Results from the Fluoresence detector Array of Single-pixel Telescopes (FAST) at Telescope Array
ORAL
Abstract
The Fluorescence detector Array of Single-pixel Telescopes (FAST) is an R\&D project for the next generation of cosmic ray detectors aimed at addressing the hardware needs for instrumenting a huge area at a low cost to observe the most energetic Ultra-High-Energy Cosmic Rays (UHECRs). The FAST telescope features four 8\,in PMTs covering a 30\times30^\circ field of view at the focal plane of a 1.6\,m segmented mirror. A first test of FAST, consisting of three telescopes covering an area 90 degrees in azimuth, has been assembled at the Black Rock Mesa site of the Telescope Array (TA) experiment in Utah, where it observes a shared field of view with the TA FD. Stations have been remotely operated since their assembly beginning in 2016, demonstrating stable operation under the high background conditions of FAST as well as observation of ultraviolet laser shots and UHECRs in coincidence with the TA FD. We discuss results from FAST at TA, including detection of UHECR stereo events, stability and monitoring of the telescopes, and top-down reconstruction of the highest-energy events using TA geometry, as well as plans for future testing of the FAST design at the site of the Pierre Auger Observatory.
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Presenters
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John M Farmer
University of Chicago
Authors
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John M Farmer
University of Chicago