According to a December 11, 2023 article by Charlie Wood in Quanta Magazine, recent events suggest that astronomers may not have solved the mystery of gamma-ray bursts.
On December 11, 2021, NASA’s Swift satellite detected a powerful gamma-ray burst. A beam of gamma rays, the most energetic form of light, hit the satellite, and within 120 seconds, the satellite had swiveled toward the blast.
A cosmic blast occurs when a collapsed star, known as a white dwarf, circles so close to a normal star that a stream of gas flows between them. The gas builds up on the white dwarf’s surface until it reaches a flash point and detonates in a thermonuclear explosion.
On December 11, 2021, a beam of gamma rays — the most energetic form of light — slammed into NASA’s Swift satellite. Within 120 seconds, the satellite had swiveled toward the blast and spotted the glowing embers of a cosmic catastrophe. Ten minutes later, alerts went out to astronomers around the world
Astronomers thought they had solved the mystery of gamma-ray bursts, but recent events suggest otherwise.
Gamma-ray bursts are brief flashes of gamma rays that occur almost once a day. They were first detected by space satellites in the 1970s, but their origin remained a mystery due to the poor resolution of gamma-ray detectors.
Astronomers have been searching for decades for a counterpart to gamma-ray bursts, any astronomical object that coincides with a recently observed burst. However, the lack of precision in the location of gamma-ray bursts has frustrated attempts to pinpoint the sources of these cosmic explosions.
Recent evidence from satellites like Swift and Fermi indicate that the energy behind a gamma-ray burst comes from the collapse of matter into a black hole.
The First AfterglowsThe problem with trying to figure out the source of the gamma-ray bursts was that our instruments for detecting gamma rays could not pinpoint the exact place in the sky where the burst was happening. Early gamma-ray telescopes did not have sufficient resolution.
Scientists hope to learn more about the universe’s origins, expansion rate, and size by solving the mystery of gamma-ray bursts.
Gamma-ray bursts are produced by violent events in the universe, such as stars exploding, celestial objects colliding, and matter falling into black holes. By studying these bursts, scientists can learn how these events shape the universe
Gamma-ray bursts also provide insight into star formation rates in the early universe. The majority of gamma-ray bursts occur at distances of around 7 billion light-years, which is when most massive stars were formed.
Gamma rays are also the highest energy type of electromagnetic radiation. They reveal information about the sources that created them. For example, gamma ray signatures can be used to detect the difference between radioactive materials that pose a security risk and those that do not
In 1997, astronomers determined that the source of a long gamma-ray burst was a supernova explosion.
Gamma-ray bursts are believed to be caused by the mergers of neutron star binaries, or a hypernova. Some short-lived gamma-ray bursts are caused by two neutron stars colliding, or a neutron star and a black hole colliding.
Gamma-ray bursts are produced by the hottest and most energetic objects in the universe, such as neutron stars, pulsars, supernova explosions, and regions around black holes
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
The leading theory for the cause of gamma-ray bursts depends on how long they last:
- Short gamma-ray bursts The favored theory is that they are caused by the merger of two neutron stars. This theory is supported by evidence that some short-duration bursts occur in systems with no star formation and no massive stars.
- Long gamma-ray bursts The leading theory is that they are caused by the most energetic explosions in the cosmos. This theory posits that they are created when a massive star collapses and births a black hole.
The two leading theoretical models of gamma-ray bursts and their afterglows are the fireball model and the cannonball model.
The two leading theoretical models for gamma-ray bursts and their afterglows are the fireball model and the cannonball model.
The fireball model uses two different shock wave models to explain the initial burst of gamma-rays and the extended afterglow. The model proposes that a large quantity of gamma-ray photons released into a compact region can create an opaque photon–lepton “fireball”.
The cannonball model suggests that gamma-ray bursts and their afterglows are produced by jets of highly relativistic cannonballs (CBs) emitted in supernova explosions. The CBs are reheated by their collision with the shell and emit radiation that is collimated along their direction of motion.
Here are some possible causes of gamma-ray bursts:
- Short gamma-ray bursts These bursts are caused by the collision of two neutron stars, or by the collision of a neutron star and a black hole. Some short-lived bursts may also be caused by magnetars, which are neutron stars with a magnetic field that is 100 times stronger than a regular neutron star.
- Long gamma-ray bursts These bursts are caused by the collapse of a massive star into a black hole. Astronomers believe that most long bursts occur when a massive star runs out of fuel and its core collapses into a black hole.
Gamma-ray bursts are the most luminous explosions in the cosmos. They are high frequency, high energy waves, so a big explosion is needed to create them.
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