Cover Page for Application to DOE FOA #DE-FOA-0001358

Project Title: Probing Dark Matter and Fundamental Physics with VERITASApplicant / Institution: Smithsonian Astrophysical ObservatoryStreet Address:60 Garden StCambridge, MA 02138USAPostal Address:60 Garden St, MS-23Cambridge, MA 02138USALead PI:Dr. Wystan Benbow617-496-7597wbenbow@cfa.harvard.eduAdministrative Point of Contact: Chris McNeil617-496-7923cmcneil@cfa.harvard.edu

Funding Opportunity FOA Number: DE-FOA-0001358DOE / Office of Science Program Office: High Energy PhysicsDOE / Office of Science Program Office Technical Contact: Kathy Turner301-903-1759kathy.turner@science.doe.govPAMS Letter of Intent Number: N/AResearch Area: Experimental Research at the Cosmic Frontier in High Energy Physics

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Probing Dark Matter and Fundamental Physics with VERITAS1. General Background

This proposal requests support for the ongoing research efforts of the 50-year-old very high energy (VHE; E>100 GeV) γ-ray astrophysics group at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO). The current leader of this group, and PI of this proposal, is Dr. Wystan Benbow. The PI is a federal employee at SAO and is the Project Scientist of the Very Energetic Radiation Imaging Telescope Array System (VERITAS). SAO is responsible for the day-to-day operations of VERITAS, and it hosts both the project and the VERITAS Project Office (VPO) at the F. L. Whipple Ob-servatory (FLWO). The PI is also the director of the VPO, which consists of 8 em-ployees, including 2 scientists. Support for the VPO and VERITAS site-operations comes from SAO and separate grants to the PI from the National Science Founda-tion (NSF) and the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science.

Since 1982, the DOE has been the primary source of external support for the SAO group’s base research. This request seeks support for the SAO group ’s re-search efforts during a 3-year period from May 1, 2016 until April 30, 2019, during which the final legacy results of VERITAS will be generated. Dr. Benbow is the PI for one current DOE grant, the aforementioned VERITAS site-operations grant (“The Ap-plication of Two Dimensional Imaging to Very-High-Energy Gamma-Ray Astronomy”, #DE-FG02-91ER40635) which expires on April 30, 2016. The PI was previously the PI of another DOE research grant: “Expanding the Discovery Potential of VERITAS via Moonlight Observations” (#DE-FG02-09ER41619) which ended in 2014. Similar to the situation for many university groups, sources of internal (SAO) support are ex-tremely limited and no funding for the group’s base research efforts, aside from the PI’s entire salary is provided by SAO. As a federal employee, the PI is not eligible for NSF research funding, thus the fundamental VERITAS research group (i.e. that of the Project Scientist), is dependent on continued DOE support to produce legacy re-sults for VERITAS (from data funded by DOE).

Since Dr. Benbow became the group leader in 2008, the SAO VHE γ-ray astro-physics group’s research efforts were supported by the DOE “Moonlight” grant ($285,000 total; 2009-14), several smaller NASA grants (Fermi and Swift Guest In-vestigator), and the prior group leader’s DOE base grant (2007-10; ~$270k / yr, Dr. Benbow was PI after Dr. Weekes (deceased) retired in 2008). Overall, these funds supported 6 post-doctoral researchers and 2 PhD students full-time for their VERI-TAS research, and several 3-month stipends enabling visits to VERITAS by students working on research programs led by the PI. The two fully-supported PhD students completed their degrees and all post-docs will have departed the group by Sept. 30, 2015. The scientists currently in the SAO group are the PI, Dr. Pascal Fortin (Obser-vatory Manager) and Dr. Veronique Pelassa (Deputy Observatory Manager). All these scientists actively participate in VERITAS research, but the latter two focus on operations and are 100% supported by the site-operations grants. This proposal re-quests a new 3-year base grant for the PI ($307k) to support the group’s VERITAS research efforts. The funding will pay for the stipend / health-dental insurance for one new post-doc and their travel expenses, attendance at one annual conference for the PI, and purchase materials required for VERITAS research.2. VERITAS Overview

VERITAS [75] is an array of four 12-meter atmospheric-Cherenkov Telescopes (ACTs). It is the most-sensitive VHE γ-ray observatory in the World, and is one of two US facilities devoted to cosmic VHE γ-ray studies (HAWC [76] became fully op-

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erational in 2015). VERITAS was a high-priority experiment in DOE sponsored re-ports and began full-scale operations in September 2007. The DOE contributed to the development of VERITAS and funded ~42% of its ~$17.6 million construction cost. VERITAS is operated by a collaboration of ~100 scientists from 20 institutions in 4 countries, and its site operations are fully funded through 2016. VPO budget projections show site operations are possible though 2017, assuming no major fail-ures and no-cost extensions to the existing grants from DOE and NSF. The collabo-ration hopes to operate VERITAS until July 2019 and will submit proposals for the necessary support in Fall 2015. VERITAS is used to study VHE γ-rays from cosmic sources. These VHE γ-rays are observed via the Cherenkov light produced as they interact in the Earth’s atmosphere. The data are taken with high-speed systems similar to those used in other particle physics experiments, and reduced using custom software employing CERN packages. VERITAS is operating well and routinely observes for ~1100 good-weather hours each year. All promised perfor-mance metrics of the experiment are achieved or exceeded [77]. These include an energy threshold of ~60 GeV, an energy resolution of ~15%, an angular resolution of ~0.1º, and a sensitivity of <1% of the Crab Nebula flux in 25 hours. In Summer 2012, a major upgrade of VERITAS was completed, improving the its sensitivity and decreasing its energy threshold. The experiment now detects sources ~2.5 times faster than in 2007 [78]. Due to its unprecedented sensitivity, VERITAS will continue to make major contributions to the field of astrophysics. While a next-generation VHE observatory is in the R&D phase, VERITAS should remain the premier VHE facil-ity in the Northern Hemisphere through the length of this proposal. New analysis techniques will also result in a factor of ~2 sensitivity increase for data already

taken [79].Figure 1: The VERITAS array of imaging atmospheric-Chereknov telescopes at FLWO in AZ.

3. Moonlight Observation Capabilities: SAO’s previously funded base research pro-gram

Data taking during periods of moonlight is not universal to all VHE observato-ries. However, several methods that enable VERITAS to operate during all levels of moonlight were developed. These methods include running with higher pixel-level triggers, running with reduced pixel gains, and/or running with custom filters that preferentially pass the UV/blue Cherenkov light. SAO led the deployment, testing, performance evaluation, and systematic-error studies of these methods, and the de-velopment of their user protocol. This development required special simulations, calibrations, etc. These new methods enable VERITAS to run every night of the year, albeit with reduced, low-energy sensitivity. VERITAS can now respond to tran-sient phenomena accessible to no other ACTs (e.g., during the full moon). In addi-

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tion, the observation yield of VERITAS is increased by 60% from ~850 hours per year to ~1350 hours. Moonlight data-taking is now routine and these data are both scientifically useful and regularly published [69]. Clearly the project’s capabilities are increased (e.g. the time available for indirect dark matter searches has ~dou-bled), as promised in our previous DOE research grant “Expanding the Discovery Po-tential of VERITAS via Moonlight Observations.”4. VERITAS Science Introduction

