https://doi.org/10.1051/epjconf/20135310005
The Atmospheric Monitoring System of the JEM-EUSO space mission
1 SPace & AStroparticle (SPAS) Group, UAH, Madrid, Spain
2 RIKEN, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan
3 LINES laboratory, Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial (INTA), Madrid, Spain
4 LIR laboratory, University Carlos III of Madrid (UC3M), Spain
5 Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias (IAC), Tenerife, Spain
6 INAF/IASF Istituto di Astrofisica Sapziale e Fisica Cosmica, Palermo, Italy
7 Università di Napoli Federico II, dipart. di Scienze Fisiche, Italy
8 INFN, Napoli, Italy
9 University of Roma Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
10 INAF/OATO Osservatorio Astrofisico di Torino, Italy
11 Dipartimento di Fisica Generale, University of Torino & INFN, Torino, Italy
12 Karlsruher Institut fur Technologie (KIT), Karlsruhe, Germany
13 ISDC, Geneva, Switzerland
An Atmospheric Monitoring System (AMS) is mandatory and a key element of a space-based mission which aims to detect Ultra-High Energy Cosmic Rays (UHECR). JEM-EUSO has a dedicated atmospheric monitoring system that plays a fundamental role in our understanding of the atmospheric conditions in the Field of View (FoV) of the telescope. Our AMS consists of an infrared camera and a LIDAR device that are being fully designed with space qualification to fulfil the scientific requirements of this space mission. This AMS will provide information of the cloud cover in the FoV of JEM-EUSO, as well as measurements of the cloud top altitudes with an accuracy of 500 m and the optical depth profile of the atmosphere transmittance in the direction of each air shower with an accuracy of 0.15 degree and a resolution of 500 m. This will ensure that the energy of the primary UHECR and the depth of maximum development of the EAS (Extensive Air Shower) are measured with an accuracy better than 30% and 120 g/cm2, for EAS occurring either in the clear sky or with the EAS depth of maximum development above optically thick cloud layers. Moreover novel stereoscopic and radiometric retrieval techniques are under development to infer the Cloud Top Height (CTH) from the brightness temperature patterns obtained from the infrared camera.
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