(N. E. Engelbrecht, F. Effenberger*, V. Florinski, M. S. Potgieter, D. Ruffolo, R. Chhiber, A. V. Usmanov, J. S. Rankin, and P. L. Els, Space Sci. Rev., 218, 33)
Cosmic rays are energetic particles from space. Most are charged sub-atomic particles, specifically ions and electrons. The main populations of cosmic ray particles are Galactic cosmic rays, from supernova explosions throughout the Galaxy, and solar energetic particles, from solar storms, which can cause “space weather” effects on human activities that rely on space technology or can even cause power outages on Earth. Thus the transport of cosmic ray particles is of scientific and practical interest.
This paper reviews the history and state of the art of theories, computer simulations, and observations of cosmic ray transport in the heliosphere (i.e., the region of space occupied by the solar wind, which extends far beyond the orbits of the planets). We also present new calculations that directly compare the results from different theories or different computational models for the same sets of model parameters and/or inputs (e.g., as shown in the Figure below).