VERITAS seeks to both identify new sources of VHE γ-rays, and to perform in-depth studies of the known sources to better understand their underlying funda-mental processes. Since VHE γ-ray sources emit radiation over ~20 orders of mag-nitude in energy, these studies often involve collaboration with experiments at lower energies (e.g., radio, optical, X-ray, and MeV-GeV γ-ray). Currently >160 VHE γ-ray sources are known [80]. The primary targets of VERITAS Galactic observations are supernova remnants, pulsars, binary systems, and known VHE sources whose (likely Galactic) classification is unknown. The extragalactic targets observed by VERITAS include active galactic nuclei, radio galaxies, starburst galaxies, galaxy clusters and gamma-ray bursts. Local Group galaxies, the Galactic Center and dwarf galaxies are targets of VERITAS observations focused on the indirect detec-tion of dark matter. The results of these studies often have broad implications be-yond the physics of the objects. Other topics addressed include fundamental physics (e.g., the energy dependence of the speed of light), the origin of cosmic rays, cosmology and the nature of dark matter. The VHE observation programs also have multi-messenger implications; e.g. for wide-acceptance particle telescopes such as IceCube (neutrinos, [81]) and the Pierre Auger Observatory (UHE cosmic rays, [82]). The emission from objects detected by the Fermi γ-ray Space Telescope [83] extends from ~300 MeV to ~300 GeV, overlapping the >60 GeV regime cov-ered by VERITAS. Results from both experiments are highly complementary, and both benefit from the simultaneous coverage of the entire γ-ray spectra of non-ther-mal emitters. In particular, the 105 times larger effective area of VERITAS enables time-resolved measurements of flux and spectral variability for transient sources not possible with Fermi alone, and continuation of the γ-ray spectra to TeV energies is critical for measuring the extragalactic background light and intergalactic mag-netic field. Such a unique MeV-TeV viewing window is unprecedented, and it may be decades before another such opportunity due to the limited lifetime of Fermi. In ad-dition new facilities in the X-ray (NuStar [84], Astro-H [85]) and VHE bands (HESS-II [86], HAWC [76]) have, or will soon, come online providing new opportunities. VERI-TAS is already following-up on new targets identified by HAWC, which are communi-cated under a formal MoU. The LHC is providing new constraints that guide the dark-matter search strategy. Indeed the growing number of upper limits on physics beyond the standard mode (up to TeV energies) may already suggest the scale for new physics is beyond the reach of terrestrial experiments, requiring TeV γ-ray ob-servations.5. VERITAS Science Plans for 2016-19

In 2014, the VERITAS Sceince Board (VSB) organized the development a long-term observation program assuming operation through at least 2019. The plan in-cludes a de-scope option of operation through 2017, in case future funding cannot be secured. This long-term plan (LTP) was developed by members of VERITAS, with input from the scientific community, and was written by the PI. It was strongly en-

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dorsed by the VERITAS External Science Advisory Committee (ESAC), and delivered to the three agencies that fund VERITAS site operations.

The VERITAS science program will continue to follow the guidelines outlined in this long-term plan, which is based on the projected “ultimate” accomplishments of VERITAS. In other words, this is the legacy program for VERITAS. During the plan-ning, strong consideration was given to creating a balanced program in fundamen-tal physics and astrophysics. The plan is based on 4 major scientific themes: Parti-cle Physics and Fundamental Laws, Cosmology, Black Holes, and Galactic Teva-trons / Pevatrons; excerpts from the three themes most relevant to SAO pursuits are described below. Under the plan ~70% of VERITAS observations are now pre-al-located to legacy programs, including ~20% of the entire budget for indirect Dark Matter detection. For the remaining time, proposals for VERITAS observations are organized annually by Science Working Groups (SWGs), and are evaluated in an open competition. SAO scientists have historically led two of the four major non-technical SWGs: the Blazar SWG and the Dark Matter, Astroparticle, Extragalactic Non-blazar (DM-AsPEN) SWG. 5.1 Particle Physics and Fundamental Laws: The origin of dark matter (DM) is one of the most compelling mysteries facing 21st century physics and astronomy. In the standard scenario, where DM is comprised of weakly interacting massive particles (WIMPs), DM annihilation in astrophysical regions with a large concentration of DM would produce a clearly recognizable signal of VHE γ-rays. This indirect detection technique provides an important complement to direct-detection experiments un-derground and to searches for new particle physics at the LHC. Even if the LHC de-tects evidence for super-symmetry, only astrophysical VHE γ-ray measurements can reveal the distribution of dark matter in haloes. In addition, the characteristic shape of the VHE spectrum provides crucial information on the particle mass and branch-ing ratios beyond the capabilities of direct-detection experiments and the LHC [87]. As one of the world’s premier VHE detectors, VERITAS will make the most-sensitive searches for dark matter in the mass region above 200 GeV. Since the predicted signal for DM sources outside the Galactic Center are predicted to be weak, long, dedicated exposures on the most promising dark matter targets are required. To ensure a lasting legacy, a comprehensive survey of all nearby Northern dwarf spheroidal galaxies (the most promising targets) will be performed.

In addition to dark matter searches, VERITAS has significant sensitivity to other aspects of particle physics, including searches for axion-like particles and primordial black holes that could be created in the early universe. The detection of fast VHE γ-ray flares from a GRB or a blazar will allow VERITAS to make the most sensitive tests to date of Lorentz-invariance violation, especially for quadratic (~E2) and higher-order terms in the electromagnetic dispersion relation. 5.2 Cosmology: VHE observations of blazars, and possibly GRBs, are useful for cos-mological measurements. Their γ-ray spectra are modified by interactions with in-tergalactic radiation fields through pair-production (γγ to e+e-) and subsequent cas-cade processes, and thus contain imprints of the extragalactic background light (EBL) and the intergalactic magnetic field (IGMF).

The EBL is the combined flux of all extragalactic sources integrated over the entire history of the universe, and its calorimetric information carries unique infor-mation regarding the epochs of galaxy formation and the history of galaxy evolu-tion. Detailed measurements by VERITAS of a number of blazars at different red-shifts enable the first reliable determination of the density and spectrum of the EBL

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in the optical-IR band, which is also sensitive to the dark matter content of the uni -verse and its evolution. Since VERITAS has a catalog of 32 blazars extending to red-shifts of ~1, a multi-year observing program makes an EBL-measurement possible [88].

Currently there are only weak constraints on the IGMF and no direct measure-ments. The γ-ray beams from AGN / GRBs provide a measurement of the IGMF strength not accessible to other techniques. A measurement of the IGMF would have profound cosmological implications because it implies a primordial field pro-duced in the early universe. Even a good constraint on the IGMF has high value, and recent work [89,90] combining Fermi-LAT and VHE blazar measurements al-ready provide the first reliable lower bounds on the IGMF. Using multi-year blazar studies, VERITAS will use three different observables to constrain or determine the IGMF. 5.3 Black Holes: Active galactic nuclei (AGN) are believed to be powered by the ac-cretion of matter onto a super-massive (106-9 solar mass) black hole (SMBH). About 10% of all AGN have collimated, relativistic outflows of particles (jets), and blazars (the most numerous, identified source of VHE γ-rays) are a class of AGN where one jet is pointed directly towards Earth. The VHE γ-rays are believed to be created by these jets in a compact region near the SMBH event horizon. Thus VERITAS studies of AGN probe the innermost regions of these powerful particle accelerators, where the bulk of their luminosity is emitted, and are critical to understanding the process of astrophysical jet formation and evolution, the effect of the jet on the surrounding environment, as well as the process of matter accretion and magneto-hydrodynam-ics in the strong-gravity region near the central SMBH. Blazars are among the most variable objects in the universe, and the brightest and fastest variability is observed in the VHE band. During flaring episodes, it is possible for VERITAS to rapidly gener-ate unprecedented statistics, particularly at >TeV energies, which when combined with multi-wavelength data (radio, optical, X-ray and Fermi) will conclusively ad-dress issues in source modeling, the EBL, the IGMF, and the origin of ultra-high-en-ergy cosmic rays. Observing VHE flares is key for the program, but our goals can be accomplished without them, using deep exposures. Large flares are rare, so multi-ple years are needed to catch future events, and to acquire these deep data sets. In addition to detailed studies of a few sources for targeted scientific programs, we are amassing enough AGN detections that, for the first time, we will also be able per-form population studies. By systematically monitoring all known Northern VHE AGN for the next 4 years we will ensure the best-possible exposure, within reason, exists on all targets for these population studies, and will maximize the likelihood of catch-ing the key flares. These flares will be intensely observed.6. Science Results from Prior DOE Support

