Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope

Observation of Extended PWNe with HAWC

Andrew Smith
(HAWC Collaboration)

Abstract:

The High Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC) Observatory is a unique TeV gamma-ray detector that combines a wide field of view (~2sr) and a high duty cycle (>90% uptime) with a unique design that allow for the efficient separation of gamma-rays from the copious hadronic background. These capabilities make HAWC highly suitable to detect extended emission from pulsars and to study the extension and the spectral characteristics, which permit us to measure directly the diffusion characteristics in the vicinity of the pulsar. Notably, a detailed analysis of the extended emission from Geminga and PSR B0656+14 permitted the direct measurement of particle diffusion, casting doubt on the roll of these very nearby accelerators as an origin for the observed positron excess at earth. We will present a survey of extended emission associate with pulsars observable by HAWC and a study of their extensions and spectra.