The Effect of Elevation

Note: Diagram not to scale.

Note: All elevation data was collected using the 'My Elevation' app on a smartphone (RDH Software, "My Elevation").

Setup

To measure the effect of elevation on the rate of cosmic particle detection, three spots on Mt. Diablo, CA were chosen to test for cosmic particle flux.

At each location, data was collected in coincidence mode for a full hour.

At elevation = 161 m above sea level, the detector was oriented with a heading of N51W.

At elevation = 527 m above sea level, the detector was oriented with a heading of N28W.

At elevation = 1173 m above sea level, the detector was oriented with a heading of S72W.

To minimize light pollution, the detector was covered by a light-blocking blanket that was folded into four layers.

Note: The chi squared per degrees of freedom value for the graph's trendline is 0.74

Results

The difference between the high and low points of the data set shows that despite the margins of errors, it can be concluded that the rate of cosmic particle detection is directly related to elevation.

The chi squared per degrees of freedom value for the graph's trendline is 0.74. Even though this value is less than one, the trendline is still is not an ideal fit as the desired value of any fit is one. However, the trendline does a fairly good job at representing the data presented.

Assuming that the trendline of this experiment accurately represents cosmic particle flux caused by elevation change, an elevation increase of exactly 1 km yields a flux of +22.9 counts/min.

References

"My Elevation." RHD Software. Accessed 26 March 2019. https://rdhsoftware.com.

Experiment Setup - Photo

Note: This photo is of the setup of the summit experiment.

Note: This photo was taken while the original experiment was fully set up. It is accurate in all forms and represents the conditions of the experiment exactly at the time that the photo was taken (note that some of these conditions can and did change over time, such as light level. However, according to the data collected by the light sensor used, any change in light level was neutralized by the light-blocking blanket placed over the detector).