User:Demonburrito/notable grbs

Notable gamma-ray bursts

On July 2, 1967, the first GRB, 670702, was detected by the Vela 4 satellite. Since then, many gamma-ray bursts have been detected, including several of significant historical or scientific importance.

GRB 970228

On February 27, 1997 the BeppoSAX satellite detected GRB 970228 and its afterglow. This was the first GRB with a successfully detected afterglow. The location of the afterglow was coincident with a very faint galaxy, providing strong evidence that GRBs are extragalactic.

GRB 970508

On May 9, 1997, the BeppoSAX satellite detected GRB 970508. GRB 970508 was the first with a measured redshift, $z=0.835$, confirming that GRBs are extragalactic events. The extent to which radiation is redshifted allows astronomers to calculate an estimate of the distance to the event from Earth.

GRB 990123

The optical afterglow of gamma-ray burst GRB-990123 was imaged on January 23, 1999. The burst is seen as a bright dot denoted by a square on the left, with an enlarged cutout on the right. The object above it with the finger-like filaments is the originating galaxy. This galaxy seems to be distorted by a collision with another galaxy.

Astronomers obtained a visible-light image of GRB 990123 as it occurred on January 23, 1999, using the ROTSE-I telescope, sited in Los Alamos, New Mexico. The robotic telescope was fully automated, responding to signals from NASA's BATSE instrument aboard the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory within seconds, without human intervention. This was the first GRB for which optical emission was detected before the gamma-ray emission had ceased.

GRB 990123 had the brightest measured optical afterglow until GRB 080319B. GRB 990123 momentarily reached exceeded magnitude 8.9, and would have been visible with an ordinary pair of binoculars in spite of its distance of nearly 10 billion light years from Earth.

GRB 050509b

On May 9, 2005, NASA's Swift achieved the first accurate localization of a short GRB, GRB 050509b. It became the first GRB associated with a host galaxy, the E1 elliptical galaxy 2MASX J12361286+2858580, in the galaxy cluster NSC J123610+285901. It may also be the first observation of a GRB with a black hole-neutron star (BH-NS) or NS-NS merger progenitor.

GRB 080319B

ESO artist's impression of gamma-ray burst GRB 080319B.

On March 19, 2008, NASA's Swift detected GRB 080319B, later referred to as the "naked-eye GRB." It was the most luminous event observed in optical and infrared wavelengths, and the most distant event observed that would be theoretically visible to the naked eye (7.5 Gly).

Its rotational axis was closely aligned with Earth, allowing more detailed observation of the jet. In September 2008, a team of astronomers announced the discovery of an "inner jet", previously unknown.

GRB 080913

On Septemeber 13, 2008, NASA's Swift detected GRB 080913. Subsequent terrestrial observations by VLT and GROND showed that it was 12.8 Gly distant, making it the most distant GRB observed to date. This stellar explosion occurred around 825 million years after the Big Bang.

GRB 080916C

GRB 080916C which occurred on September 16, 2008 in the constellation Carina and recorded by the Fermi telescope has been confirmed to have "the greatest total energy, the fastest motions, and the highest-energy initial emissions" ever seen. The explosion had the power of about 9,000 ordinary supernovae, and the gas bullets emitting the initial gamma rays must have moved at 99.9999 percent the speed of light. The tremendous power and speed make this blast the most extreme recorded to date.