Podcast: We’re Back!

• By Sara Mitchell
• January 14, 2009
• Comments Off on Podcast: We’re Back!

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After taking some time off to seek listener feedback and consider the future direction of our podcast, Blueshift is back with a new episode to kick off 2009! For our re-launch, we’ve focused our first episode on another recently launched NASA project – the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope – and the exciting gamma-ray bursts that it observes.

We produced a segment in our second episode of 2007 about gamma-ray bursts, mysterious and powerful explosions visable across the Universe. With the launch of Fermi, our observations and understandings of these events is rapidly growing.

This episode features the voices of five scientists in the field of gamma-ray astronomy, exploring how – and why – they study gamma-ray bursts.

Gamma Ray Bursts – The Basics

One of the most mysterious cosmic events, gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) occur regularly and are observed by scientists as short, bright flashes of gamma rays coming from deep space. To learn more about their discovery, what we know about them, and what we want to know, visit:

• Background information on GRBs from the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope
• Gamma-Ray Bursts: Introduction to a Mystery from Imagine the Universe

The Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope

Launched in mid-2008, the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope is the latest NASA satellite to observe the Universe through gamma rays. Its instruments and capabilities are significantly beyond those of any previous gamma-ray mission. To learn more about Fermi, check out these sites:

• NASA Goddard’s Fermi homepage has sections with content for scientific audiences along with the public, teachers, and students.
• Imagine the Universe’s page about Gamma-ray Astronomy Satellites & Missions includes information about Fermi and its predecessors.
• GLASTcast is video podcast produced at NASA Goddard, covering mission status and science before, during, and after launch.
• View Fermi Project Scientist Steve Ritz’s bio or his launch-related blog.

Gamma-Ray Astronomy – News

Here are some recent gamma-ray astronomy press releases from NASA:

• NASA’S Fermi Telescope Unveils a Dozen New Pulsars (January 6, 2009)
• Gamma-Ray Burst Offers First Peek at a Young Galaxy’s Star Factory (January 6, 2009)
• NASA’s Fermi Telescope Discovers First Gamma-Ray-Only Pulsar (October 16, 2008)
• NASA’s Swift Catches Farthest Ever Gamma-Ray Burst (September 19, 2008)
• “Naked-Eye” Gamma Ray Burst Was Aimed Squarely at Earth – visuals available here (September 10, 2008)
• NASA Renames Observatory for Fermi, Reveals Entire Gamma-Ray Sky (August 26, 2008)

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