In this work, we describe the calibration and first measurements in the commissioning of MuTe, a hybrid Muon Telescope with two subdetectors-a scintillator hodoscope and a Water Cherenkov Detector (WCD)-for imaging the inner structures of Colombian volcanoes. The hodoscope estimates the trajectories of particles impinging on the front and rear panel, while the WCD acts as a calorimeter for the through going charged particle. MuTe combines particle identification techniques so as to discriminate noise background from data. It filters the primary noise sources for muography, i.e., the EM-component (e ±) of Extensive Air Showers (EAS) and scattered/upward-coming muons. The WCD identifies Electrons/positrons events by their deposited energy identifies, while scattered and backward muons are rejected using a pico-second Time-of-Flight(ToF) system. Muon generated events were found in the deposited energy deposited range of (144MeV< E d < 400MeV), represent only about the 40% of the WCD-hodoscope acquired events. The other 60% of data is composed by (e ±) events under 144 MeV and multiparticle events above 400 MeV. Subsequently, low-momentum muons (< 1 GeV/c), which are scattered by the volcano surface, measures a ToF > 3.3 ns for traversing one meter length.
Since 2013, the four sites of the Fluorescence Detector (FD) of the Pierre Auger Observatory record ELVES with a dedicated trigger. These UV light emissions are correlated to distant lightning strikes. The length of recorded traces has been increased from 100 s (2013), to 300 s (2014-16), to 900 s (2017-present), to progressively extend the observation of the light emission towards the vertical of the causative lightning and beyond. A large fraction of the observed events shows double ELVES within the time window, and, in some cases, even more complex structures are observed. The nature of the multi-ELVES is not completely understood but may be related to the different types of lightning in which they are originated. For example, it is known that Narrow Bipolar Events can produce double ELVES, and Energetic In-cloud Pulses, occurring between the main negative and upper positive charge layer of clouds, can induce double and even quadruple ELVES in the ionosphere. This report shows the seasonal and daily dependence of the time gap, amplitude ratio, and correlation between the pulse widths of the peaks in a sample of 1000+ multi-ELVES events recorded during the period 2014-20. The events have been compared with data from other satellite and ground-based sensing devices to study the correlation of their properties with lightning observables such as altitude and polarity.
Homemade anti-personnel mines are improvised explosive devices deployed from unconventional local techniques and materials. These rudimentary explosives kill thousands of civilians every year, inflicting grievous physical injuries, spreading fear and disruption across affected communities. Moreover, Colombian mines, made of a combination of ammonium nitrate and fuel oil known as ANFO, may also pack faeces, glass, and plastic scrap for causing infectious diseases on the victims. Therefore, the detection and dismantling of such harmful devices must alleviate the insidious consequences of the internal conflicts that have plagued the country for more than half a century. In this work, we present results that suggest that cosmic rays can be used to detect the type of anti-personal mines used in Colombia. We implement a GEANT4 simulation of an ANFO sphere of NH4NO3+diesel interacting with cosmic rays flux at the Bucaramanga level (959 m a.s.l.). Simulations considered explosives buried into different soil types: dry soil model, two humid soils, and two fertilized soils. The simulation showed that the studied interaction generates emerging electrons, gammas, neutrons, and protons. Notably, protons' energy led to an excess of around 0.58 MeV. This peak is quite pronounced for all soil models, giving a clear indication of the feasibility of using a cosmic ray-based detector for detecting these type of rustic explosive in the different types of soils.
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