Articles tagged with Gamma Ray Bursts
Astronomers have found that short gamma-ray bursts did not originate as castaways, but instead occurred in distant galaxies up to 10 billion light-years away. The discovery suggests that these events may have been more common in the past than expected and could have seeded the Universe with precious metals.
Researchers analyzed archive data from powerful cosmic explosions to find a new way to measure distances in the universe. They identified a class of 179 gamma-ray bursts with common features, which can be used as a cosmological tool.
A Northwestern University-led team developed a 3D simulation of jet evolution, explaining GRB blinking and rarity. The new model shows that GRBs are punctuated by quiet moments due to wobbling jets, which also indicate they are rarer than previously thought.
A team of researchers led by Alexis Andrés analyzed 15 years' worth of data from NASA's Swift Observatory to find that Sagittarius A*, the black hole at the center of the Milky Way, flares irregularly both day-to-day and in the long term.
Astronomers have discovered a 0.6-second gamma-ray burst caused by the implosion of a massive star, revealing that some short GRBs might be imposters in disguise. The discovery suggests that most collapsing stars fail to produce a GRB jet, making this event an effective fizzle.
Researchers predicted gamma ray bursts from a nearby magnetar and confirmed their prediction, showing periodic windowed behavior. The pattern of bursts was found to be periodic, but not perfectly regular, adding to the mystery of how magnetars produce radio and gamma ray bursts.
A team of UK scientists has confirmed a decades-long theoretical prediction about gamma-ray bursts. They measured the magnetic field in a far-off Gamma-Ray Burst and found it was scrambled after the ejected material crashed into, and shocked, the surrounding medium. This discovery sheds new light on these extreme cosmic blasts.
Astronomers used High Energy Stereoscopic System to observe gamma ray burst GRB 190829A's afterglow, detecting emission at several tera-electronvolts. The results show similar spectral properties and decay profiles to x-ray emission, contradicting current emission models for gamma ray bursts.
Scientists have recorded the most energetic radiation and longest gamma-ray afterglow of a gamma-ray burst, revealing similar spectral characteristics between X-ray and very-high energy gamma-rays. This challenge to established theory highlights the need for further studies of very-high energy GRB afterglow emission.
Analysis of data from a lightning mapper and radiation detector revealed neutrons generated from soil by large cosmic-ray showers, matching simulations that included both hadrons and gamma rays. This discovery suggests natural phenomena producing ground-pointed gamma-rays could produce similar neutron burst signatures.
A newly discovered 'Goldilocks' black hole, approximately 55,000 times the sun's mass, provides insight into how supermassive black holes form and grow. The finding may indicate that these behemoths have ancient relics as seeds, potentially leading to a greater understanding of the universe.
Scientists discovered a rare magnetar in the Sculptor constellation as the source of giant gamma-ray burst GRB 200415A. The burst was powerful enough to disrupt mobile phone reception and shed light on the universe's early history.
Astronomers detected near-infrared emission 10 times brighter than predicted, challenging conventional theories of short gamma-ray bursts. The observations suggest the possibility of a massive magnetar being formed after the merger of two neutron stars.
Researchers spot potential magnetar birth from neutron star merger, which resulted in a brilliant kilonova, the brightest ever seen. The team's findings challenge conventional thinking and offer insights into the physics behind extreme energy explosions.
Apep, the newest star to join an elite club of elegant binary pairs, has been found to break all rules. Its dust spiral is expanding four times slower than the measured stellar winds, a phenomenon unheard of in other systems. This discovery makes Apep a strong contender for producing a gamma-ray burst when it does finally explode.
An international team of researchers used the proton radiography technique to visualize Weibel instabilities in a laser-driven plasma. They highlighted two variants of the instability and demonstrated precision imaging techniques that surpass other methods.
Scientists have found two new objects that, along with AT2018cow, represent a type of stellar explosion significantly different from others. The new explosions, called Fast Blue Optical Transients (FBOTs), share characteristics with supernovae and gamma-ray bursts but differ in important aspects.
Researchers have discovered that tidal effects from a close binary companion can cause a star to spin fast enough to launch material into space, forming a gamma-ray burst. This phenomenon is necessary for creating the most luminous events in the universe, observable from Earth when their jet of material is pointed directly at us.
The East Asia VLBI Network observed the afterglow of TeV Gamma-Ray Burst 190114C, providing unique opportunities to study its progenitor and pre-burst medium. The non-detection results place strong upper limits on parameters extracted from different theoretical models of GRBs.
Researchers detected tera-electron volt radiation in the afterglow of GRB 190114C, a gamma-ray burst from a dying star. This validated their predictions and provided new insights into the extreme environment of gamma-ray bursts.
