The variations of cosmic rays in the heliosphere according to the results of an investigation of extraterrestrial matter

Results are presented of an investigation of the cosmogenic isotope radioactivity in chondrites with various orbital lengths and various inclinations to the ecliptic plane which fell during the 19th anad 20th solar cycles and in lunar specimens in order to study the spatial and temporal variations of the galactic and solar cosmic rays in the Solar system. The radial and transverse gradients of the galactic cosmic rays at the heliocentric distances of 1-4 AU at the heliolatitudes from 23 degrees S to 16 degrees N are determined. It is shown that the modulation region of the galactic cosmic rays in the heliosphere is compressed in the meridional plane such that, although the dynamical boundary between the solar wind and the interstellar gas lies at distances greater than 50 AU, the orbits of meteorites with large inclinations can exceed the limits of the modulation region at close (1.5-3 AU) distances from the Sun. The average values of the intensity gradients of the galactic cosmic rays during the past million years are determined. The basic patterns of the distribution and the change of the intensity of solar protons are studied.