Gamma-ray burst marks death of giant star
Posted: Thu, Mar 20, 2003, 10:31 AM ET (1531 GMT)
Astronomers who observed a gamma-ray burst (GRB) from its early stages believe that the burst marks the collapse of a giant star into a black hole. A GRB was spotted by NASA's High-Energy Transient Explorer (HETE) spacecraft on October 4, 2002; the spacecraft alerted astronomers, who trained telescopes on the location of the burst within several minutes. Those observations showed the optical afterglow of the burst was powered by energy from the burst for at least a half-hour, and the energy of the GRB overall was several times greater than previously thought. This led astronomers to conclude that the burst originated from the death throes of a star 15 times as massive as the Sun, a method known as the collapsar model. They believe the core of the massive star may have collapsed into a black hole. The findings have been published in the latest issue of the journal Nature.
Astronomers who observed a gamma-ray burst (GRB) from its early stages believe that the burst marks the collapse of a giant star into a black hole. A GRB was spotted by NASA's High-Energy Transient Explorer (HETE) spacecraft on October 4, 2002; the spacecraft alerted astronomers, who trained telescopes on the location of the burst within several minutes. Those observations showed the optical afterglow of the burst was powered by energy from the burst for at least a half-hour, and the energy of the GRB overall was several times greater than previously thought. This led astronomers to conclude that the burst originated from the death throes of a star 15 times as massive as the Sun, a method known as the collapsar model. They believe the core of the massive star may have collapsed into a black hole. The findings have been published in the latest issue of the journal Nature.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
Retired Air Force officer nominated to be NASA deputy administrator
Posted: Sat, May 10 9:44 AM ET (1344 GMT) |
|
news links
|
|
Thursday, May 15
SpaceX sends up more Starlink satellites
UPI — 5:53 am ET (0953 GMT) Telstra just months away from offering satellite text messaging to Aussies via Starlink
Finder — 5:53 am ET (0953 GMT) Astronomer Dr. Sven Buder on galactic archaeology, Starlink and indigenous knowledge
SBS — 5:52 am ET (0952 GMT) Spire Global Selected for U.S. Space Force Contract with $237 Million Ceiling
Business Wire — 5:51 am ET (0951 GMT) More speculation on future of Space Command in Southern Colorado
KKTV Colorado Springs — 5:50 am ET (0950 GMT) |
