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The elemental and isotopic composition of galactic cosmic ray nuclei
Author(s) -
Mewaldt R. A.
Publication year - 1983
Publication title -
reviews of geophysics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 8.087
H-Index - 156
eISSN - 1944-9208
pISSN - 8755-1209
DOI - 10.1029/rg021i002p00295
Subject(s) - cosmic ray , physics , nucleosynthesis , galaxy , isotope , astrophysics , astronomy , cosmic ray spallation , solar system , ultra high energy cosmic ray , nuclear physics , supernova
Galactic cosmic rays represent a directly accessible sample of matter that originates outside the solar system. The elemental and isotopic composition of this sample of high‐energy matter contains a record of nucleosynthesis in other regions of the galaxy, and of subsequent nuclear and electromagnetic interactions that have altered its composition. There have recently been significant new advances in reading this record, brought about in large part by the launch of new high‐resolution instrumentation. In particular, measurements of the abundances of individual elements have now been extended into the upper 2/3 of the periodic table, and the individual isotopes of a number of heavy cosmic ray nuclei have recently been resolved.