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Article: On the threshold of Cherenkov astronomy; radiation of extremely high energy from several celestial objects is leading astronomers to extend their science's spectral range yet again.
- Article from:
- Science News
- Article date:
- October 25, 1986
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1986 Science Service, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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On the Threshold of Cherenkov Astronomy
How high in energy does the radiation from celestial objects go? Is there some upper limit?
Visible light--to which astronomy was confined for millennia--occupies a very short stretch of the spectrum of electromagnetic radiation. Only in the last four or five decades has astronomy been technically able to extend itself into either the longwave, low-energy radio range or the shortwave, high-energy range of X-rays and gamma rays.
As astronomers have pushed their techniques to higher and higher energies, they have discovered many interesting phenomena, some associated with objects already known and some ...