Explanation:
Scheduled for launch in 2007, the
Gamma-ray Large Area Space
Telescope (GLAST) will explore the Universe in
gamma-rays, the most energetic form of light.
To get ready, consider this dynamic gamma-ray sky animation -
constructed from simulating the first 55 days (seen above at
one frame per day) of GLAST observations of cosmic gamma-ray sources.
The all-sky view is projected in an astronomical (RA-Dec)
coordinate
system that shows the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy as a
broad U-shape, with the center of the galaxy toward the right.
So what shines in this
gamma-ray sky?
Besides the diffuse Milky Way glow, astronomers testing their
skills on the simulated data have found flaring
active galaxies,
pulsars,
gamma-ray
bursts, the
flaring
Sun, and of course, the
gamma-ray Moon.
