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Show posters on the hill Development of Next Generation Gamma-Ray Observatories Daniel Allen and Professor Dave Kieda Department of Physics A particle can move faster than light in the atmosph This causes a sort of "light boom" known as cheren light. A sensitive instrument can detect this light dark nights. This of an airshower from the gamma rays first interaction in the atmosphere to the cherenkov light emitted by the shower's high energy particles of high energy gamma rays is a jet from the nucleus of a nt active galaxy. Studies of high energy gamma rays emitted by th of galaxy nap shows the location of the VERITAS array of This is a picture of the the telescopes k is ideal due to its view of the southern sky, its _ Southeast of Kit! Peak near Mt. Hopk High energy astrophysics has been a growing field of study since the discovery of cosmic rays. Over the decades new methods of detecting high energy particles and photons have developed, one of which is the atmospheric Cherenkov imaging technique. This technique was first implemented by the Whipple gamma ray telescope. By using Cherenkov imaging, the now aging Whipple telescope wasable to identify new sources of gamma rays in the Universe, and open new possibilities for futureresearch. Some possibilities for research are the making of a more complete gamma ray source catalog, the study of gigantic black holes at the centers of galaxies, and the detection of gamma rays from the mysterious "dark" matter and energy, which seem to control the destiny of our universe. The Very Energetic Radiation Imaging Telescope Array System (VERITAS) is a new array of seven 12 meter Cheren-kov imaging telescopes, based roughly on the design of the Whipple telescope. Because it has the versatility of an array, VERITAS is able to produce an all sky gamma ray search, or use all telescopes in parallel to provide pre-cise triangulation. With its large aperture and array size, VERITAS will be able to collect data of high significance in less time than any previous Cherenkov imaging telescope. As part of the VERITAS collaboration, I have designed, tested, and installed calibration systems and the cabling systems for the first prototype Telescope. I am also ana-lyzing cosmic ray data to develop new high resolution techniques of charged particle identification, which may lead to identification of the origin of cosmic rays as well as possible observation of new states of matter. {66} |