Table of Contents
Where does Gamma ray bursts come from?
So it seems that most gamma ray bursts originate in a narrow beam of intense radiation released during a supernova or hypernova as a rapidly rotating, high-mass star collapses to form a neutron star, quark star, or black hole.
What are gamma ray bursts made of?
One explanation proposes that they are the result of colliding neutron stars — corpses of massive stars (5 to 10 times the mass of our Sun) that have blown up as supernovae. A second theory proposes that gamma-ray bursts are the result of a merging between a neutron star and a black hole or between two black holes.
What do gamma ray bursts leave behind?
Cosmic gamma-ray factories We’re not exactly sure what causes GRBs out in space, but it’s thought that the long ones are produced when the largest stars in our universe die off in supernova explosions, leaving behind neutron stars or black holes.
What are the two known sources of gamma ray bursts?
The intense radiation of most observed GRBs is thought to be released during a supernova or superluminous supernova as a high-mass star implodes to form a neutron star or a black hole. A subclass of GRBs (the “short” bursts) appear to originate from the merger of binary neutron stars.
How powerful is a GRB?
GRB 080916C is a gamma-ray burst (GRB) that was recorded on September 16, 2008, in the Carina constellation and detected by NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope. It is the most powerful gamma-ray burst ever recorded. The explosion took place 12.2 billion light-years (light travel distance) away.
What is a gamma-ray burst (GRB)?
We do know that gamma-ray bursts are the most energetic events to occur in the Universe! In order to understand what a gamma-ray burst (or GRB) is, you must first realize that gamma-rays are a type of light. In fact, gamma-rays are the most energetic form of light known. Light is a form of energy called electromagnetic radiation.
How often does a gamma-ray burst occur in the Milky Way?
At the time, astronomers had determined that the observed bursts came from outside the Milky Way Galaxy, and they believed that a gamma-ray burst would occur about once every few million years here in the Milky Way.
Are there stars that can produce gamma-ray bursts?
The closest analogs within the Milky Way galaxy of the stars producing long gamma-ray bursts are likely the Wolf–Rayet stars, extremely hot and massive stars, which have shed most or all of their hydrogen to radiation pressure. Eta Carinae and WR 104 have been cited as possible future gamma-ray burst progenitors.
Can gamma rays come from a black hole?
They didn’t find any violations of the nuclear treaty, but they did discover bright bursts of gamma rays from beyond the solar system. Evidence from recent satellites like Swift and Fermi indicate that the energy behind a gamma-ray burst comes from the collapse of matter into a black hole.