VERITAS has completed eight years of operations. The experiment is running well and is well-understood. Results from the VERITAS science programs include the detections of at least 55 cosmic sources of VHE γ-rays, including at least 22 not previously detected in the VHE band. More than half of these discoveries were ini-tially reported by SAO scientists due to their discovery in automated next-day and season-long analysis efforts the group maintained with DOE support. Figure 2 shows the public VERITAS catalog, which continues to steadily grow.

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Figure 2: VHE γ-ray sky seen by VERITAS (visible area in blue). The colored points represent different astrophysical classes. Sources in the Galactic Center and the Cygnus region were consolidated.

Numerous VERITAS results from the first six observation seasons have been published or submitted for publication, including 74 refereed journal articles. VERI-TAS results have appeared in academic literature such as the Astrophysical Journal, Nature, Science, Physical Review Letters, as well as in the mainstream media (e.g., National Geographic, New Scientist, Wired, and The USA Today). Approximately 55 other journal articles are in various stages of preparation. Many of these articles are joint publications with some combination of the Fermi-LAT, AGILE, MAGIC and HESS collaborations (gamma-rays), and a large fraction of these articles also con-tain data from major lower-energy observatories, including the Swift, Chandra, XMM, Suzaku and RXTE X-ray satellites. Since 2006, >40 graduate students have completed their PhD theses using VERITAS results, including 3 supervised by SAO. The VERITAS collaboration’s refereed journal publications are listed in the refer-ences [1-74]. While the entire collaboration contributed to the development of these 74 manuscripts, SAO scientists were the primary author of 7 (9%) [6,10,14,15,20,56, 69] and played a major role (e.g., provided analysis and / or sig-nificant text) in 15 (20%) [2,17,18,23,24,33,35,36,37,38,42,44,55,61,74]. By having led two of the four major SWGs for ~6 years, the SAO group also directly coordi-nated >50% of the Collaboration’s published output. Although no VERITAS result is possible without the efforts of the entire collaboration, it is hopefully clear that the SAO group is among the most productive. Four SAO-driven results are given below: • VERITAS discovery [14] of γ-ray emission from the starburst galaxy M 82: This new

type of VHE emitter firmly connects high levels of star formation activity to the ori-gin of cosmic rays. These data are a major component in solving the 100-year-old mystery of cosmic-ray origin, and provide key insights into the role of CRs in driv-ing large-scale galactic winds and in the effects of star formation on galaxy struc-ture. The SAO group led all aspects of this effort; the PI wrote the Nature article and the corresponding press releases.

• The 2010 [91] and 2013 [92] major VHE flares (factor of 10-50 flux increases) from the blazar Mkn 421. The first flare shows variations on ~1 minute time scales which challenge blazar emission models, and generate the strongest blazar-re-lated constraints on Lorentz-invariance violation to date. The latter flare triggered continuous measurements with NuStar, Fermi-LAT, Swift and numerous ground-

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based facilities and was reported by the BBC; the unprecedented follow-up efforts were initiated by the PI and enable definitive time-dependent modeling.

• A deep, multi-year observation of 1ES 0229+200 [56]: The VERITAS detection of VHE flux variability suggests that IGMF constraints derived from 1ES 0229+200, which are the strongest, need to be reassessed. The VHE spectrum shows com-pletion of the long-term plan exposure will enable the best EBL measurement in the mid- to far-IR band. The acquired simultaneous multi-wavelength data was modeled by SAO with a new technique. Rather than reporting one, degenerate model solution, we reported the range of acceptable parameters.

• VERITAS dwarf spheroidal galaxy limits [23,38]: These enable limits on the veloc-ity-weighted cross section and lifetime of dark matter (DM) particles versus parti-cle mass, and limits on any boost to the potential DM-related VHE flux from sub-structure in the DM halo. Results from the deep observation with VERITAS of Segue 1 [38] also strongly disfavor the DM interpretation of the ATIC [93] and PAMELA [94,95] anomalies in the cosmic-ray lepton spectrum.

Figure 3: VERITAS dark matter (DM) constraints from Segue 1 [38]; Left) Limits on the velocity-weighted DM-annihilation cross section vs. particle mass (with and without Sommerfeld boosting). The dark band is theoretical expectations. Center) Lower-limits on the DM decay lifetime vs. particle mass.

Right) Limits on the overall boost factor BF vs. the DM particle mass.7. Statement of Work

Since 1996, the PI has participated in 63% of the world’s current major VHE γ-ray astrophysics collaborations; he is thus is familiar with all the experimental tech-niques and a majority of the researchers in the field. He has extensive hand ’s on experience with VHE observatories, and his work is extensively published (>160 ref-ereed articles). He has given invited research talks at scientific meetings on five continents, and his collaboration as a visiting scientist was funded by several inter-national institutions. The PI frequently serves as a referee for academic journals and for multi-million dollar national / international funding proposals.

The PI’s research in VHE γ-ray astrophysics is broad-based, encompassing both galactic and extragalactic sources. However, he primarily focuses on observations of extragalactic VHE sources, especially dark matter (DM) dominated objects, Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) -- Nature’s most powerful and efficient particle accelerators, and starburst galaxies. A major focus of these programs is to explore and charac-terize the implications of the observational results beyond the physics of the sources themselves. In particular the PI leads efforts to address topics in funda-mental physics, indirect DM searches, cosmology, and the origin of cosmic rays. Naturally that the SAO group’s continued efforts will also focus on this science.

Dr. Benbow will continue to lead the SAO VHE γ-ray group, and will continue to direct the VERITAS Project Office and act as Project Scientist. The PI will attend all important VERITAS meetings, and serve on the VERITAS Executive Committee (VEC)

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and the Science Board (VSB). The VEC is the ultimate authority for making deci-sions within VERITAS. The VSB organizes the science program of VERITAS, and is responsible for the observing program and the scientific interactions of the collabo-ration with the outside world. Through the VSB, the PI will continue to develop the scientific program for VERITAS. The PI will focus his efforts on VERITAS ’ Dark Matter (7.1) and Blazar (7.2) programs. SAO’s Dr. Fortin and Dr. Pelassa will largely focus ensuring smooth operations of VERITAS and that the planned observing program is implemented. Dr. Fortin’s research primarily focuses on blazar topics, but he will also continue to supervise efforts exploiting Fermi-LAT data for VERITAS’ benefit. Dr. Pelassa will perform research with gamma-ray bursts. Through the successful im-plementation of the Blazar and Dark Matter / Astroparticle programs, the SAO scien-tists will ensure the VERITAS Long-term Science Plan’s goals in Dark Matter and Fun-damental physics are achieved. These scientists will supervise any SAO junior re-searchers to ensure these goals are met. All senior scientists will continue to per-form data analysis, author observation proposals and publications.

