There is, curiously, no research of cosmic rays' nature, spectrum and incidence ratio in a solar eclipse event. The US solar eclipse offers a great opportunity to understand if cosmic rays destroy ozone through degradation showers (decay of cosmic rays) in the upper layers of the stratosphere.

Ask the Scientists

What is the context of this research?

In 2014 we conducted a high altitude balloon launch (with help of Barcelona based Institute CIC), that achieved an altitude of 32km to study the effect of cosmic rays on c hlorofluorocarbons (CFCs ). We found a possible line of research that could beneficiate from a solar eclipse to eliminate low energy solar cosmic rays from the equation. Researchers (Liu et al.), at the time, linked these two distant objects (cosmic rays and CFCs) as a possible novel cause to ozone degradation during the Antarctic summer months.

What is the significance of this project?

Even though the origin of cosmic rays has been studied for at least 100 years, recent advances regarding the high-energy part of the spectrum have appeared. Even findings of their relation with supernovae and gamma bursts (M. Ackerman et al). However, there are still questions regarding their formation and origin.

There is curiously no research of cosmic rays' nature, spectrum, incidence ratio and others characteristics during a solar eclipse event. This year (21st August) offers a great opportunity to study the nature of cosmic ray's during a solar eclipse. Moreover, no experimental setup exists to study ozone decay by these particles. The easily accessible location (USA) and the length of the phenomenon makes a study like the proposed here of great interest.

What are the goals of the project?

By covering the sun (the biggest producer of interference of cosmic rays) with the moon, we can focus on intergalactic particles. And the high altitude achievable of these payloads (past experience up to 32km) the atmospheric noise and wipeout of the rays is nonexistent (Up to 97% increase of rays incidence at those altitudes, Hague J. D et al). With this important fact we will be able to monitor the incidence of these particles and provide crucial information on their origin.

This will unite to the major OBJECTIVE of this research: can the rays' degradation shower be a source of chlorine production in the upper layers of the stratosphere and therefore an ozone destructor?