SOLAR ENERGETIC PARTICLE SPECTRUM ON 2006 DECEMBER 13 DETERMINED BY IceTop

• Main Authors: Abbasi, R, Ackermann, M, Adams, J, Descamps, Freija, Ryckbosch, Dirk, Van Overloop, Arne
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: IOP PUBLISHING LTD 2008
• Subjects: Physics and Astronomy; Sun: flares; Sun: particle emission; South Pole; South pole
• Online Access: https://biblio.ugent.be/publication/684502; http://hdl.handle.net/1854/LU-684502

On 2006 December 13 the IceTop air shower array at the South Pole detected a major solar particle event. By numerically simulating the response of the IceTop tanks, which are thick Cerenkov detectors with multiple thresholds deployed at high altitude with no geomagnetic cutoff, we determined the particle energy spectrum in the energy range 0.6-7.6 GeV. This is the first such spectral measurement using a single instrument with a well-defined viewing direction. We compare the IceTop spectrum and its time evolution with previously published results and outline plans for improved resolution of future solar particle spectra.