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7.1 Dark Matter (DM) Program: VERITAS will probe the DM particle mass and con-strain its annihilation cross section within an order of magnitude of generic predic-tions, and strongly constrain scenarios with Sommerfeld or astrophysical boosts (see Figure 3). Only a modest astrophysical boost is needed for DM detection, and VERITAS limits on generic DM models at high mass (>few TeV) will complement the LHC [87]. The Galactic Center (~30 h / yr) has the highest local concentration of DM. Our observations are very sensitive above a few TeV and improve on the deep HESS result focused on lower energies [62]. We will also observe the Virgo galaxy cluster (~85% DM) for 20 h / yr. While the SAO group will contribute to these stud-ies, it is now the lead U.S. group for studies of dwarf spheroidal galaxies (dSphs). These objects have extremely high concentrations of DM and no astrophysical back-grounds that may confuse the origin of a VHE signal. They are the best DM targets at VHE and VERITAS will acquire ~140 h of data annually on promising dSphs. This will include a focus on the four predicted to have the highest DM signal (i.e. astro-physical J-factor), as well as a survey of all nearby Northern dSphs to ensure a VERI-TAS legacy. The use of multiple sources will average over systematic uncertainties in the DM distribution and guard against systematic changes in our current beliefs regarding their individual DM content. A deeper “stacked” result will also be made, which could have fewer systematic issues than a single deep observation.. A stacked result was recently presented at the 2015 ICRC, using all data through mid-2013 and an “event weighting” technique [96]. This is shown in Figure 4. By 2019,

the dSph program to be supported by this proposal will result in an order of magni-tude improvement in the limits shown, which are the strongest from VHE telescopes to date. In addition, we will incorporate public Fermi-LAT data for this work to im-prove (another factor of >10) the limits at lower energies.Figure 4: Cross-section exclusion limits versus DM particle mass for two annihilation channels. The blue band indicate the systematic uncertainty as of July 2015. Further work will reduce this. The dashed line was prior limits from VERITAS published in 2012. The grey band represents theoretical expectations in

the case of thermally produced dark matter.7.1 The Blazar Observation Program: This program has strong implications for our goals in fundamental physics (i.e. Lorentz-invariance constraints and EBL/IGMF mea-surements), and one major flaring event could change our understanding of the Uni-verse. VERITAS will regularly monitor all known Northern VHE blazars to maximize

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the chance of successfully detecting any VHE flares, while simultaneously building deep exposures on these objects. Major progress largely requires the detection of flares, and any flares will immediately and intensely be followed-up upon with VERI-TAS and facilities covering the entire electromagnetic spectrum (to enable source modeling). Contemporaneous optical/UV, X-ray and MeV-GeV (Fermi-LAT) monitor-ing programs, simultaneous to VERITAS data taking, are also organized to assist in flare identification, and Target of Opportunity (ToO) programs ensure coverage of flaring events. To ensure a rapid response to any flares at any waveband, several automatic analysis/alert pipelines (e.g. for Fermi-LAT [97]) are maintained. The SAO group has lead responsibility for the blazar monitoring programs, automatic analy-sis/alert pipelines, and the Fermi-LAT-guided discovery effort to find new blazars useful for EBL/IGMF and axion-like particle (ALP) studies. 8. Junior Researcher’s Statement of Work

The full salaries of the senior SAO group members are covered by other sources. This funding request is primarily to support a post-doc to assist the senior SAO staff in the implementation of the group’s programs, particularly with data analysis. The PI notes that the VERITAS analyses all use custom C++-based soft-ware, integrated with CERN packages (e.g. ROOT, MINUIT) run on linux-based sys-tems, submitted to queue-based computing clusters, and are run over very large volume (multi-TB) data sets. All members of the SAO group, including the post-doc, are thus HEP data-analysis experts, with skills immediately transferable to any HEP experiment. Due to the SAO staff’s site-operations responsibilities but key role in the project, the post-doctoral support is critical, and the post-doc is given consider-able freedom in the program’s implementation. Much of the work focuses on regu-larly using / improving existing “machinery” for the staff’s key efforts, and has three areas of organization: •Acquiring the necessary data: The post-doc will prepare observation proposals for

VERITAS, and will help operate the experiment (e.g. take shifts) They will monitor the daily output of the data-quality-monitoring (DQM) software for VERITAS to en-sure there are no high-level data issues. Monitoring the quality of the data is a re-sponsibility of each group, the post-ensure the fundamental data quality for much of VERITAS’ indirect dark-matter detection program (i.e. those of the dSph pro-gram; ~15% of VERITAS’ annual yield) will be the post-doc’s responsibility and re-quires daily activities. The post-doc will ensure the required data are actually taken and they will assess the suitability of adding recently announced dSphs to the program and add those as appropriate (~12 were announced by DES & Pan-Starrs in 2015, of which 2 were added to the program). In the case of added dSphs, the post-doc will team with SAO astronomers, to make the requisite radial velocity measurements, using proprietary SAO facilities, to determine their DM content. The post-doc will also maintain and improve the existing automatic daily analysis pipelines for reducing public Fermi-LAT (MeV-GeV) data to alert VERITAS for flaring events in AGN. In addition, the post-doc will coordinate the optical ob-serving program of the SAO group using the proprietary FLWO 48” telescope, whose data are automatically reduced on a daily basis and provide flaring AGN alerts. The LAT / optical flaring alerts will trigger VERITAS observations, making Lorentz invariance violation (LIV) studies, and significantly stronger cosmology (EBL / IGMF) and “exotic-physics” (e.g. a search for ALPs) studies, possible. The post-doc will also maintain the program which automatically alerts VERITAS ob-servers to observe targets of interest simultaneously with X-ray satellites. These optical, X-ray and Fermi-LAT data provide comprehensive measurements for

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source modeling, improving the basis of any EBL / IGMF / LIV measurements. The post-doc will also maintain the VERITAS “automatic ToO” procedures, that provide real-time guidance to VERITAS observers on how to react to observed AGN flares.

•Reducing the good-quality data: The post-doc will focus on analyzing and publish-ing results from VERITAS observations of dSphs (the most DM dominated objects observed by VERITAS) and running the flaring AGN programs. Specifically, the post-doc will upgrade, maintain and run the next-day analyses which process all VERITAS data. This pipeline ensures that the data are reduced for all DM targets and AGN on immediate, next-morning and next-evening timescales, with ever im-proving levels of quality. These analyses are key for identifying new source phe-nomena (e.g. a dark-matter detection), as well as AGN flares (a majority of VERI-TAS flares are self-identified) that require follow-up. VERITAS runs a comprehen-sive survey program of prime dark-matter targets (dSphs) and a comprehensive monitoring program of all known VHE AGN to catch flares (while simultaneously building deep exposures) and so this next-day process is vital. It also serves as a data-quality monitor. The post-doc will also ensure that all dSphs for the indirect DM detection program, and exceptional AGN flares, are comprehensively annually reduced with publication-ready analyses. Data reduction for an ensemble of sources is complex and much of the work is spent understanding and reducing systematic errors (e.g. reducing complications from having a variable calorimeter — the atmosphere, or eliminating the effects of bright stars in the fields or varying local coordinates), and improving analysis methods (a factor of 2 in sensitivity can be gained). Fermi-LAT data will also be reduced for all dSphs targeted by VERITAS for use in a combined “event weighing” analysis discussed in [96].

