[en] The detailed pattern of elemental abundances in the Galactic Cosmic Rays is well determined at energies of a few GeV per nucleon. After correction for propagation effects the inferred source composition shows significant deviations from the standard pattern of Galactic elemental abundances. These deviations, surprisingly overabundances of the heavy elements relative to Hydrogen, are clearly a significant clue to the origin of the cosmic rays, but one which has proven very difficult to interpret. We have recently shown that the 'standard' model for the origin of the bulk of the Galactic cosmic rays, namely acceleration by the diffusive shock acceleration process at the strong shocks associated with supernova remnants, can quantitatively explain all features of the source composition if the acceleration occurs from a dusty interstellar medium. This success must be regarded as one of the stronger pieces of evidence in favour of the standard model

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[en] The applicability of first and second order Fermi acceleration to electrons in supernova remnants is briefly examined. (orig.)

No abstract available

[en] A two-dimensional particle simulation models the collision of two electron-ion plasma clouds along a quasiparallel magnetic field. The collision speed is 0.9c and the density ratio, 10. A current sheet forms at the front of the dense cloud, in which the electrons and the magnetic field reach energy equipartition with the ions. A structure composed of a solenoidal and a toroidal magnetic field grows in this sheet. It resembles the cross-section of the torus of a spheromak, which may provide the coherent magnetic fields in gamma-ray burst jets needed for their prompt emissions.

[en] It has been known for nearly a century that the Earth is constantly being bombarded by, to quote from the 1912 discovery paper, 'an ionizing radiation of extreme penetrating power' and extraterrestrial origin. These cosmic ray particles are now known to extend in energy right up to at least 10²⁰ eV. This is a macroscopic amount of energy, in fact some 16 J, but all the evidence points to this being carried by ordinary atomic nuclei including protons. Such extreme events are, however, very rare and the bulk of the cosmic rays have more moderate, but still very high, energies. The theory of diffusive shock acceleration, a variant of Fermi acceleration operating at strong collisionless plasma shocks, is currently the best bet for explaining the origin of the cosmic rays. This talk will describe our current understanding of this acceleration process and the observational situation. Some interesting plasma physics questions to do with the acceleration process will also be discussed. While great progress has been made it seems unlikely that the problem of the origin of cosmic rays will be regarded as completely solved by the centenary of their discovery in 2012.

[en] The interaction of photons with a low-amplitude gravitational wave propagating in a flat space-time is studied by using an exact model of photon dynamics. The existence of nearly resonant interactions between the photons and the gravitational waves, which can take place over large distances, can lead to a strong photon acceleration. Such a resonant mechanism can eventually be useful to build consistent new models of gamma-ray emitters

[en] Among the various acceleration mechanisms which have been suggested as responsible for the nonthermal particle spectra and associated radiation observed in many astrophysical and space physics environments, diffusive shock acceleration appears to be the most successful. We review the current theoretical understanding of this process, from the basic ideas of how a shock energizes a few reactionless particles to the advanced nonlinear approaches treating the shock and accelerated particles as a symbiotic self-organizing system. By means of direct solution of the nonlinear problem we set the limit to the test-particle approximation and demonstrate the fundamental role of nonlinearity in shocks of astrophysical size and lifetime. We study the bifurcation of this system, proceeding from the hydrodynamic to kinetic description under a realistic condition of Bohm diffusivity. We emphasize the importance of collective plasma phenomena for the global flow structure and acceleration efficiency by considering the injection process, an initial stage of acceleration and, the related aspects of the physics of collisionless shocks. We calculate the injection rate for different shock parameters and different species. This, together with differential acceleration resulting from nonlinear large-scale modification, determines the chemical composition of accelerated particles. The review concentrates on theoretical and analytical aspects but our strategic goal is to link the fundamental theoretical ideas with the rapidly growing wealth of observational data. (author)

[en] Both the acceleration of cosmic rays (CRs) in supernova remnant shocks and their subsequent propagation through the random magnetic field of the Galaxy are deemed to result in an almost isotropic CR spectrum. However, the MILAGRO TeV observatory discovered sharp (∼10⁰) arrival anisotropies of CR nuclei. We suggest a mechanism for producing a weak and narrow CR beam which operates en route to the observer. The key assumption is that CRs are scattered by a strongly anisotropic Alfven wave spectrum formed by the turbulent cascade across the local field direction. The strongest pitch-angle scattering occurs for particles moving almost precisely along the field line. Partly because this direction is also the direction of the minimum of the large-scale CR angular distribution, the enhanced scattering results in a weak but narrow particle excess. The width, the fractional excess, and the maximum momentum of the beam are calculated from a systematic transport theory depending on a single scale l which can be associated with the longest Alfven wave, which efficiently scatters the beam. The best match to all three characteristics of the beam is achieved at l ∼ 1 pc. The distance to a possible source of the beam is estimated to be within a few 100 pc. Possible approaches to the determination of the scale l from the characteristics of the source are discussed. Alternative scenarios of drawing the beam from the galactic CR background are considered. The beam-related large-scale anisotropic CR component is found to be energy independent, which is also consistent with the observations.

[en] Supernova remnant blast shells can reach the flow speed v_s = 0.1c and shocks form at its front. Instabilities driven by shock-reflected ion beams heat the plasma in the foreshock, which may inject particles into diffusive acceleration. The ion beams can have the speed v_b ∼ v_s. For v_b << v_s the Buneman or upper-hybrid instabilities dominate, while for v_b >> v_s the filamentation and mixed modes grow faster. Here the relevant waves for v_b ∼ v_s are examined and how they interact nonlinearly with the particles. The collision of two plasma clouds at the speed v_s is modelled with particle-in-cell simulations, which convect with them magnetic fields oriented perpendicular to their flow velocity vector. One simulation models equally dense clouds and the other one uses a density ratio of 2. Both simulations show upper-hybrid waves that are planar over large spatial intervals and that accelerate electrons to ∼10 keV. The symmetric collision yields only short oscillatory wave pulses, while the asymmetric collision also produces large-scale electric fields, probably through a magnetic pressure gradient. The large-scale fields destroy the electron phase space holes and they accelerate the ions, which facilitates the formation of a precursor shock