Gamma-ray astronomy began in the mid-1960s with balloon satellite, and, at very high photon energies, also with ground-based instruments. However, the most significant progress was made in the last decade of the 20th century, when the tree satellite missions SIGMA, Compton, and Beppo-Sax gave a completely new picture of our Universe and made gamma-ray astronomy an integral part of astronomical research. This book, written by well-known experts, gives the first comprehensive presentation of this field of research, addressing both graduate students and researchers. Gamma-ray astronomy helps us to understand the most energetic processes and the most violent events in the Universe. After describing cosmic gamma-ray production and absorption, the instrumentation used in gamma-ray astronomy is explained. The main part of the book deals with astronomical results, including the somewhat surprising result that the gamma-ray sky is continuously changing.
| ISBN: | 9783642087455 |
| Publication date: | 23rd January 2011 |
| Author: | V Schönfelder |
| Publisher: | Springer an imprint of Springer Berlin Heidelberg |
| Format: | Paperback |
| Pagination: | 407 pages |
| Series: | Astronomy and Astrophysics Library |
| Genres: |
Astronomy, space and time Solar system: the Sun and planets Atomic and molecular physics Particle and high-energy physics Applied physics |