• Interpreting and presenting the data: The post-doc will take the upper limits (or fluxes) from the VERITAS dark matter observations and use them to generate limits (or measurements) on the DM cross section for various channels, decay life-times, and boost factors. The effort will include stacking the results from all VERI-TAS dSph observations. The most recent limits use all VERITAS data through 2013 and this work will improve our limits by an order of magnitude. By having publi-cation ready analyses prepared at the end of every season for the dSphs, a final paper on this topic could be released at the conclusion of any season. The focus of the AGN data work is primarily to generate the flare alerts and comprehensive multi-wavelength data sets. The PI will use these for generating limits / measure-ments on the EBL density (which constrains populations of exotic particles in the early universe), the IGMF, the existence of ALPs, and the energy scale of potential LIV, as appropriate. Both the dSph and AGN work will leverage Fermi-LAT results. The SAO group has primary responsibility for these efforts (dSphs and AGN alerts). The post-doc will present scientific work initially at internal meetings, then to the general community, and eventually publish journal articles.

Unless further funding is secured, VERITAS operations could conclude in late 2017. In this scenario, the post-doc would use the latter 1.3 years of this proposal to mine the data, update the techniques and ultimately publish the results. If funding is secured to operate VERITAS until July 2019, the techniques / systematic studies will be prepared in parallel and will be mature enough that the analysis should be “push-button” by 2019. Thus the papers should be “ready-to-go”, with minor “push-button” updates, by the May 2019 close of this project. It is not intended that this is a request for open-ended support, rather a realistic assessment of the labor needed to produce the legacy Dark Matter results from the VERITAS project operations that

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the DOE has already funded. Without this support, these results may not be gener-ated.9. Concluding Remarks

The SAO VHE γ-ray group has long been a leader in the field of particle astro-physics, and has received DOE funding since 1982. In many senses the field of TeV γ-ray astronomy was founded through the efforts of the SAO group, and it is not un-reasonable to say the field might not exist were it not for long-standing DOE sup-port. We are extremely grateful for this past support. We believe we have pro-duced a particularly large number of significant results in both fundamental physics and astrophysics to reward DOE for its investment, and hope we have motivated fu-ture support. Continued DOE support of the SAO group has guaranteed scientific return in a core area of DOE research (Dark Matter) and is fundamental to the con-tinued success of VERITAS. Given the recent dramatic increase in the numbers and types of astrophysical VHE γ-ray sources, it is a golden age for the field and by ex-tension the science to be drawn from it. VHE γ-ray sources are Nature’s most pow-erful particle accelerators (i.e. naturally occurring Pevatrons). Results from their VHE γ-ray observation provides key information regarding physics topics such as the nature and distribution of dark matter, large scale neutrino production, the origin of cosmic rays, cosmology (the EBL density and IGMF strength) and potential Lorentz-invariance violation. Indirect dark-matter detection via cosmic γ-rays is a major fo-cus of VERITAS, and the parameter space probed by VERITAS, with studies led by the SAO group, strongly complements that of direct-detection techniques and the LHC [87]. As such the results from cosmic γ-rays have clear applicability to the DOE HEP program’s mission to “explore and to discover the laws of nature as they apply to the basic constituents of matter, and the forces between them.” Many of the re-searchers trained in VERITAS go on to have careers (academic and industry) in both particle and nuclear physics, because the techniques and methodology of this field are identical to those used in these fields. Finally, with the support from this pro-posal, the PI is looking forward to the opportunity to produce the legacy results for the decades-long DOE research program in VHE γ-ray astrophysics.

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Appendix 1: Biographical SketchDr. Wystan Benbow

60 Garden St, MS-20 Phone: (+1) 617-496-7597Cambridge, MA 02138 Fax: (+1) 617-495-7467 USA e-mail: wbenbow@cfa.harvard.edu

Nationality: USAEducation:

Ph.D., Physics, University of California, Santa Cruz, 2002Thesis: A Study of TeV Emission From the Crab Nebula and Selected AGN Using the Milagro Gamma-Ray Observatory

M.S., Physics, University of California, Santa Cruz, 1998B.S., Physics & Astronomy, with Distinction, University of Iowa, 1996

Awards & Fellowships:Observatoire de Paris-Meudon Fellow, 2008 & 2011Max Planck fellowship to support EU-US scientific collaboration, 2002-2007IGPP Fellow, 2001-2002 Chancellor's Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award, 2000GAANN Fellow, 1998-1999University of California Regents' Fellow, 1996-1997James Van Allen Award, 1996Phi Beta Kappa, 1996

Professional Experience:2007-present: Astrophysicist / Federal Scientist (VERITAS & CTA

Collaborations)GS-14 (2014 - present); GS-13 (2007-2013)Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, MA, USA

2002-2007: Visiting Scientist (H.E.S.S. Collaboration)Max Planck Institut für Kernphysik, Heidelberg, Germany

1996-2002: Research Assistant (Milagro Collaboration)Santa Cruz Institute for Particle PhysicsUniversity of California, Santa Cruz, CA, USA

1996-2000: Teaching AssistantUniversity of California, Santa Cruz, CA, USA

1997-1998: Learning Instructional AssistantCabrillo Community College, Santa Cruz, CA, USA

Leadership:• VERITAS Project Scientist & PI of Site Operations: 7/2008 to present• PI of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory VERITAS Group: 7/2008 to present• Principal Investigator of the SAO CTA Group: 10/2010 to present• Chair of the VERITAS Blazar Science Working Group: 6/2009 to 9/2014• Graduated Smithsonian’s Palmer Leadership Development Program in 12/2012

Major Committees:

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• Local Organizing Committee, 2004 International Gamma-ray Symposium (Heidelberg)

• H.E.S.S. Observation Committee: 4/2006 to 11/2007• VERITAS Time Allocation Committee: 7/2008 to 7/2010• VERITAS Science Board: 1/2008 to present• VERITAS Executive Committee: 7/2008 to present• VERITAS Building Construction Committee: Building delivered in 9/2011• CTA Speakers and Publications Committee: 10/2012 to present• CTA Consortium Board: 9/2010 to present• Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory Library Committee: 10/2012 to

present• Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory Hiring Committees: Several• PhD Committees: Lucie Gerard (APC, 2010)

Public Presentations: http://veritas.sao.arizona.edu/~benbow/benbow_presentations.pdf

• Statistics as of July 9, 2015• Invited talks: 22 long (~1 hr) & 7 intermediate (~30 min)• Contributed Talks: 4 intermediate (~30 min) & 15 short (~15 min); Posters: 10

• Five most-recent invited talks:• Gamma-ray Blazar Workshop, Palo Alto, CA, USA, 3/2015• AZ Senior Academy Public Lecture, Tucson, AZ, USA, 10/2014• Smithsonian Winter Lectures, Green Valley, AZ, USA, 3/2014• TeV Jets: Astrophysical Particle Acceleration, Santa Fe, NM, USA; 8/2013• 33rd ICRC Highlight Talk, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; 7/2013

Publications: http://veritas.sao.arizona.edu/~benbow/benbow_publications.pdf• Hirsch index = 60; Statistics as of July 9, 2015• 160 articles in refereed journals (11 as primary author)• 46 conference proceedings (18 as primary author)• 5 miscellaneous publications (4 as primary author)

• Five relevant articles:• E. Aliu et al., “VERITAS deep observations of the dwarf spheroidal galaxy Segue 1”,

Physical Review D, 85, 062001, 2012 • V. Acciari et al., “A connection between star formation activity and cosmic

rays in the starburst galaxy M 82”, Nature, 462, 770, 2009• F. Aharonian et al., “Limits on an Energy Dependence of the Speed of

Light from a Flare of the Active Galaxy PKS 2155-304”, Physical Review Letters, 101, 170402, 2008

• F. Aharonian et al., “The energy spectrum of cosmic-ray electrons at TeV energies”. Physical Review Letters, 101, 1104, 2008

