The long-term variation of the cosmic radiation
The variation in the cosmic-ray intensity recorded by neutron monitors from 1958 to 1965 has been investigated to deduce the form of the solar modulation of the cosmic radiation. The observed changes in the intensity at the neutron monitor stations, averaged over quarter-year periods, were compared with changes calculated using modulation functions depending upon energy, rigidity, and velocity × rigidity. These calculations were based upon the revised differential response functions deduced by Lockwood and Webber (1967). The variance between the observed and calculated changes in the neutron monitor intensities at different stations was minimized to determine the best form of the solar modulation function. We find that the change of the primary cosmic radiation, deduced from the change in the neutron monitor intensity as well as from direct measurements of the primary flux, can be described by a modulation of the form exp(–K/P) in the rigidity range 0.5 < P < 50 GV. The change between 1959 and 1965 can be fitted with K = 1.94 ± 0.09 and between 1963 and 1965 with K = 0.36 ± 0.05.