Overview
In this chapter we discuss the most frequently recorded common shower observables, such as shower size (electron or total charged particle size) and muon size spectra, shower density spectra, density spectra at fixed core distance and shower energy loss spectra. The various concepts are defined and the experimental methods of measurement are outlined. We present a wealth of data and spectra of these observables from a selection of experiments from all epochs and a series of compilations that permit to compare the results from the different experiments. The role of the data for the interpretation of air showers is briefly outlined, however, the comprehensive evaluation of the data and implications are treated in separate chapters as referred to in the text.
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Notes
- 1.
Note that at the new Pamir site (4,380 m a.s.l.) only emulsion chamber experiments are being carried out.
- 2.
The threshold energy of muons to reach MACRO was \(E_{\mu} \geq 1.3\;\textrm{TeV}\).
- 3.
At that time the existence of the knee in the spectrum, discovered by Kulikov and Khristiansen (1959), was widely unknown.
- 4.
At that time the knee in the primary spectrum was unknown.
- 5.
In a simple superposition model it is assumed that a nucleus-nucleus collision in air can be described by A proton-nitrogen or A proton-oxygen interactions, where A is the mass number of the incident projectile nucleus. However, for computing the location of the first interaction of each shower the interaction mean free path of a nucleus of mass A in air must be taken. This model implies total fragmentation of the primary , which is not realistic.
- 6.
A Haverah Park type deep water Cherenkov detector had been used at Akeno/AGASA for comparison with scintillation detectors.
- 7.
The Auger experiment employs 1,600 deep water Cherenkov detectors and is expected to publish similar shower data.
- 8.
r′0 is a Molière-like unit for Haverah Park deep water Cherenkov detectors.
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Grieder, P.K. (2010). Common Shower Properties, Observables and Data. In: Extensive Air Showers. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-76941-5_12
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