Particle and Astroparticle Physics Seminar

High Energy Cosmic rays and Neutrinos with the EUSO super pressure balloon program and POEMMA

Lawrence Wiencke

Department of Physics
Colorado School of Mines

The Extreme Universe Space Observatory on a Super Pressure Balloon (EUSO-SPB1) launched April 24th 2017 from Wanaka, New Zealand. This mission of opportunity flight on a NASA super pressure balloon test flight was planned to circle the southern hemisphere. The primary scientific goal was to make the first observations of high energy cosmic ray extensive air showers by looking down on the atmosphere with a UV fluorescence detector from near space. After 12 days 4 hours aloft, the flight was terminated prematurely in the Pacific Ocean about 300 km SE of Easter Island. This talk will review the science of the SPB1 mission, the instrument, the flight, and the data. Preparations are underway for the EUSO-SPB2 mission that will fly 2-3 optical detectors to measrue cosmic ray airshowers and prototype techniques for high energy cosmic ray and neutrino detection in preparation for the POEMMA (Probe Of Extreme Multi Messenger Astrophysics) mission. POEMMA is undergoing a NASA sponsored conceptual design study.