Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Gamma Rays From Massive Star Clusters G25 & G27, Abagael Barba, John W. Hewitt

Showcase of Osprey Advancements in Research and Scholarship (SOARS)

Project of Merit Winner

Cosmic rays have baffled astronomers for over a century, as all potential origins have yet to be determined. Most of these galactic accelerated atomic nuclei are thought to be created in two possible fashions: from a supernova, or within a massive star cluster (MSC). In this study, we analyzed gamma-ray emission coincident with two MSCs named G25 and G27. Using NASA’s Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT), we confirmed that the sources of gamma rays are spatially extended and emit up to the maximum energies observed by the LAT. So far, only the closest MSC to Earth …

Monitoring The Night Sky For Iceact, Andre Sierra Alderete, John W. Hewitt, Warren Huelsnitz

Showcase of Osprey Advancements in Research and Scholarship (SOARS)

The neutral subatomic neutrinos are astronomical messengers that can provide us information to investigate the most violent astrophysical sources: supernovas, gamma-ray bursts, and cataclysmic phenomena involving black holes and neutron stars. As these astrophysical neutrinos freely travel from their point of origin without being scattered by interstellar magnetic fields, we can analyze these particles by observing cosmic-ray air showers on the Earth’s atmosphere. These are produced by the energetic neutrinos by interacting with the air particles that produce a wavefront of Cherenkov radiation. To better identify these background neutrinos, IceCube, the South Pole Neutrino Observatory, constructed an imaging air Cherenkov …

Extended Gamma Analysis Of Snr G330.2 + 1.0, Abagael Barba, John W. Hewitt

Showcase of Osprey Advancements in Research and Scholarship (SOARS)

Analyzing gamma rays is an important aspect of modern astronomy and astrophysics, for they are the most powerful bands of energy on the electromagnetic spectrum. Comprehending gamma rays allows for deeper understanding of countless phenomena within our universe, such as cosmic rays. Cosmic rays are high energy particles thought to be formed via extremely violent explosions within our universe. These accelerated particles mirror conditions present in a supernova. A supernova is what occurs when a star at least 8 times as massive as our sun reaches the end of its lifespan and bursts. These explosions are the most powerful events …

Veritas And Fermi-Lat Observations Of Tev Gamma-Ray Sources Discovered By Hawc In The 2hwc Catalog, John Hewitt

Showcase of Faculty Scholarly & Creative Activity

The High Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC) collaboration recently published their 2HWC catalog, listing 39 very high energy (VHE; >100 GeV) gamma-ray sources based on 507 days of observation. Among these, 19 sources are not associated with previously known teraelectronvolt (TeV) gamma-ray sources. We have studied 14 of these sources without known counterparts with VERITAS and Fermi-LAT. VERITAS detected weak gamma-ray emission in the 1 TeV–30 TeV band in the region of DA 495, a pulsar wind nebula coinciding with 2HWC J1953+294, confirming the discovery of the source by HAWC. We did not find any counterpart for the selected 14 new …

Magic And Fermi-Lat Gamma-Ray Results On Unassociated Hawc Sources, John Hewitt

Showcase of Faculty Scholarly & Creative Activity

The HAWC Collaboration released the 2HWC catalogue of TeV sources, in which 19 show no association with any known high-energy (HE; E>10 GeV) or very-high-energy (VHE; E>300 GeV) sources. This catalogue motivated follow-up studies by both the Major Atmospheric Gamma-ray Imaging Cherenkov (MAGIC) and Fermi-LAT (Large Area Telescope) observatories with the aim of investigating gamma-ray emission over a broad energy band. In this paper, we report the results from the first joint work between High Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC), MAGIC, and Fermi-LAT on three unassociated HAWC sources: 2HWC J2006+341, 2HWC J1907+084*, and 2HWC J1852+013*. Although no significant detection …