Posted on 02/19/2009 10:04:45 PM PST by rdl6989
WASHINGTON (AFP) The US space agency's Fermi telescope has detected a massive explosion in space which scientists say is the biggest gamma-ray burst ever detected, a report published Thursday in Science Express said.
The spectacular blast, which occurred in September in the Carina constellation, produced energies ranging from 3,000 to more than five billion times that of visible light, astrophysicists said.
"Visible light has an energy range of between two and three electron volts and these were in the millions to billions of electron volts," astrophysicist Frank Reddy of US space agency NASA told AFP.
"If you think about it in terms of energy, X-rays are more energetic because they penetrate matter. These things don't stop for anything -- they just bore through and that's why we can see them from enormous distances," Reddy said.
A team led by Jochen Greiner of Germany's Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics determined that the huge gamma-ray burst occurred 12.2 billion light years away.
The sun is eight light minutes from Earth, and Pluto is 12 light hours away.
Taking into account the huge distance from earth of the burst, scientists worked out that the blast was stronger than 9,000 supernovae -- powerful explosions that occur at the end of a star's lifetime -- and that the gas jets emitting the initial gamma rays moved at nearly the speed of light.
"This burst's tremendous power and speed make it the most extreme recorded to date," a statement issued by the US Department of Energy said.
Gamma-ray bursts are the universe's most luminous explosions, which astronomers believe occur when massive stars run out of nuclear fuel and collapse.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Oh yeah - the Mayans, thanks. (Its been too long since I’ve listened to Coast-to-Coast!).
I have no idea about these gamma rays - but I would imagine that yes - they are “diluted” or whatever because they originated from so far away. (I suppose dispersed would be a better term?)
But a super flare from our sun, although tiny compared to this thing - because it is so close - yes, the EOTWAWKI thing. Every once in ahwile you’ll hear about a big flare that heads off in some other direction and they’ll say “If this had been directed at earth....” Of course - that was back when I listened to Coast-to-Coast more too!
I never can figure why these astrophysicist guys get so excited about seeing stuff like that. The event actually would have happened 12.2 billion years ago provided the distance calculations they have are correct. Fact is we don’t really have a clue what the distant universe is like at this moment. Probably been spent by alien dumbocrats by now.
Damn!
Kirk went and used the Corbomite Device afterall.
“Gamma-ray bursts are the universe’s most luminous explosions, which astronomers believe occur when massive stars run out of nuclear fuel and collapse.”
Were those plans for the 2006 election that collapsed?
Excellent website! I’ve had it bookmarked for several years.
Anyone who wants to see how the universe really functions should make it a daily read.
Then it was 12.2 billion years and five months ago.
Yes it is. Intergalactic Shock and Awe. :^)
Only if you believe that time is something more than a subjective contrivance of human thought.
Take a WAG or just make it up, as a lot of scientist do these days!
Isn't that backwards? The penetrate matter because they are more energetic? What he must mean is they are able to penetrate matter because they are more energetic, although that's not what he said.
And I get very impatient waiting for Friday nights to roll around! DAMN!
We’re all gonna die!!!
In a few decades yes we are.
Thanks rdl6989 for the topic and ping, and thanks gleeaikin for the FReepmail.
![]() |
||
· join · view topics · view or post blog · bookmark · post new topic · | ||
![]()
· Google ·
Mind boggling power.
May well be the oldest news ever posted.
This wasnt in “Breaking News” was it?
I hope I'm within arm's reach of my wife when it happens.
Cheers!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.