A wide field reflector for the detection of high energy cosmic rays from space

High energy cosmic rays and neutrinos may be detected by observing the fluorescence showers induced after interaction with Earth's atmosphere. A high energy cosmic rays observatory would benefit from being lifted into space as a larger portion of atmosphere will be observable. Such a system should have a better performance than existing and future ground based observatories, detecting up to 103 -104 events per year. However, only a system with large field of view, and large collecting aperture can achieve the requested high sensitivity and acceptable event statistics. Several optical designs for the optics of a cosmic ray space observatory have been proposed so far. Amongst them, the Schmidt telescope, one of the best known reflectors, well matches both those characteristics, and appears as an appropriate solution to solve the problem.