Language
Country/Area
No result found
Uncovering the Mystery of Gamma Rays: How Do Scientists Detect High-Energy Cosmic Events?
Gamma-ray astronomy is a branch of astronomy that focuses on the observation and study of objects and phenomena that emit gamma rays in the universe. Gamma rays are the most energetic form of electromagnetic radiation and occur as photons above 100 keV, which have extremely short wavelengths. In contrast, radiation below 100 keV is classified as X-rays and falls within the scope of X-ray astronomy.
Gamma rays come from various sources, many of which are produced by collisions of hydrogen gas and cosmic rays within our galaxy. The formation of these gamma rays involves a variety of mechanisms, from electron-positron annihilation, reverse Compton effect to gamma decay, etc., all showing extreme temperature, density and magnetic field conditions, reflecting supernovae, supersupernovae and pulses. Extreme astrophysical events such as stars and blazars.
"The detection of gamma rays requires high-end technology because they are blocked when penetrating the Earth's atmosphere."
With the advancement of high-energy ray detection technology, we have now been able to identify a large number of high-energy celestial systems that emit gamma rays. These systems include black holes, stellar crowns, and neutron stars, especially the Crabb Nebula and Vera pulsar. One of the most powerful sources of gamma rays. Additionally, a diffuse gamma-ray background at the center of the Milky Way has been observed, evidence of intense events and forces hinted at in the universe.
Gamma-ray bursts (GRB) are one of the great mysteries of current astronomy. The duration of such transient phenomena ranges from a few microseconds to hundreds of seconds, revealing the challenges of high-energy astrophysics processes. sex. For example, the GRB 190114C incident in January 2019 was exactly the opposite of this.
"Gamma ray capture relies on balloons or space satellites, so early experiments designed a number of interesting detection tools."
Due to the high-energy characteristics of gamma rays, the Earth's atmosphere greatly blocks them, so scientists need to use balloon detectors and artificial satellites to conduct observations. As early as the 1950s and 1960s, instruments carried by balloons were used for detection above the atmosphere. Later, the first gamma ray satellites were launched, such as SAS 2 and COS-B.
Gamma-ray astronomy has developed rapidly. Scientists discovered several sources of gamma rays in the 1970s, including obtaining a lot of information related to astrophysical phenomena. This information was used to build a map of the sources of gamma rays in the universe. picture. The Compton Gamma-ray Observatory (CGRO), opened in 1991, further revealed many unknown sources of gamma rays.
Latest technologies such as the High Energy Stereo System (H.E.S.S.) and ground-based observation tools have further deepened our understanding of gamma rays. Today's gamma-ray observations rely not only on physicists and astrophysicists, but also on the collective efforts of engineers.
"The future development of gamma-ray astronomy will integrate data from gravitational wave and neutrino observatories to gain a deeper understanding of cosmic events."
In future studies, fusing gravitational wave and neutrino data (i.e. multi-messenger astronomy) will further improve our understanding of cosmic events. For example, in 2024, a report from LHAASO mentioned that the gamma ray energy it detected has exceeded an unprecedented threshold, reaching 2.5 PeV, further challenging our understanding of the energy sources of the universe.
Future missions may also include space telescopes and lunar gamma-ray observatories, taking advantage of the moon's lack of atmosphere to achieve unprecedented observations. In this growing field, the study of gamma rays has revealed many unknown secrets of the universe, opening a new window into understanding the universe in which we live. Are you ready for the exploration ahead?
