LIP Contributions at the Pierre Auger Observatory and the UHECR24 Conference
"LIP researchers presented significant results at the Pierre Auger Collaboration meeting and at the UHECR24 conference, highlighting advances in cosmic ray physics and the MARTA project. "
The LIP group, actively involved in the research activities of the Pierre Auger Observatory, recently had two very intensive weeks of work and result sharing at major scientific events. Several members participated – either in person or remotely – in the collaboration meeting held in Malargüe, Mendoza Province, Argentina, from November 11 to 16. During the event, the group members presented 9 scientific contributions, covering topics ranging from detector calibration to advanced studies on atmospheric shower physics. The meeting culminated with the ceremony extending the international agreement that ensures the Observatory's operation until 2035.
[ Part of the Pierre Auger Collaboration at the November 2024 meeting.]
The following week, Malargüe hosted the UHECR24 – 7th International Symposium on Ultra High Energy Cosmic Rays, one of the most prestigious conferences in the field. Ruben Conceição, the lead researcher of the LIP-Auger group, was invited to give a plenary talk on the state of the art in cosmic ray shower physics, titled "The road to understanding hadronic interactions at the highest energies." This invitation followed a similar presentation he had made in September at the European Cosmic Rays Symposium in Hvar, Croatia, where he also reviewed the topic.
[ Ruben Conceição at the UHECR24 conference.]
In addition to their scientific participation, the group took the opportunity to carry out work on the MARTA prototype, installed at the Observatory. This station, equipped with RPC detectors developed at LIP, is now fully operational and has demonstrated high efficiency and resilience, even under extremely adverse weather conditions. Small improvements were implemented to ensure the regular acquisition of data and to strengthen MARTA's role in the direct study of the muonic component of atmospheric showers.
[ Pedro Assis working at the MARTA station, "Peter Mazur."]
[ MARTA prototype station – "Peter Mazur". The image shows the water Cherenkov detector with the scintillator detector on top and the solar panels providing power. The resistive plate chambers (RPC) are placed underneath the concrete precast structure. ]
Thus, the LIP-Auger group continues to strengthen its contributions to the Pierre Auger Observatory's activities, the largest cosmic ray detection facility in the world, maintaining its leadership in cutting-edge technological developments and scientific analyses.