资源环境科技发展态势分析平台

We report on anomalously long duration (2 ms) count rate bursts following the impact of cosmic ray showers near a 7.62 cm x⊘7.62 cm LaBr₃ scintillation detector at the High Altitude Water Cherenkov array in Mexico, previously described by Stenkin et al., 2001, and termed ‘neutron bursts’. The largest burst produced 198 counts within 2ms in our LaBr₃ detector. We simulate the neutron burst albedo flux (that is, secondary emissions from an extensive air shower core impacting the ground), and show that 1.) the characteristic spectra and count rates are well explained by neutron absorption in the ground and 2.) any cosmic ray secondary that produces neutrons, either through hadron inelastic collisions, or photoneutron production by gamma‐rays, produces the same characteristic spectra. This implies that other natural phenomena that produce downward beams of gamma‐rays, like Terrestrial gamma‐ray flashes, should produce a similar ‘neutron burst’ signature from the photoneutron reactions occuring in the soil.

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