The Milagro Gamma Ray Observatory

Jordan Goodman
University of Maryland

• The Physics of Milagro

• Milagrito
– Mrk 501
– GRB 970417a
• Milagro
– Description
– Recent Results - Crab
– Future Directions

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 The Physics of Milagro

• The Sources of VHE/UHE Cosmic Rays

– Crab
– Super Nova Remnants
• Active Galactic Nuclei
– High variability
• Gamma Ray Bursts
– High energies
• Absorption of TeV Photons
• Primordial Black Holes
• Solar Physics

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Observing the High Energy Sky

1 GeV 1 TeV 1 PeV 1 EeV

Milagro
10 9 10 11 10 13 10 15 10 17 10 19
•Water-Cherenkov Satellites
Detector Solar Arrays

•Threshold ~300 GeV Air Cherenkov

•Wide-angle Milagro

• /hadron Separation EAS Arrays

Fly’s Eye / HiRes

•24 Hour – all year

operation Akeno
/Auger

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Milagro Site

Located near Los

Alamos, NM, USA
8650’ Elevation
60m X 80m X 8m
covered pond

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Milagro Site

Pond Utility
Building (PUB)
Counting House

Office Testing
Trailer Trailer

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Milagrito

A prototype for the full Milagro detector

Single layer of 230 PMTs with no muon detection
Milagrito operated at >250Hz from Feb 97 to April 98
(>85% livetime)
More than 9 billion events - 9 Terabytes

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Mrk 501 Flare

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Milagrito Results – MRK 501

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 MRK 501

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Milagrito - GRB 970417a

• Searching 54 Batse bursts (T90)

• One burst 970417a showed 18
events w/background of 3.46
• This has a prob< 2.9x10-8
• Accounting for all search trials –
combined accidental chance
1/150
• This could mean TeV emission
from GRBs
Batse 1 error circle

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Milagrito - GRB 970417a

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Milagrito Moon Shadow

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Milagro

Light-tight Cover
Air Shower Layer
2m
450 Top Layer
8" PMTs
8” PMTs

Hadron/Muon layer
273 Bottom Layer
8” PMTs

8m
50m
80m
Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001
 Milagro Construction

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Milagro

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Milagro

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Angle Reconstruction

For large showers, the angle can be reconstructed to better than 0.50 o.
(However, there are systematics associated with core location)
Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001
 Events

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Milagro Energy Response

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Milagro Moon Shadow: Aug 2000 – Jan 2001

Nhit >150, Nfit > 20

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Gamma / Hadron Separation in Milagro

Gammas (MC)

Data

Gammas (MC)

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

P

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Crab Nebula

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001
 Crab Data

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Crab Signal - Time Evolution

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 Predicted Crab Signal in Milagro from ACTs

Events per Day in Flux

Milagro F(E) x (10-7/s/m2/TeV)
Whipple1 22.5 3.2 ± 0.70 x E(TeV)-(2.49 ± 0.08)

HEGRA1 16.8 2.7 ± 0.82 x E(TeV)-(2.61 ± 0.12)

CAT1 17.3 2.7 ± 0.43 x E(TeV)-(2.57 ± 0.16)

Tibet2 49.8 8.2 ± 1.6 x E(TeV)-(2.62 ± 0.17)

1
Cantenese and Weeks (1998)
2
Amenomori et al (1999)

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Milagro Sensitivity to the Crab

Events per No /had With /had Complete

Day Separation Separation Milagro

Whipple 22.5 2.8  9.5

HEGRA 16.8 2.1 3.8 6.9

CAT 17.3 2.2 3.9 7.0

Tibet 49.8 6.2 11.1 21.0

Milagro ~20 1.6 5.0

Prelim.
Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001
 Outrigger array

• Adding ~150 tanks

• Used for Core location
– Improved angle
– Improved Energy

Reconstructed Energy
Energy in TeV Resolution
0.75 76%
3.5 65%
7 64%
11 45%

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Future Plans

• Complete Outriggers
– 34 are now online
• Put burst/GRB analysis online
– GRB alerts to network
• New trigger processor to lower threshold
– Discriminate against muon triggers
– Lower energy threshold
– Increase reach for GRB and other studies
• Improve Gamma / Hadron Separation
• Improve Angle Reconstruction

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Lowering the trigger threshold

Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001

 Risetime Trigger Processor

Data Gives:
At 27PMT threshold:
Raw Trigger Rate = 14.5 kHz
Not Fit (Muon Rate) = 9 kHz
Simulation Predicts
(Preliminary)
Making a 100ns risetime cut:
Total Trigger rate = 2.6kHz
Not Fit(Muon Rate) = 0.5kHz
Gamma Efficiency = 66%

Jordan Goodman Proton

Milagro Collaboration EfficiencyMoriond
= 40% 2001
 Conclusions

• Milagro is now online

• We are seeing sources

• We are improving the detector

• We hope for many important Physics

results soon!
Jordan Goodman Milagro Collaboration Moriond 2001