Space Radiation Environment Measurements as by-Product of the Gamma Ray Astronomy Mission AGILE

Space Radiation EnvironmentSpace Radiation Environment
Measurements as by-Product of theMeasurements as by-Product of the
Gamma Ray Astronomy Mission AGILEGamma Ray Astronomy Mission AGILE
Lazzarotto Francesco INAF IASF-Roma 29/11/11
mailto:francesco.lazzarotto@iasf-roma.inaf.it
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Eighth European Space Weather Week
November 28 - December 02, 2011 - Namur, Belgium

29/11/11
Lazzarotto Francesco - INAF IASF Roma
esww8, “Space Weather with AGILE”
2
Introduction (1)
AGILE is an Italian Space Agency mission aimed to the
observation of the Gamma-Ray sources in the universe. The
AGILE’s instrumentation combines:
a gamma-ray imager (GRID) (sensitive in the energy range
30 MeV-50 GeV);
a hard X-ray imager and monitor: Super-AGILE (sensitive
in the range 18-60 KeV);
a calorimeter (sensitive in the range 350 KeV-100 MeV)
(MCAL) and
an anticoincidence detector (AC), plastic scintillator for
charged cosmic-ray particles rejection: Inefficiency < 10^-4

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Introduction (2)
AGILE was successfully launched on 2007, April 23 from
the Indian base of Sriharikota and was inserted in an
equatorial orbit with low particle background.
SuperAGILE (SA) is an imaging instrument based on a set
of four independent silicon strip detectors, equipped with
one-dimensional coded mask, SA is designed to detect X-
Ray signals from known sources and also burst like signals
providing long-term monitoring in terms of flux and spectral
features.

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AGILE
NORAD ID: 31135
Int'l Code: 2007-013A
Perigee: 523.4 km
Apogee: 551.0 km
Inclination: 2.5°
Period: 95.2 min
Semi major axis:
6,908.2 km
Launch date: April 23,
2007
Source: Italy (IT)
AGILE is an Italian
gamma ray and X-Ray
observatory launched
aboard an Indian rocket
for a four years (and
more) mission to survey
the sky in a search for
faraway sources of the
Universe's most
energetic form of light.
The AGILE satellite flew
into orbit on top of India's
Polar Satellite Launch
Vehicle from the Satish
Dhawan Space Center at
Sriharikota on India's
eastern coast

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AGILE observations
Also MCAL can effectively detect high-energy radiation
bursts in it’s energy band. Some of the AGILE detected
transient events are associated to positions not consistent
with a known source in the sky (Gamma Ray Burst -GRB-)
and they have a cosmological origin, others are due to Solar
Flares and some of them to Earth Atmosphere events
(Terrestrial Gamma Flash -TGF-).
Timing resolution up to 2 μs (useful for transient events
studies)

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Data processing
Local particle radiation environment and diffuse radiation
environment signals has to be discriminated, due to the fact
that the satellite is designed to observe the sky in the
Gamma Ray and the X-Ray energy band.
They are detected by AC and filtered by the GRID using
both hardware and software
SA data processing software subtracts continuous
background and spurious signals using several methods.
Main AGILE Ground Segment web site
http://agile.asdc.asi.it/

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Spinning mode
Starting on October 2009 the AGILE mission is no longer
stabilized and retains a spinning operation mode.
The satellite spins around the sun-pointing direction, with
an angular velocity of about 0.8 degree/s.
In these new conditions, AGILE instruments continuously
scans a much larger fraction of the sky, with smaller
exposure to each region.

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AGILE detections
Cosmic rays and solar activity radiation and particles
background information are rejected to allow Astrophysics
measurement (background). We can understand the detected
signals using the measurements of the different AGILE
instruments.
We will show some solar activity events detected by the
AGILE instruments (GRID, MCAL, SA, AC).

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AGILE detection of transient events
Gamma Ray Burst (GRB)
Outbursts from known cosmic sources (SGR, ...)
Terrestrial Gamma-ray Flash (TGF). fast On Ground data
elaboration response.
The standard pipeline process data of measurements taken
during a single AGILE orbit.
The standard pipeline is accumulating science products at
different time scales (1 week, half-a-week), for the spinning
operational mode.

