BATSE's Biggest Gamma Ray Burst (Yet)
Explanation:
Something big exploded but astronomers have
no idea what. On September 24
th, the
Burst and Transient Source Experiment
(BATSE) onboard the orbiting
Compton Gamma Ray Observatory
recorded the
most intense gamma ray burst
in its five year history. During its mission,
BATSE
has recorded many
gamma ray bursts
- about one per day, but none were this powerful. Since their
discovery
over 25 years ago,
the origin and even distance to
gamma ray bursts
remains hotly debated. Bursts are surely mysterious phenomena:
they flash into existence suddenly dominating the
entire
gamma-ray sky,
then typically fade in a few seconds never to be seen again.
It is possible that this intense wave of
gamma radiation
caused other satellites to glitch and may even have been the cause
of unusual noise in the Earth's atmosphere. If you know of such
an anomaly,
please report it.
Authors & editors:
Robert Nemiroff
(MTU) &
Jerry Bonnell
(USRA)
NASA Web Site Statements, Warnings,
and Disclaimers
NASA Official: Jay Norris.
Specific
rights apply.
A service of:
LHEA at
NASA /
GSFC
& Michigan Tech. U.
