The Crab Nebula and Geminga in Gamma Rays 伽玛射线下的蟹状星云和脉冲星 What if you could "see" in gamma-rays? If you could, these two spinning neutron stars or pulsars would be among the brightest objects in the sky. This computer processed image shows the Crab Nebula pulsar (below and right of center) and the Geminga pulsar (above and left of center) in the "light" of gamma-rays. Gamma-ray photons are more than 10,000 times more energetic than visible light photons and are blocked from the Earths's surface by the atmosphere. This image was produced by the high energy gamma-ray telescope "EGRET" on board NASA's orbiting Compton Observatory satellite. 如果伽玛射线可见,那会是怎样呢?如果这样,这两颗高速旋转的中子星或脉冲星将会是天空中最明亮的物体。这张电脑合成的图像呈现的是暴露在伽玛射线下的蟹状星云脉冲星(中心右下方位置)和脉冲星(中心左上方位置)。伽玛射线的光子能量是可见光光子能量的1万多倍,受地球大气层阻隔,伽玛射线无法到达地表。美国航空航天局康普顿天文台轨道卫星上的“EGRET”(Energetic Gamma-Ray Experiment Telescope,高能量伽玛射线实验用望远镜 ) 拍到了这张图像。 |