Dr. Hiroki Rokujo is an Assistant Professor at the Advanced Measurement Technology Center (AMTC), Nagoya University. He leads Dr. Rokujo the Gamma-Ray Astro-Imager with Nuclear Emulsion (GRAINE) project where he observes gamma rays using his own nuclear emulsion technology and develops many of the elemental technologies and instruments.
Title: A Sharper View of the GeV Sky: High-Resolution Gamma-Ray Astronomy with a Balloon-Borne Nuclear Emulsion Telescope
Abstract: Gamma-ray astronomy in the sub-GeV/GeV band has been revolutionized by Fermi-LAT, but its angular resolution limits studies of complex regions such as the Galactic Center. The GRAINE project is developing a balloon-borne gamma-ray telescope based on nuclear emulsion, achieving an angular resolution about an order of magnitude better than Fermi-LAT. I will introduce the unique detector concept of GRAINE and present results from our 2023 balloon flight in Australia, including observations of the Vela pulsar and the Galactic Center region. I will discuss how current and future high-resolution observations can probe the origin and spatial structure of Galactic Center gamma-ray emission, including the GeV excess, as well as broader opportunities such as gamma-ray polarization. Finally, I will present our plans for the 2028 flight and future long-duration balloon observations.
