🚀 Chinese scientists have just rocked the universe (literally)! They've spotted the highest-energy gamma-ray spectral line ever observed, peaking at a whopping 37 million electron volts. That's like cosmic fireworks on steroids! 🎆
This groundbreaking discovery is a game-changer for understanding gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), which are the most intense explosions since the Big Bang. Imagine stars collapsing or neutron stars merging—it's that epic! 🌟💥
The research team from the Institute of High Energy Physics (IHEP), part of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, published their findings in the prestigious journal Science China Physics, Mechanics & Astronomy. Talk about making waves! 📚
What's super cool is how they pulled this off. They used a tag-team of China's space and ground-based telescopes—Insight-HXMT, GECAM-C, and the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observatory. Together, they captured this cosmic event like paparazzi at a celebrity sighting! 📸✨
By analyzing data from GECAM-C and the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope, they nailed down the gamma-ray spectra of the brightest GRB ever recorded, dubbed GRB 221009A. They found that the spectral line's energy and intensity followed a power-law decay, with the line width staying almost constant. Science is so rad! 🤓
Since the first GRB was spotted in 1967, these phenomena have been the holy grail for astronomers. With gravitational waves now in the mix, it's like the universe is dropping its hottest mixtape yet! 🎶🚀
Xiong Shaolin, the research team leader and principal investigator of the GECAM telescopes at IHEP, said this discovery is a big deal for figuring out how GRBs and their super-fast jets work. It's like unlocking a new level in a cosmic video game! 🎮🌌
China is on a roll, launching satellites like Insight-HXMT, the Einstein Probe, and the Space Variable Objects Monitor to keep an eye on these wild cosmic events. The quest to unravel the mysteries of the extreme universe continues! 🛰️🌠
Reference(s):
Chinese scientists discover highest-energy gamma-ray spectral line
cgtn.com
