Speaker
Description
The Radio Detector of the Pierre Auger Observatory measures radio emission from extensive air showers in the frequency range of 30–80 MHz. Covering an area of 3000 km², it constitutes the largest installation dedicated to the detection of cosmic particles, including charged cosmic rays, gamma rays, and neutrinos. Commissioning was completed at the end of 2024, and the radio antennas now operate in conjunction with the water-Cherenkov detectors of the Surface Detector array.
Over the coming decade, this hybrid detection approach is expected to deliver a unique dataset, providing clean and complementary information on both the electromagnetic and muonic components of extensive air showers. The primary scientific objective is to identify the sources of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays by determining the atomic mass and energy of the primary particles. These observables are combined to derive the particle rigidity, a key parameter for source identification.
In addition, the combined measurement of electromagnetic and muonic components will enable more stringent constraints on the flux of neutral particles at the highest energies.
First data will be presented, and the performance of the detector will be discussed.