GRBs – Astronomy Now

The brightest gamma ray burst ever observed defies long-standing models

4 April 2023 Astronomy Now

The “BOAT” of gamma ray bursts – the brightest of all time – raises new questions about how such powerful outbursts are generated and interact with their environments.

How JWST will unlock the chemical cosmos

24 December 2021 Keith Cooper

JWST will measure the metallicities of distant galaxies, providing information about the chemical evolution of the Universe.

Most distant known galaxy surprises astronomers with heavy elements, gamma ray burst

22 December 2020 Astronomy Now

Astronomers confirm a galaxy 13.4 billion light years away is the most distant object yet found, raising new questions about how soon galaxies appeared in the wake of the Big Bang.

Astronomers catch the afterglow of a short gamma ray burst

14 July 2020 Astronomy Now

Astronomers catch the faint afterglow of an extremely remote short gamma ray burst, raising new questions about stellar evolution.

Colliding stellar winds hint at possible gamma ray burst to come

19 November 2018 Astronomy Now

Two massive, rapidly-rotating Wolf-Rayet stars are generating a titanic pinwheel of stellar wind-driven dust that hints at a cataclysmic gamma ray burst in the (astronomically) near future.

Gamma ray burst sheds light on gravity wave event

18 October 2018 Astronomy Now

Astronomers studying the aftermath of a gamma ray burst say it may represent a new class of events that generate powerful, short-lived jets of energetic particles.

Chandra X-ray Observatory finds evidence for violent stellar merger

16 July 2016 Astronomy Now

Gamma-ray bursts, or GRBs, are some of the most violent and energetic events in the universe. Although these events are the most luminous explosions astronomers can observe, a new study using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, NASA’s Swift satellite and other Earth-based telescopes suggests that scientists may be missing a majority of these powerful cosmic detonations.

Shocks in a distant gamma-ray burst

15 September 2015 Astronomy Now

Gamma ray bursts (GRBs) — flashes of high-energy light occurring about once a day, randomly, from around the sky — are the brightest events in the known universe. While a burst is underway, it is many millions of times brighter than an entire galaxy. Astronomers are anxious to decipher their nature as their tremendous brightness opens windows into the young universe.