EXTENSIVE AIR SHOWERS (EAS) AND THE AUGER OBSERVATORY

M.J, TUEROS

Trieste, Italia

Workshop; 7th School on Non-Accelerator Astroparticle Physics; 2004

International Center of Theoretical Physics

The Auger Observatory is the first to use fluorescence telescopes and particle detectors simultaneously to detect EAS. The data from both methods can be combined for cross calibration, systematic error reduction and to achieve better energy and angular resolution. The amount of light detected by the telescopes is related to the particle content and provides a measurement of the primary energy. The track left on the pixels and the signal timing lets us calculate the shower direction. The Cerenkov detectors sense particles arriving at the ground, giving the particle density profile, which is also related to the primary energy. Timing of the signals give us the shower direction. Auger detectors give also the time profile of the signal, giving additional information for composition determination, asymmetries in the shower front and much more.