Queen's University
First Flight of HELIX and Detector Development for Future Payloads — Cosmic rays are energetically charged particles that arrive at Earth after travelling throughout our Galaxy for millions of years. A thorough understanding of cosmic-ray propagation is essential for interpreting recent discoveries from cosmic-ray measurements, such as the excess of anti-matter particles and unexpected changes in the spectral shape.

HELIX (High Energy Light Isotope eXperiment) is a high-altitude balloon experiment designed to provide the most precise cosmic-ray isotope measurements to date, advancing scientific understanding of cosmic-ray propagation in our Galaxy. As part of the project, the team will develop the detector monitoring system, update the simulation models necessary for the data analysis of the key isotope measurements, and develop the prototype detector for a future upgrade.

The proposed research activities will enhance Canadian contributions to high-energy astroparticle physics, and to hardware development for near-space detectors. The research will al