Photo of 437992main CenA optical gamma composite labeled

All free photos → Free Photos of Nature → Photos of Galaxies → Photo of 437992main CenA optical gamma composite labeled

This is a premium free photo

This photo was viewed 4 times and was downloaded in full size 3 times.

This photo was liked 0 times

If you are a member, please login in order to see the source link of the above image.

Summary

Description	English: "This is something we've never seen before in gamma rays," said Teddy Cheung, a Fermi team member at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington. "Not only do we see the extended radio lobes, but their gamma-ray output is more than ten times greater than their radio output." If gamma-ray telescopes had matured before their radio counterparts, astronomers would have instead classified Cen A as a "gamma-ray galaxy." The gamma-ray output from Cen A's lobes exceeds their radio output by more than ten times. High-energy gamma rays detected by Fermi's Large Area Telescope are depicted as purple in this gamma ray/optical composite of the galaxy. Credit: NASA/DOE/Fermi LAT Collaboration, Capella Observatory.
Date	1 April 2010
Source	Fermi Maps an Active Galaxy's 'Smokestack Plumes', url=https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/GLAST/news/smokestack-plumes.html.
Author	NASA/DOE/Fermi LAT Collaboration, Capella Observatory.
Permission (Reusing this file)	Images from NASA are usually free of copyright and are in the PUBLIC Domain.

"When one of these photons collides with a super-fast particle in the radio lobes, the photon receives such an energy boost, it becomes a gamma ray," explained co-author Lukasz Stawarz at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency in Sagamihara, Japan.

Although it sounds more like billiards than astrophysics, this process, called inverse Compton scattering, is a common way of making cosmic gamma rays. For Cen A, an especially important aspect is the case where photons from the cosmic microwave background ricochet off of the highest-energy particles in the radio lobes.

In dozens of active galaxies, this process has been shown to produce X-rays. But the Cen A study marks the first case where astronomers have solid evidence that microwave photons can be kicked up to gamma-ray energies.

Licensing

This file is in the public domain because it was solely created by NASA. NASA copyright policy states that "NASA material is not protected by copyright unless noted". (See Template:PD-USGov, NASA copyright policy page or JPL Image Use Policy.)

Warnings:

Use of NASA logos, insignia and emblems are restricted per US law 14 CFR 1221.
The NASA website hosts a large number of images from the Soviet/Russian space agency, and other non-American space agencies. These are not necessarily in the public domain.
Materials based on Hubble Space Telescope data may be copyrighted if they are not explicitly produced by the STScI.[1] See also {{PD-Hubble}} and {{Cc-Hubble}}.
The SOHO (ESA & NASA) joint project implies that all materials created by its probe are copyrighted and require permission for commercial non-educational use. [2]
Images featured on the Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) web site may be copyrighted. [3]

Photo's description:

"This is something we've never seen before in gamma rays," said Teddy Cheung, a Fermi team member at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington. "Not only do we see the extended radio lobes, but their gamma-ray output is more than ten times greater than their radio output." If gamma-ray telescopes had matured before their radio counterparts, astronomers would have instead classified Cen A as a "gamma-ray galaxy." The gamma-ray output from Cen A's lobes exceeds their radio output by more than ten times. High-energy gamma rays detected by Fermi's Large Area Telescope are depicted as purple in this gamma ray/optical composite of the galaxy. Credit: NASA/DOE/Fermi LAT Collaboration, Capella Observatory.

Licensing:
Public Domain

Only registered users can post comments. Please login.

EXIF data:
File name	437992main_cena_optical_gamma_composite_labeled.jpg
Size, Mbytes	2.58415234375
Mime type	image/jpeg
Orientation of image	1
Image resolution in width direction	72
Image resolution in height direction	72
Unit of X and Y resolution	2
Color space information	1
Exif image width	1963
Exif image length	2570
Software used	Adobe Photoshop CS3 Windows

The images at Free-Photos.biz come mainly from Wikimedia Commons or from our own production. The photos are either in the public domain, or licensed under free linceses: Free-Photos.biz license, GPL, Creative Commons or Free-Art license. Some very few other photos where uploaded to Free-Photos.biz by our users and released into the public domain or into free usage under another free license (like GPL etc.)

While the copyright and licensing information supplied for each photo is believed to be accurate, Free-Photos.biz does not provide any warranty regarding the copyright status or correctness of licensing terms. If you decide to reuse the images from Free-Photos.biz, you should verify the copyright status of each image just as you would when obtaining images from other sources.

The use of depictions of living or deceased persons may be restricted in some jurisdictions by laws regarding personality rights. Such images are exhibited at Free-Photos.biz as works of art that serve higher artistic interests.

PRIVACY POLICY

By registering your account and/or by subscribing to new and newly rated photographs you agree we may send you the links to photos and we may occasionally share other information with you.

We do NOT disclose your personal data.

Subscribe for free!

This is a premium free photo

Summary

Licensing

PRIVACY POLICY