A team of scientists has detected extremely energetic light particles from the violent death of a heavy star, shedding new light on gamma ray bursts. By measuring the distance and energy of these particles, researchers gained insights into the extreme physical processes involved in star deaths.
An international team of researchers has identified a previously unseen component of gamma-ray bursts, emitting trillions of times more energetic photons than visible light. The discovery supports the possibility that inverse Compton emission is commonly produced in gamma-ray bursts.
Researchers discovered the most energetic gamma-ray burst ever recorded, emitting 1 tera-electron-volt of energy. This breakthrough confirms theoretical predictions and opens new avenues for understanding these powerful cosmic events.
An international team of researchers has successfully detected a gamma-ray burst in very-high-energy gamma light, challenging current understanding of these phenomena. The detection was made using the H.E.S.S. telescope and reveals the presence of extremely accelerated particles that exist long after the explosion.
Scientists have detected gamma-rays from two gamma-ray bursts with ground-based telescopes, producing energies up to 100 billion times that of visible light. The observations provide insights into the gigantic explosions and their physical mechanisms.
The MAGIC telescopes detected the first-ever TeV photons from a gamma-ray burst, providing critical new insights into the physical processes at work in these cosmic events. The discovery sheds light on the mysteries surrounding gamma-ray bursts and their energetic emissions.
The Hubble Space Telescope has studied the gamma-ray burst GRB 190114C, emitting record-breaking energy of 1 TeV. Scientists observed this extremely high-energy emission from a collapsing star at nearly 99.999% of the speed of light, providing new insights into gamma-ray bursts and their environments.
The study reveals the location of the most energetic outburst ever seen, sitting in a dense environment within a bright galaxy 5 billion light years away. The high-energy radiation was produced by a collapsing star at nearly the speed of light, creating a shock that triggered the gamma-ray burst.
A team led by Northwestern University has captured the deepest optical image of a first neutron star collision using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. The study sheds light on the nature and origin of neutron star collisions, including the jet created during the merger and its relation to shorter gamma ray bursts.
An international team of astronomers has captured the first-ever polarized radio waves from a distant cosmic explosion, known as gamma-ray burst GRB 190114C. The discovery provides new insights into how jets are formed in gamma-ray bursts and could shed light on the role of magnetic fields in powering these energetic events.
Using simulations, researchers found that photons in long gamma-ray bursts originate from the photosphere of relativistic jets emitted by exploding stars. This discovery provides a promising explanation for the emission mechanism and could help unlock insights into dark matter and dark energy.
Researchers discovered that photons emitted during black hole creation appear to be disordered, yet highly ordered within short time slices. This contradicts theories of either complete polarization or randomness, presenting new challenges for understanding the birth environment of black holes.
Astronomers have found a rare gamma-ray burst candidate in the Milky Way's star system Apep, which could pose a threat to Earth. The system, featuring a pair of scorchingly luminous stars, is thought to be on the brink of a massive supernova explosion.
Researchers have discovered a new massive star system dubbed 'Apep,' featuring a slow-moving dust pinwheel that defies current theories on how large stars die. The system's unusual rotation is thought to cause the star to collapse at its poles before the equator, producing a gamma-ray burst.
Researchers have discovered a sonic boom from an immense, unseen gamma-ray burst explosion. The blast generated two jets of gamma rays that crashed into surrounding gas, producing a shock wave akin to a sonic boom. This finding provides crucial new insight into the nature of gamma-ray bursts and their jets.
Astronomers have found a new type of gamma-ray burst that could not be detected by traditional telescopes. The discovery was made using archived radio data and suggests that these 'orphan' bursts may be related to the collapse of massive stars.
Astronomers have discovered the afterglow of a powerful gamma ray burst that produced no detectable gamma rays, offering clues to understanding these highly energetic events. The 'orphan' GRB was found in data from the VLA Sky Survey and is believed to be the result of an explosion that occurred over 280 million light-years away.
Researchers confirmed that last fall's union of two neutron stars caused a short gamma-ray burst, revealing a key relationship between binary neutron star mergers, gravitational waves and GRBs. Short gamma-ray bursts are the universe's most powerful electromagnetic events.
A team of researchers, led by Dr Gianluca Sarri from Queen's University Belfast, has created the first small-scale replica of a gamma ray burst in a laboratory. The experiment used the Gemini laser to produce a mini gamma ray burst, confirming current models' predictions for magnetic field generation and gamma-ray emission.
The Lomonosov satellite detected air showers caused by high-energy space rays and registered transient light phenomena associated with storm ares. The satellite also observed gamma-ray bursts for the first time in history, allowing for simultaneous measurements in optic and gamma ranges.
