Kavli Affiliate: Stephan S. Meyer
| First 5 Authors: James H. Adams Jr., Denis Allard, Phillip Alldredge, Luis Anchordoqui, Anna Anzalone
| Summary:
The Extreme Universe Space Observatory on a Super Pressure Balloon 2
(EUSO-SPB2) flew on May 13$^{text{th}}$ and 14$^{text{th}}$ of 2023.
Consisting of two novel optical telescopes, the payload utilized
next-generation instrumentation for the observations of extensive air showers
from near space. One instrument, the fluorescence telescope (FT) searched for
Ultra-High Energy Cosmic Rays (UHECRs) by recording the atmosphere below the
balloon in the near-UV with a 1~$mu$s time resolution using 108 multi-anode
photomultiplier tubes with a total of 6,912 channels. Validated by pre-flight
measurements during a field campaign, the energy threshold was estimated around
2~EeV with an expected event rate of approximately 1 event per 10 hours of
observation. Based on the limited time afloat, the expected number of UHECR
observations throughout the flight is between 0 and 2. Consistent with this
expectation, no UHECR candidate events have been found. The majority of events
appear to be detector artifacts that were not rejected properly due to a
shortened commissioning phase. Despite the earlier-than-expected termination of
the flight, data were recorded which provide insights into the detectors
stability in the near-space environment as well as the diffuse ultraviolet
emissivity of the atmosphere, both of which are impactful to future
experiments.
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