Very high energy gamma-ray astronomy

T.C. Weekes0750306580, 9780750306584, 9781420033199

High energy gamma-ray photons are the prime probes of the relativistic or high-energy universe, populated by black holes, neutron stars, supernovae, quasars, and matter-antimatter annihilations. Through studying the gamma-ray sky, astrophysicists are able to better understand the formation and behavior of these exotic and energetic bodies. Very High Energy Gamma-Ray Astronomy summarizes the status of gamma-ray astronomy at energies between 30MeV and 50TeV at a critical point in the development of the discipline: the hiatus between the demise of the EGRET telescope and the launch of the next generation of space telescopes. Starting with an overview of the astrophysics of the bodies that generate high energy gamma rays, it proceeds to discuss the latest developments in observational techniques and equipment. By presenting the techniques, observations, and theories of this expanding frontier, Very High Energy Gamma-Ray Astronomy aids experimentalists and theoreticians in detecting and explaining gamma rays of the highest energies.

---

Table of contents :
Contents……Page 8
Foreword……Page 14
1. Foundations of gamma-ray astronomy……Page 18
2. Very high energy gamma-ray detectors……Page 30
3. High energy gamma-ray telescopes in space……Page 59
4. Galactic plane……Page 72
5. Supernovae and supernova remnants……Page 84
6. Gamma-ray observations of the Crab Nebula……Page 94
7. Gamma-ray observations of supernova remnants……Page 109
8. Gamma-ray pulsars and binaries……Page 119
9. Unidentified sources……Page 133
10. Extragalactic sources……Page 143
11. Active galactic nuclei: observations……Page 151
12. Active galactic nuclei: models……Page 173
13. Gamma-ray bursts……Page 186
14. Diffuse background radiation……Page 207
Appendix……Page 217
Index……Page 234