The collision of neutron stars has been observed directly for the first time, confirming a key aspect of Albert Einstein's General Relativity theory. The detection, made possible by a global research collaboration, reveals that gravitational waves and gamma ray bursts are produced during these collisions.
Researchers witnessed electromagnetic signals associated with the gravitational wave emission from a neutron star merger, complementing observations from multiple telescopes. This breakthrough marks the beginning of Multi-Messenger astrophysics, allowing scientists to study single events using various techniques.
Scientists at Oregon State University predicted a short gamma-ray burst detection, which was confirmed just a month later. The OSU team predicted the event based on their understanding of binary neutron star systems and gravitational waves.
Researchers observe historic detection of neutron star merger in both gravitational waves and the entire spectrum of light, offering insights into a cosmic event. The merger, named GW170817, revealed properties of the dense neutron stars and their collision, providing new opportunities for gravitational testing.
Researchers confirm neutron star collision using electromagnetic radiation detected by NASA's Swift Gamma Ray Burst Explorer. The event provided a complete picture of compact object mergers, marking a major breakthrough in astronomy.
Researchers used robotic telescope MASTER-IAC to observe gamma ray burst GRB160625B, revealing that a strong magnetic field controls the jets at first, then matter takes control. The study suggests that both factors play a basic role in the formation of black holes and gamma ray bursts.
A team of scientists from the Lomonosov Moscow State University has successfully detected polarization of intrinsic optical radiation of a gamma-ray burst, providing evidence of a powerful magnetic field around a rapidly rotating black hole. This achievement marks a major breakthrough in understanding these cosmic events.
A team led by University of Maryland astronomers has constructed one of the most detailed descriptions of a gamma-ray burst to date, shedding light on the initial 'prompt' phase and the evolution of large jets of matter and energy. The data suggest that both magnetic fields and matter play key roles in shaping the jets.
A team of astronomers detected a massive star's titanic explosion and measured its development and decay in unprecedented detail. The findings provide strong evidence for one of two competing models for how gamma-ray bursts produce their energy, with the data showing powerful magnetic fields confining and directing the radiation.
Researchers suggest that twin black holes detected by LIGO might have formed inside a single, massive star. The star's death generated a gamma-ray burst, which was observed by the Fermi Space Telescope.
A supercomputer simulation demonstrates that a collapsing massive star can generate enormous magnetic fields, focusing gas along the rotation axis to create jets producing oppositely directed blasts of highly energetic gamma rays. This breakthrough model sheds light on the process behind hypernovae and gamma-ray bursts.
Astronomers have observed a super-bright supernova associated with an ultra-long-lasting gamma-ray burst, lasting over half an hour. The supernova was 15 times brighter than usual, suggesting a massive star release of extra energy in its death process.
A study reveals that a massive star's collapse may power ultra-long gamma-ray bursts with the help of magnetars, rewriting our understanding of these cosmic events. Researchers observed a rare case where a supernova was linked to an ultra-long GRB, finding evidence of a magnetar at the source.
Researchers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory have created a record high number of positrons using lasers, which could help study gamma-ray bursts and extreme astrophysical processes. The team used three laser systems to produce nearly a trillion positrons, opening opportunities for antimatter research.
The discovery fills a gap between ordinary supernovae and those that produce powerful gamma-ray bursts. Supernova 2012ap has characteristics expected of a gamma-ray burst, yet no such burst occurred.
Researchers at Cardiff University are exploring a new method to detect the origins of gamma-ray bursts using giant space 'microphones' that can pick up gravitational waves created by black holes. By analyzing these waves, scientists may uncover information about the mass and collision history of star and black hole systems.
Scientists have observed a gamma-ray burst from a huge explosion that occurred shortly after the Big Bang, with light traveling 12.1 billion years before detection. The event, known as GRB 140419A, released more energy in 10 seconds than our sun's expected lifespan.
A team of researchers has discovered that the afterglow from a gamma-ray burst behaves differently than expected, with 10,000 times more circularly polarised light detected. The findings provide new insights into the extreme properties of matter under shockwave conditions.
Researchers measured circular polarisation in the bright flash of light from a dying star collapsing to a black hole, giving insight into an event that occurred 11 billion years ago. This discovery challenges current understanding of Gamma-ray Bursts and suggests a more complex mechanism for their formation.
Research by Dr Klaas Wiersema's team has discovered that Gamma-Ray Bursts behave differently than previously thought, challenging existing theoretical predictions. The study used observations of a GRB to rule out most existing theories and instead found evidence for circular polarisation in visible light.