Results and prospects on registration of reflected Cherenkov light of EAS from cosmic particles above 10^{15} eV

TL;DR

This paper reviews the SPHERE experiment's use of reflected Cherenkov light detection from extensive air showers to analyze cosmic rays above 10^{15} eV, presenting initial results and future prospects.

Contribution

It provides the first results on cosmic ray spectrum and composition using reflected Cherenkov light and discusses the potential of this technique for future research.

Findings

First measurements of cosmic ray energy spectrum above 10^{15} eV

Initial insights into primary cosmic ray composition

Evaluation of the reflected Cherenkov light technique's effectiveness

Abstract

We give an overview of the SPHERE experiment based on detection of reflected Vavilov-Cherenkov radiation (Cherenkov light) from extensive air showers in the energy region E>10^{15} eV. A brief history of the reflected Cherenkov light technique is given; the observations carried out with the SPHERE-2 detector are summarized; the methods of the experimental datasample analysis are described. The first results on the primary cosmic ray all-nuclei energy spectrum and mass composition are presented. Finally, the prospects of the SPHERE experiment and the reflected Cherenkov light technique are given.