• F. Aharonian et al., “A low level of extragalactic background light as revealed by γ-rays from blazars”, Nature, 440, 1018, 2006

Conflicts of interest:• Collaborators / Co-editors in past 48 months:

• Member of VERITAS Collaboration (http://veritas.sao.arizona.edu/) & the CTA Collaboration (http://www.cta-observatory.org/) - all members are conflicts of interest

• Co-authored articles, but no likely conflicts of interest, with:• Milagro Collaboration: http://umdgrb.umd.edu/cosmic/milagro.html• HESS Collaboration: http://www.mpi-hd.mpg.de/hfm/HESS/

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• MAGIC collaboration: https://wwwmagic.mpp.mpg.de/• Fermi-LAT collaboration: http://www-glast.stanford.edu/• AGILE collaboration: http://agile.rm.iasf.cnr.it/

•Graduate Advisor (1996-2002): David Williams, University of California, Santa Cruz

•Post-doctoral Advisor (2002-2007): Werner Hofmann, MPI for Nuclear Physics in Heidelberg, Germany

•Prior PhD students: Mark Theiling (now in industry, CA), Victor Acciari (now in industry; Italy)

•Current PhD students: None•Prior post-docs: Nicola Galante (now in industry, CA), Jeremy Perkins (now at

NASA), Jonathan Kildea (now in industry; Canada), Martin Schroedter (now a teacher, WA), Matteo Cerruti (now at LPNHE; France) & Anna Barnacka (now at Harvard)

•Current post-docs: None

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Appendix 3: Current & Pending Support

Dr. Benbow is a Federal Scientist where 100% of his salary and benefits are re-ceived from the Federal Government. Internal SAO support of VERITAS site opera-tions is not grant-based.

Dr. Benbow is named as PI on the following grants and proposals:

************************************************************************CurrentThe Application of Two Dimensional Imaging to Very-High-Energy Gamma-Ray As-tronomyDOE #DE-FG02-91ER40635;$1,425,000 5/1/13 – 4/30/16 (Renewal)Project Abstract: This is the DOE contribution to VERITAS site-operations budget. The overall budget supports the salaries of VERITAS Project Office personnel, their project-related travel, project utilities, services, materials and equipment required for VERITAS operations, and shipping expenses. Support of VERITAS operations is the PI’s primary responsibility and the PI spends 100% of his effort on VERITAS-re-lated projects.************************************************************************CurrentOperations of VERITAS in the Epoch 2013 to 2016NSF$1,425,000 10/1/13 – 9/30/16Project Abstract: This is the NSF contribution to VERITAS site-operations budget. The overall budget supports the salaries of VERITAS Project Office personnel, their project-related travel, project utilities, services, materials and equipment required for VERITAS operations, and shipping expenses. Support of VERITAS operations is the PI’s primary responsibility and the PI spends 100% of his effort on VERITAS-re-lated projects.************************************************************************CurrentFermi-VERITAS Joint Observations of Radio GalaxiesNASA – Fermi Guest Investigator Cycle 4$191,965 1/19/11 – 1/18/16Project Abstract: This project provides multi-year support for a post-doctoral re-searcher to perform joint Fermi-VERITAS studies of galaxies. The effort involves re-ducing now existing VERITAS and Fermi data and modeling the results. The PI ad-ministers this grant and supervised the post-doc, who was also partially supported by DOE funds. Only $435 remains on this grant. The PI spends 100% of his effort on VERITAS-related projects.************************************************************************CurrentCollaborative Research: MRI Consortium: Development of a Novel Telescope for Very High-Energy Gamma-Ray Astrophysics. NSF - UCLA Sub-award to SAO

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$175,000 9/15/12 – 7/31/16Project Abstract: This sub-award pays for technician, consulting and foundation-re-lated construction services contracted by SAO project managers to erect a ~10-m Cherenkov telescope at the Whipple Observatory. This telescope will potentially be integrated with VERITAS when fully operational. The PI administers this grant, su-pervises the project managers, and performs high-level coordination of the work at the VERITAS site. The PI spends 100% of his effort on VERITAS-related projects.************************************************************************Pending:Triggered Observations of a New VHE Gamma-Ray BlazarNASA - XMM Guest Investigator AO 14$51,855 10/1/15 - 9/30/16

Project Abstract: This award, which is contingent upon a rare astrophysical trigger condition be-ing met, would support a post-doctoral researcher for ~1-year to analyze XMM, VERITAS, Swift, Fermi-LAT and other multi-wavelength data, and model these data to understand the astrophys-ical processes. The trigger condition is a bright flare of a new VHE gamma-ray blazar, and will initiate target-of-opportunity observations with XMM, VERITAS, Swift and other facilities. The PI will supervise this post-doc and administer this grant. The PI spends 100% of his effort on VER-ITAS-related projects.************************************************************************

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Appendix 4: Bibliography & References Cited(1) V. Acciari et al.,”Observation of gamma-ray emission from the galaxy M87

above 250 GeV with VERITAS”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 679, 379, 2008 (2) V. Acciari et al.,”VERITAS Observations of the Gamma-ray Binary LS I +61 303”,

Astrophysical Journal Letters, 679, 1427, 2008(3) V. Acciari et al., “VERITAS Discovery of >200 GeV Gamma-ray Emission from the

Intermediate-frequency-peaked BL Lac Object W Comae”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 684, L73, 2008

(4) V. Acciari et al., “Discovery of Very High-Energy Gamma-Ray Radiation from the BL Lac 1ES 0806+524”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 690, L126, 2009

(5) I. Donnarumma et al., “The June 2008 Flare of Markarian 421 from Optical to TeV Energies”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 691, L13, 2009

(6) V. Acciari et al., “VERITAS Observations of a Very High Energy Gamma-ray Flare from the Blazar 3C 66A”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 693, L104, 2009

(7) V. Acciari et al., “VERITAS Observations of the BL Lac Object 1ES 1218+304”, Astrophysical Journal, 695, 1370, 2009

(8) V. Acciari et al., “Evidence for long-term Gamma-ray and X-ray variability from the unidentified TeV source HESS J0632+057”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 698, L94, 2009

(9) V. Acciari et al., “Observation of Extended VHE Emission from the Supernova Remnant IC 443 with VERITAS”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 698, L133, 2009

(10) V. Acciari et al., “Multiwavelength Observations of LS I +61° 303 with VERITAS, Swift and RXTE”, Astrophysical Journal, 700, 1034, 2009

(11) V. Acciari et al., “Radio imaging of the very-high-energy gamma-ray emission region in the central engine of a radio galaxy”, Science, 325, 444, 2009

(12) V. Acciari et al., “Simultaneous Multiwavelength Observations of Markarian 421 During Outburst”, Astrophysical Journal, 703, 169, 2009

(13) V. Acciari et al., “Detection of Extended VHE Gamma Ray Emission from G106.3+2.7 with VERITAS”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 703, L6, 2009

(14) V. Acciari et al., “A connection between star formation activity and cosmic rays in the starburst galaxy M 82”, Nature, 462, 770, 2009

(15) V. Acciari et al., “VERITAS Upper Limit on the VHE Emission from the Radio Galaxy NGC 1275”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 706, L275, 2009

(16) V. Acciari et al., “Multiwavelength observations of a TeV-Flare from W Com”, Astrophysical Journal, 707, 612, 2009

(17) V. Acciari et al., “Discovery of very high energy gamma rays from PKS 1424+240 and multiwavelength constraints on its redshift”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 708, L100, 2010

