Cosmic-ray spectrum and composition: Ground observations

Summary This paper summarizes the most interesting results obtained from ground-based experiments investigating cosmic-ray spectrum and composition. The contributed measurements cover a range of primary energy of about 7 decades, from ∼10¹³ eV up to ∼10²⁰ eV, allowing us to gain deeper insight into a large variety of phenomena including: source and acceleration mechanisms, propagation and diffusion in the Galaxy, extragalactic sources and their location. Rapporteur talk given at the XXIV International Cosmic-Ray Conference, Rome, August 28–September 8, 1995.