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SuperAGILE scientific
Ground Segment
A dedicated pipeline working 24h/day is searching for burst
like events, and can be set to alert on-duty scientist by email
and sms. Transient events detected on board are processed and
results are given ~ 45 minutes after the AGILE contact with the
Malindi Ground Station (every ~90 minutes)
http://bigfoot.iasf-roma.inaf.it/~agile/SA/web/sasoa.php

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AGILE science results (1)
Crab Nebula source flux variation -recorded flares,
september 2010 (also in autumn 2007) – (seen by
AGILE/confirmed by Fermi)
reference:
Tavani et al, 2011 "Discovery of Powerful Gamma-Ray
Flares from the Crab Nebula", Science Magazine, DOI:
10.1126/science.1200083

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2) TGF geolocalization (equatorial storms) confirmation of
the previous studies and observing in the energy band
gamma-ray energies 20 MeV - 100 Mev (Marisaldi,
Fuschino, Labanti et al INAF, IASF Bologna)
reference:
Marisaldi et al, "Gamma-Ray Localization of Terrestrial
Gamma-Ray Flashes", Physical Review Letters, vol. 105,
Issue 12, id. 128501, september 2010,
DOI:10.1103/PhysRevLett.105.128501

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Giuliani et al, INAF IASF Milano, 2011 Protons emission in
AQ W44 SNR
AGILE discovery of a natural particle accelerator in Super
Nova Remnant AQ W44
Evidence of proton acceleration up to very high energies
confirmation of cosmic rays generation theory.
Reference: Giuliani et al, 2011, "Neutral pion emission from
accelerated protons in the supernova remnant W44",
Astrophysical Journal Letters, in press, accepted for
publication on november 2011

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Last transient event triggers part 1
[2011-09-08, 2011-11-14]
trigger contact type time comment seen also by
111114_010007 23516 fake due to idle
111105_232003 23402 solar flare 2011-11-05T20:35:12 M class (1339) AC LAT4
111002_183003 22918 solar flare 2011-10-02T15:10:00 C class (1302) AC LAT4
110929_110002 22871 fake
110929_123002 22872 fake
110924_184003 22805 solar flare 2011-09-24T12:49:01 M class (1302)
110924_133004 22802 solar flare 2011-09-24T09:26:13 X class (1302)
110922_170003 22775 solar flare 2011-09-22T11:26:44 X class (1302) MCAL
110915_052048 22670 Sco X-1
110913_022003 22640 Sco X-1
110913_004004 22639 4U 1700-377 swift
110908_015003 22569 solar flare 2011-09-07T22:34:08 X class (1283) MCAL, AC, Fermi
AGILE Solar events detected events info matched with the reports published by US
NOAA space weather prediction center.
Produced by solar region numbers: 1339, 1302, 1283

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[2011-08-09, 2011-08-07]
110907_103003 22560 unknown
110907_020004 22555 solar flare 2011-09-06T22:11:49 X class (1283) MCAL, AC, Fermi
110906_054015 22543 Sco X-1 + solar flare 01:35:11 M class (1283) MCAL, AC
110906_021005 22541 Sco X-1
110830_140003 22449 fake
110827_095212 22404 Sco X-1
110825_064004 22374 GRB 110825A
110820_042101 22302 Sco X-1
110817_013003 22258 Sco X-1
110815_135004 22237 unknown
110809_115002 22151 solar flare 2011-08-09T07:47:56 X class (1263) AC, GOES
110809_014003 22145 GRB110808B
Produced by solar region numbers: 1283, 1263

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[2011-06-07, 2011-08-04]
110804_075002 22078 solar flare 2011-08-04T03:45:27 M9 class (1261)
110803_080005 22064 solar flare 2011-08-03T04:31:02 M class (1263) AC LAT
110730_053007 22006 solar flare 2011-07-30T02:07:19 M9 class (1261)
110718_183007 21844 fake
110715_173002 21801 GRB110715A swift
110706_191004 21675 Vela X-1
110705_230007 21663 Vela X-1
110626_011003 21523 GRB110625
110607_102003 21260 solar flare 2011-06-07T06:25:17 M class (1226) AC
110607_084005 21259 Vela X-1
110607_070002 21258 Vela X-1
110607_052045 21257 Vela X-1 5.8 sigma

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Solar Flare 2011-09-24
Max at ~ 09:40 UTC
X class
SuperAGILE GROUND trigger on 24/09/11 start at
09:26:13 UTC orbit number is 022802, trigger on-
board time is 243941172.5 s

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Solar flare 2011-09-22
X class seen by SA, MCAL

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Solar flare 2011-09-22 (2)
SA trigger
22/09/11 at 11:26:44 UT
orbit number is 022775,
trigger time is
243775604.0 s

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X class, SA ratemeters
trigger on 09/08/11 at
07:47:56 UT
orbit number is 022151,
trigger time
is 239960875.5 s

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M class SA trigger on 07/06/11 at 06:25:17 UT
orbit number is 021260, trigger time is 234512716.9 s
Tot counts on 4 detectors

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Some AGILE
reference publications
Tavani, M. et al 2009, Astronomy and Astrophysics, “The
AGILE mission”
Feroci M. et al, 2007, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in
Physics Research A “SuperAGILE: The hard X-ray imager
for the AGILE space mission”
Perotti, F. et al, 2005, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in
Physics Research A, “The AGILE anticoincidence detector”

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Thank you for the attention
and good bye!

Space Radiation Environment Measurements as by-Product of the Gamma Ray Astronomy Mission AGILE

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