Short gamma ray bursts occur mainly in young galaxies

A team of astronomers led by postdoctoral researcher Anya Nugent from Northwestern University (USA) has compiled the most comprehensive catalog to date of galaxies and has fallen short in gamma ray bursts Occurred. Using a variety of sensitive tools and advanced computer modeling of galaxies, the researchers identified the “home” of 84 short gamma-ray bursts and examined 69 associated galaxies (Astrophysical Journal21 November).

Short gamma-ray bursts are bursts of the most energetic form of electromagnetic radiation: gamma rays. It only lasts a few seconds, but it glows for hours on the visible light wavelength. A short gamma-ray burst occurs when two orbit each other Neutron stars They run into each other, and eventually collide and merge.

Since NASA’s Swift satellite detected the first short gamma-ray burst in the afterglow in 2005, astronomers have been trying to understand which galaxies and under what conditions give rise to these powerful bursts. The new research shows that about 85% of short gamma-ray bursts come from young galaxies that are rapidly producing new stars. They also found that gamma ray bursts were more numerous when the universe was much younger than it is today. In addition, these flashes occurred at greater distances from the centers of galaxies than previously known.

So far, only a few dozen short gamma-ray bursts have been identified from whichever galaxy they came from. With the new catalog this figure has quadrupled in one fell swoop. It was compiled using data from several large telescopes, such as the Keck, Gemini, MMT, and Magellan telescopes. In addition, astronomers also used data from the Hubble and Spitzer space telescopes.

While the vast majority of short gamma-ray bursts come from young galaxies, they also occur in older, almost exhausted galaxies. This means that two orbiting neutron star systems can form in different environments, and that the time period between formation and collision is often short.

So astronomers suspect that the short gamma-ray bursts they find in the young galaxies come from neutron star systems that formed during the stars.baby boomGrowing up, she was so stressed that she had a bump very early on. In older galaxies, neutron star systems may have taken longer to form or the observed gamma-ray bursts may have occurred in broader neutron star systems. As a result, I collided late. (EE)

Short gamma-ray bursts track further into the distant universe