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Part of the book series: Springer Theses ((Springer Theses))

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Abstract

Cosmic Rays (CRs) are energetic particles that continuously hit the top of the Earth atmosphere at the considerable rate of \({\sim }10^4\,{\rm m^{-2}\, s^{-1}}\). The exact composition depends on which part of the spectrum is considered, but we can say that approximately 86 % of these particles are protons, 11 % are alpha articles, 1 % consists of stable nuclei, up to Uranium, then 2 % are electrons and a non negligible fraction (about 1 %) consists of antiparticles (positrons and antiprotons).

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Alfvén waves are travelling oscillations of ion density and magnetic field in a magnetized plasma. They are present in the ionized component of the interstellar medium.

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© 2012 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Gaggero, D. (2012). Introduction. In: Cosmic Ray Diffusion in the Galaxy and Diffuse Gamma Emission. Springer Theses. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-29949-0_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-29949-0_1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-29948-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-29949-0

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