RIKEN Center for Advanced Photonics Cosmic Neutron and Photon Frontier Reserch Unit
Unit Leader: Teruaki Enoto (Ph.D.)
Research Summary
The Cosmic Neutron and Photon Frontier Science Research Unit aims to establish "Cislunar Science" using cosmic radiation detection, beginning with lunar resource exploration. A primary focus is the non-contact mapping of lunar water using galactic cosmic rays. Neutrons generated by cosmic ray impacts lose energy via scattering with subsurface hydrogen. Leveraging this process, our compact "MoMoTarO" monitor precisely measures lunar moisture and elemental composition. By expanding these space-based observations, we seek to solve the neutron lifetime puzzle and contribute to gravitational wave cosmology through gamma-ray burst observations, transforming cislunar space into a new frontier for scientific discovery.
Main Research Fields
- Mathematical & Physical Sciences
Related Research Fields
- Engineering
- Space Science
- Multidisciplinary
- Geosciences
Keywords
- Cislunar Science
- Lunar Resource Exploration
- Space Neutrons
- Space Photons
- Radiation Science
Selected Publications
Papers with an asterisk(*) are based on research conducted outside of RIKEN.
- 1.
*Tamagawa, T., Enoto, T., Kitaguchi, T., Kitaguchi, T., Iwakiri, W., Kato, Y., Numazawa, M., Mihara, T., Takeda, T., Ota, N., Watanabe, S., Aoyama, A., Iwata, S., Takahashi, T., Yamasaki, K., Hu, C. P., Takahashi, H., Yoshida, Y., Sato, H., Hayashi, S., Zhou, Y., Uchiyama, K., Jujo, A., Odaka, H., Tamba, T., and Taniguchi, K.:
"NinjaSat: Astronomical X-ray CubeSat observa- tory"
PASJ 77, 466 (2025) - 2.
*Kusano H., Nagaoka H., Enoto T., Yamashita, N., Karouji, Y, Hoshino, T., Ueno, M., and Hareyama, M.:
"Sensitivity of leakage neutrons to the abundance and depth distribution of lunar subsurface water"
Planet. Space. Sci. 251, 105968 (2024) - 3.
*Hu C.-P., Narita T., Enoto T., Younes, G., Wadiasingh, Z., Baring, G. M., Ho, C. G. W., Guillot, S., Ray, S.P., Guver, T., Rajwade, K., Arzoumanian, Z., Kouveliotou, C., Harding, K. A., and Gendreau, C. K.:
"Rapid spin changes around a magnetar fast radio burst"
Nature, 626, 500 (2024) - 4.
*Enoto T., Terasawa T., Kisaka S., Hu, C. P., Guillot, S., Lewandowska, N., Malacaria, C., Ray, S. Paul., Ho, C. G. W., and Tanaka, J. S.:
"Enhanced x-ray emission coinciding with giant radio pulses from the Crab Pulsar"
Science, 372, 187 (2021) - 5.
*Enoto T., Wada Y., Furuta Y., Nakazawa, K., Yuasa, T., Okuda, K., Makishima, K., Sato, M., Sato, Y., Nakano, T., Umemoto, D., and Tsuchiya, H.:
"Photonuclear reactions triggered by lightning discharge"
Nature, 551, 481 (2017)
Lab Members
Principal investigator
- Teruaki Enoto
- Unit Leader
Contact Information
2-1 Hirosawa,
Wako, Saitama
351-0198, Japan
Email: teruaki.enoto@riken.jp