Age of Cosmic‐Ray Protons Computed Using Simple Configurations of the Galactic Magnetic Field
Open Access
- 10 January 2000
- journal article
- research article
- Published by American Astronomical Society in The Astrophysical Journal
- Vol. 528 (2) , 789-798
- https://doi.org/10.1086/308186
Abstract
The influence of various magnetic field structures of the Galactic disk on some fundamental properties of cosmic-ray protons has been investigated with a simulation program, which generates cosmic-ray trajectories in the disk volume. The regular component of the Galactic magnetic field has been approximated by three different geometrical configurations (circular, elliptical, and spiral). Ages, residence times, and grammages of cosmic protons in various conditions are calculated and discussed. These calculations indicate that the proton age is strongly influenced by the magnetic field configuration but weakly affected by the field strength. The age of cosmic-ray protons in the spiral field turns out to be 6.7 × 106 yr, and the corresponding matter thickness 12 g cm-2.Keywords
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