(18) V. Acciari et al., “Discovery of Variability in the Very High Energy Gamma-Ray Emission of 1ES 1218+304 with VERITAS”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 709, L163, 2010

(19) V. Acciari et al., “Observations of the shell-type SNR Cassiopeia A at TeV energies with VERITAS”, Astrophysical Journal, 714, 163, 2010

(20) V. Acciari et al., “The Discovery of γ-ray emission from the Blazar RGB J0710+591”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 715, L49, 2010

(21) V. Acciari et al., “VERITAS 2008 - 2009 monitoring of the variable gamma-ray source M87”, Astrophysical Journal, 716, 819, 2010

(22) V. Acciari et al., “Discovery of VHE Gamma-ray Emission from the SNR G54.1+0.3”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 719, L69, 2010

(23) V. Acciari et al., “VERITAS Search for VHE Gamma-ray Emission from Dwarf Spheroidal Galaxies”, Astrophysical Journal, 720, 1174, 2010

(24) A. Abdo et al., “Multi-wavelength Observations of Flaring Gamma-ray Blazar 3C 66A in October 2008”, Astrophysical Journal, 726, 43, 2011

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(25) A. Abdo et al., “Insights Into the High-energy γ-ray Emission of Markarian 501 from Extensive Multifrequency Observations in the Fermi Era”, Astrophysical Journal, 727, 129, 2011

(26) V. Acciari et al., “Spectral Energy Distribution of Markarian 501: Quiescent State vs. Extreme Outburst”, Astrophysical Journal, 729, 2, 2011

(27) V. Acciari et al., “Discovery of TeV Gamma-ray Emission From Tycho's Supernova Remnant”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 730, L20, 2011

(28) V. Acciari et al., “Gamma-ray observations of the Be/pulsar binary 1A0535+262 during a giant X-ray outburst”, Astrophysical Journal, 733, 96, 2011

(29) E. Aliu et al., “VERITAS Observations of the Unusual Extragalactic Transient Swift J164449.3+573451”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 738, L30, 2011

(30) V. Acciari et al., “VERITAS Observations of the TeV Binary LSI +61 303 during 2008-2010”, Astrophysical Journal, 738, 3, 2011

(31) V. Acciari et al., “TeV and Multi-wavelength Observations of Mrk 421 in 2006-2008”, Astrophysical Journal, 738, 25, 2011

(32) V. Acciari et al., “Multiwavelength Observations of the VHE Blazar 1ES 2344+514”, Astrophysical Journal, 738, 169, 2011

(33) E. Aliu et al., “Detection of Pulsed Gamma Rays Above 100 GeV from the Crab Pulsar”, Science, 334, 69, 2011

(34) E. Aliu et al., “Multiwavelength Observations of the Previously Unidentified Blazar RXJ0648.7+1516”, Astrophysical Journal, 742, 127, 2011

(35) V. Acciari et al., “VERITAS Observations of Gamma-ray Bursts Detected by Swift”, Astrophysical Journal, 743, 62, 2011

(36) A. Abramowski et al., “The 2010 VHE Flare & 10 Years of Multi-Wavelength Observations of M87” Astrophysical Journal, 746, 151, 2012

(37) E. Aliu et al., “VERITAS observations of day-scale flaring of M87 in April 2010”, Astrophysical Journal, 746, 141, 2012

(38) E. Aliu et al., “VERITAS deep observations of the dwarf spheroidal galaxy Segue 1”, Physical Review D, 85, 062001, 2012

(39) E. Aliu et al., “ Discovery of High-energy and Very High Energy γ-Ray Emission from the Blazar RBS 0413” Astrophysical Journal, 750, 94, 2012

(40) E. Aliu et al., “VERITAS Observations of the Nova in V407 Cygni”, Astrophysical Journal, 754, 77, 2012

(41) E. Aliu et al., “ Multiwavelength Observations of the AGN 1ES 0414+009 with VERITAS, Fermi-LAT, Swift-XRT, and MDM”, Astrophysical Journal, 755, 118, 2012

(42) T. Arlen et al., “Constraints on Cosmic Rays Magnetic Fields and Dark Matter from Gamma-ray Observations of the Coma Cluster of Galaxies with VERITAS and Fermi”, Astrophysical Journal, 757, 123, 2012

(43) E. Aliu et al., “VERITAS Observations of Six Bright Hard-Spectrum Fermi-LAT Blazars”, Astrophysical Journal, 759, 102, 2012

(44) E. Aliu et al., “Search for a correlation between very-high-energy gamma rays and giant radio pulses in the Crab pulsar”, Astrophysical Journal, 760, 136, 2012

(45) T. Arlen et al., “Rapid TeV Gamma-ray Flaring of BL Lacertae”, Astrophysical Journal, 762, 92, 2013

(46) E. Aliu et al., “Discovery of TeV Gamma-ray Emission from CTA 1 by VERITAS”, Astrophysical Journal, 764, 38, 2013

(47) E. Aliu et al., “Discovery of TeV Gamma-ray Emission Toward Supernova Remnant SNR G78.2+2.1”, Astrophysical Journal, 770, 93, 2013

(48) E. Aliu et al., “Multiwavelength Observations and Modelling of 1ES 1959+650”, Astrophysical Journal, 775, 3, 2013

(49) S. Archambault et al., “Discovery of a New TeV Gamma-ray Source: VER J0521+211”,

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Astrophysical Journal, 776, 69, 2013(50) E. Aliu et al., “Multiwavelength Observations of The TeV Binary LS I +61 303 with

VERITAS, Fermi-LAT and Swift-XRT During a TeV Outburst”, Astrophysical Journal, 779, 88, 2014

(51) E. Aliu et al., “Long term observations of B2 1215+30 with VERITAS”, Astrophysical Journal, 779, 92, 2013

(52) S. Archambault et al., “VERITAS Observations of the Microquasar Cygnus X-3”, Astrophysical Journal, 779, 150, 2013

(53) E. Aliu et al., “Long-term TeV and X-ray observations of the Gamma-ray Binary HESS J0632+057”, Astrophysical Journal, 780, 168, 2014

(54) E. Aliu et al., “A search for enhanced very-high-energy gamma-ray emission from the March 2013 Crab Nebula flare”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 781, L11, 2014

(55) V. Acciari et al., “Observation of Markarian 421 in TeV gamma rays over a 14-year time span”, Astroparticle Physics, 54, 1, 2014

(56) E. Aliu et al., “A Three-Year Multi-Wavelength Study of the Very High Energy gamma-ray Blazar 1ES 0229+200”, Astrophysical Journal, 782, 13, 2014

(57) E. Aliu et al., “Observations of the unidentified gamma-ray source TeV J2032+4130 by VERITAS”, Astrophysical Journal, 783, 16, 2014

(58) S. Archambault et al., “Deep Broadband Observations of the Distant Gamma-ray Blazar PKS 1424+240”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 785, L16, 2014

(59) E. Aliu et al., “Investigating the TeV Morphology of MGRO J1908+06 with VERITAS”, Astrophysical Journal, 787, 166, 2014

(60) E. Aliu et al., “Spatially Resolving the Very High Energy Emission From MGRO J2019+37 with VERITAS”, Astrophysical Journal, 788, 78, 2014

(61) S. Archambault et al., “Test of Models of the Cosmic Infrared Background with Multi-wavelength Observations of the Blazar 1ES 1218+30.4 in 2009”, Astrophysical Journal, 788, 158, 2014

(62) A. Archer et al., “Very-high Energy Observations of the Galactic Center Region by VERITAS in 2010–2012 ”, Astrophysical Journal, 790, 149, 2014

