Observation of the Earth's Interior with Muons

Abstract

High energy muons originating from cosmic rays have strong penetrative power and this trait has been utilized extensively to observe the Earth's interior in the last decade such as subsurface volcanoes, faults and caves. Observations of volcanoes in particular have visualized the shapes and positions of magma, and have shown that this technique is applicable to aid in the prediction of eruption sequences. In this paper, the principle and method to view the interiors of geological structures inside the Earth with muons will be reviewed along with recent achievements.