The East-West Symmetry of the Cosmic Radiation at Very High Elevations Near the Equator and Evidence that Protons Constitute the Primary Particles of the Hard Component

Abstract

The east-west symmetry of the soft component of the cosmic radiation has been investigated near the equator by sending triple coincidence counters into the stratosphere with free balloons. The data were transmitted to a ground station by radio signals. Direct comparisons between eastern and western intensities were made on flights in which the orientation of the instrument was determined by means of a photo-cell actuated by light from the sun. On other flights we have studied the fluctuations which would be introduced into the counting rates by the rotation of the balloon if the radiation were asymmetric. The results show that the asymmetry is less than about seven percent, a value far below what would have been expected if all of the primary radiation were positive. Analysis shows that less than about ten percent of the intensity at a depth of one meter of water is attributable to unbalanced positives. Contrasting this result with that found from the asymmetry at sea level that the mesotrons of the hard component are produced entirely by positive primaries, it becomes necessary to conclude that the mesotrons are produced in the upper atmosphere, not by the primary electrons of the soft component, but by an independent primary component consisting probably of protons or some other more massive positive ion. Reasons based upon the electrical properties of space are advanced to show that it is reasonable to expect to find protons of high energy in the primary cosmic radiation.