Mapping Earth's Anti-Neutrinos, Prof. Stephen Dye (Hawaii Pacific University/University of Hawaii at Manoa)

Thursday Sep 10, 2015, 3:15 PM → 5:15 PM Pacific/Honolulu

112 (Watanabe)

We present AGM2015, which maps the global flux of antineutrinos from natural and anthropogenic sources. Every second Earth emits several decamoles of electron antineutrinos. We find that natural radioactivity outshines nuclear reactors by a factor of about 100. Antineutrino flux varies significantly at the surface, according to our model. It is most intense on continents, especially near nuclear reactors, and least intense in the oceans. Mapping the anisotropic antineutrino surface flux and energy distribution exposes the sources and quantity of terrestrial heat-producing elements, supports nuclear non-proliferation applications, and informs sensitive experiments for probing fundamental physics. We describe our model, discuss its uncertainties, and consider improvements. This talk should be accessible to UH physicists in all sub-fields.

Slides AGM2015.pdf