Pierre Auger Project - Observatory's Operating Costs

当皮埃尔·奥格计划在1998年被提出时，它宣称的科学目标是“发现和理解能量超过10**19电子伏特的宇宙射线的来源”。由17个国家组成的独特伙伴关系共同致力于这一科学。2008年6月完工的皮埃尔·奥格天文台（PAO）从2004年1月开始积累数据，并已经取得了朝着这些科学目标迈出的关键第一步的成果。不断增长的俄歇数据集将解决天体物理学和粒子物理学中的重要问题。PAO将继续绘制南部天空的地图，以加强最高能量事件与河外源的相关性。一个持续丰富的混合事件样本和测量的纵向发展将提高我们对宇宙射线组成和粒子相互作用特征的理解，从大型强子对撞机的能量到那些远远超出的能量。解决μ子明显过剩的难题将受益于越来越多的统计数据。在AMIGA填充望远镜和HEAT高海拔望远镜的帮助下，在踝部区域进行精确的光谱测量，将有助于确定从银河系到河外源的转变。根据数据中的线索，对中子和光子的星系源的搜索很可能会取得丰硕成果。最后，寻找EeV中微子将继续引起人们极大的兴趣。该奖项将为PAO在阿根廷的继续运作提供部分资金。合作国家按其在俄歇科学出版物上的资深作者人数的比例为天文台的业务提供资金。这些运营成本的美国部分由国家科学基金会和美国能源部平均分担。对高能宇宙射线（自然界中能量最高的粒子）的研究，将对高能粒子物理学和天体物理学的理解产生更广泛的影响。PAO一直是培养学生和博士后的一个非常成功的场所。作为与阿根廷malarge、阿根廷和其他附近社区的联系的中心，奥格游客中心吸引了越来越多的游客，通常每年6000人，自2001年以来，总人数已超过45,000人。奥格合作赞助了两次科学博览会，并在当地社区和学校举办了多次讲座。每天向公众发布的约1%的重建活动被用于许多地方的学校项目。

When the Pierre Auger Project was proposed in 1998 the stated scientific objective was "to discover and understand the source or sources of cosmic rays with energies exceeding 10**19 eV." A unique partnership of 17 countries has come together to pursue this science. The Pierre Auger Observatory (PAO), completed in June 2008, has accumulated data since January of 2004, and has already yielded results that are the first crucial steps toward those scientific goals. The growing Auger data set will address vital questions in astrophysics and particle physics. The PAO will continue to map the southern sky to strengthen the correlation of the highest energy events with extragalactic sources. A continuously enriched sample of hybrid events with measured longitudinal development will improve our understanding of the cosmic ray composition and features of particle interactions from LHC energies to those well beyond. Resolving the puzzle of apparent excess of muons will benefit from increasing statistics. A precise spectrum measurement in the ankle region with the help of the AMIGA in-fill and the HEAT high elevation telescopes will help determine the transition from galactic to extragalactic sources. Based on hints in the data the search for galactic sources of neutrons and photons may well be fruitful. Finally a search for EeV neutrinos will continue to be of great interest.This award will provide partial funding for the continuing operation of the PAO in Argentina. Collaborating countries fund the operations of the Observatory in proportion to the number of senior authors they have on Auger science publications. The US portion of these operating costs is being shared equally by the National Science Foundation and the US Department of Energy.The study of the highest energy cosmic rays, the most energetic particles in nature, will have broader impacts on the understanding of particle physics at the highest energies as well as astrophysics. The PAO has been a highly successful venue for the training of students and postdocs. The centerpiece of outreach to Malargüe, Argentina, and other nearby communities, the Auger Visitor Center attracts increasing numbers of visitors, typically 6000 each year with the total now exceeding 45,000 since 2001. The Auger collaboration has sponsored two science fairs and has given numerous lectures in the local communities and schools. The daily public release of about 1% of reconstructed events is being used for school projects in many locations.