WoU-MMA: Understanding the Strongest Accelerators in our Galaxy by Combining Data from the HAWC Observatory and Other Instruments

观测天体物理伽马射线是电磁辐射的最高能量形式，为研究宇宙中最极端的天体物理环境中的条件和过程提供了能力。位于墨西哥内格拉山脉的高海拔水切伦科夫天文台(HAWC)提供了从数百GeV到100TeV以上的伽马射线发射的独特视角。该奖项支持密歇根理工大学的科学家与HAWC一起进行研究。对HAWC数据的分析将用于通过追踪与宇宙中产生伽马射线的物质和辐射场的相互作用来提高对宇宙射线加速和传输的理解。该团队将参与教育和外联活动，包括制定教师研究体验计划，该计划将创建伽马射线和多信使天文学的教案，用于高中和社区大学课堂以及夏季青年计划。HAWC天文台提供了伽马射线天空的独特景象，占空比接近100%，瞬时视场约为2个立体星。随着天文台灵敏度、图像和能量分辨率的提高，HAWC测量了北半球天空中最广泛的TeV尺度伽马射线数据集。使用最先进的统计方法，并将天文台的数据与多信使数据相结合，有可能显著提高我们对宇宙线起源、加速和传输的极端来源的理解。同时，加强HAWC数据对多信使社区的可访问性将最大限度地提高科学回报，特别是在包括恒星形成区、超新星遗迹、脉冲星风星云和双星系统在内的一些源类的研究中。这个项目推进了NSF宇宙大理想之窗的目标。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Observations of astrophysical gamma-rays, the highest energy form of electromagnetic radiation, provide the ability to study the conditions and processes in the most extreme astrophysical environments in the Universe. The High Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC) observatory, located in the Sierra Negra in Mexico, provides a unique view on gamma-ray emission from hundreds of GeV to beyond 100 TeV. This award supports scientists at Michigan Technological University performing research with HAWC. Analyses of the HAWC data will be used to improve the understanding of cosmic ray acceleration and transport by tracing the interactions with matter and radiation fields in the Universe that produce gamma-rays. The team will participate in education and outreach activities, including developing a Research Experience for Teachers program that will create lesson plans for gamma-ray and multi-messenger astronomy for use in high school and community college classrooms and summer youth programs. The HAWC observatory provides a unique view of the gamma-ray sky, with a nearly 100% duty cycle and an instantaneous field-of-view of about 2 steradians. With realized improvements in the sensitivity, and the image and energy resolution of the observatory, HAWC has measured the most extensive TeV-scale gamma-ray dataset of the northern hemisphere sky. Employing state-of-the-art statistical methods and combining data from the observatory with multi-messenger data has the potential to significantly improve our understanding of extreme sources of cosmic ray origin, acceleration, and transport. At the same time, enhancing the accessibility of HAWC data to the multi-messenger community maximizes the science return, in particular in studies of a number of source classes including star forming regions, supernova remnants, pulsar wind nebulae, and binary systems. This project advances the goals of the NSF Windows on the Universe Big Idea.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.