(63) E. Aliu et al., ”Constraints on Very High Energy Emission from GRB130427A”, Astrophysical Journal Letters, 795, L3, 2014

(64) E. Aliu et al., ”Investigating Broadband Variability of the TeV Blazar 1ES1959+650”, Astrophysical Journal, 797, 89, 2014

(65) E. Aliu et al., ”VERITAS Observations of the BL Lac Object PG 1553+113”, Astrophysical Journal, 799, 7, 2015

(66) F.D. Ammando et al., “The most powerful flaring activity from the NLSy1 PMNJ0948+0022”, Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 446, 2456, 2015

(67) E. Aliu et al., “A Search for Pulsations from Geminga Above 100 GeV with VERITAS”, Astrophysical Journal, 800, 61,2015

(68) J. Aleksic et al., “Multiwavelength Observations of Mrk 501 in 2008”, Astronomy & Astrophysics, 573, 50, 2015

(69) S. Archambault et al., “VERITAS Detection of γ-ray Flaring Activity from the BL Lac Object 1ES 1727+502 During Bright Moonlight Observations”, Astrophysical Journal, 808, 110, 2015

(70) J. Aleksic et al., “Unprecedented Study of the Broadband Emission of Mrk 421 during Flaring Activity in March 2010”, Astronomy & Astrophysics, in press, 2015

(71) J. Aleksic et al., “The 2009 multiwavelength campaign on Mrk 421: Variability and correlation studies”, Astronomy & Astrophysics, in press, 2015

(72) S. Archambault et al., “Discovery of Very High Energy Gamma Rays from 1ES 1440+122”, Astrophysical Journal, submitted, 2015

(73) A. Furniss et al., “First NuSTAR Observations of Mrk 501 within a Radio to TeV Multi-

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http://www.ihep.ac.cn/english/conference/icrc2011/paper/proc/v9/v9_1059.pdf(77) N. Park, Proceedings of the 34th ICRC (The Hague), 2015l arXiv:1508.07070(78) D. Kieda, Proceedings of the 33rd ICRC (Rio de Janeiro), 2011; arXiv:1308.4849(79) Y. Becherini et al., Astroparticle Physics, 34, 858, 2011(80) Online TevCat Catalog: http://tevcat.uchicago.edu(81) T. DeYoung, Modern Physics Letters, 24, 1543, 2009(82) P. Abreu et al., Proceedings of the 32nd ICRC (Beijing), 2011(83) W.B. Atwood et al. 2009, Astrophysical Journal, 697, 1071, 2009(84) F.A. Harrison et al., Proceedings of the SPIE, 7732, 2010(85) T. Takahashi et al., Proceedings of the SPIE, 7732, 2010(86) Y. Becherini et al., AIP Conf. Proc. 1505, 741 (2012); http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4772366(87) D. Bauer et al., Report prepared for the Community Summer Study (Snowmass) 2013, on

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Appendix 5: Facilities & Other Resources

The SAO research group that will be supported by this grant is based out of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics located at Harvard University in Cam-bridge, MA. With nearly 1000 members, this facility is one of the world ’s largest as-trophysics centers. Accordingly it provides a rich atmosphere for scientific interac-tion and all of the services / support / credibility one expects from a major academic facility. The SAO group also has offices and related academic services at the Uni-versity of Arizona, and at the F.L. Whipple Observatory (FLWO), for use when the members of the SAO group are visiting the VERITAS site. The site-operations fo-cused members of the group are based at FLWO. As the managing organization for the VERITAS project, the SAO group clearly has full access to the VERITAS tele-scopes and the project’s assorted data / software / computing / infrastructure. In addition the SAO group has access to all SAO telescopes, which include a 48 ” robotic optical telescope and the 6.5-meter diameter MMT; both are used regularly by the group. The VERITAS collaboration is committed to operating the experiment until July 2019. As VERITAS site-operations are funded through 2016, and Project Office cash-flow projections show operations are possible until July 2017, there should be no issues preventing the SAO group from acquiring the necessary VERITAS data. Fu-ture VERITAS site-operations funds will be applied for starting in Fall 2015.

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Appendix 6: Equipment

The SAO group also operates / maintains a moderate-sized cluster of 30 com-puting nodes with >40 TB of disk space which is sufficient for nearly all the group ’s analysis needs. The cluster can be easily expanded and the disk-space increased, should the group need more dedicated computing. The difficult-to-replace compo-nents (e.g. codes, manuscripts) of each members research on this cluster are auto-matically and “immediately” backed up. Each group member also has a fully-equipped laptop for remote connections to this cluster, as well as for general com-puter-related needs (e.g. Powerpoint). These laptops dock to ergonomic worksta-tions at Harvard / FLWO, with automatic hourly back-up systems, for normal day-to-day use. In addition, the SAO group has full access to a Smithsonian-maintained cluster of >2500 nodes located in Herndon, VA, for projects where exceptional amounts of parallel computing are required. All VERITAS data are stored redun-dantly on a computing cluster at UCLA, where they can be downloaded at any time by the SAO group.

In addition, the group members have access to all the VERITAS equipment at FLWO, as well as electronics labs and engineering facilities at SAO. These include fully-tooled machine shops and heavy machinery, all of which would be operated by existing trained personnel, should the group wish to design hardware for use in VERITAS to carry out the goals of their research.

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Appendix 8: Data Management Plan

This research proposed here will largely make use of data generated by the VERITAS project. Therefore it will foliow the protocols discussed in the DOE-ap-proved VERITAS Data Management Plan  (http://veritas.sao.arizona.edu/~benbow/Data_Management/VERITAS_Summary_DMP_DOE.pdf). The DOE approval of this plan was communicated by Eric Linder of the Department of Energy on June 30, 2015. This data management plan addresses types of data, archive plans, and preservation of access. It discusses data and metadata standards, policies for data access and sharing, and policies and provisions for data re-use and re-distribution. This data management plan fully follows SC Statement on Digital Data Manage-ment. Since this research program is carried out under the rules of the VERITAS col-laboration, it will follow the rules / guidelines of the VERITAS data management plan.

To ensure this document is self-contained, some aspects of this plan are briefly summarized here. This project will make use of VERITAS data, logbooks and soft-ware. All software, data, logbooks, as well as other materials generated for this project will be stored on a large raid-array system (the VERITAS archive, funded via other awards) and backed up on redundant systems. Indeed, all VERITAS data, soft-ware, documentation, etc. are easily located and accessible to all VERITAS mem-bers. All results generated from the research must be cross-checked by a com-pletely independent analysis before publication to prevent both error and fraud. We will disseminate the results of our work through appropriate peer-reviewed jour-nals, technical reports and conference presentations. All data files, software, simu-lations, response functions, custom algorithms, etc used for any publication are sent to the chair of the VERITAS publication committee for permanent preservation, so that any result can be independently reproduced / validated at any point in the fu-ture. All high-level data products (e.g. sky maps, spectra, light curves) will be made public immediately after their related publication via the VERITAS web site. The published figures will be available for easy download in standard publishing (.eps) or bitmap (.png) formats. The sky maps will also be made available in “FITS” format for astronomers, and the numerical data from the plots will minimally be provided in ASCII format for ease of use by other scientists. All VERITAS journal publications will also be posted to the academic pre-print servers (subject to any potential copyright constraints). In addition, a short description of each paper is provided on the VERI-TAS website, as well as the updated contact information for the relevant author. The lower-level VERITAS data is too complex / large-volume to make usefully avail-able, and we do not expect such requests, however requests for such data will be evaluated on a cost-appropriateness / collaboration-hardship basis.

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