First detection of peta-electron-Volt photons from the Crab Nebula
Crab Nebula first observed at Birr Castle in the 19th Century and then by the Hubble Space Telescope over two centuries later.
The LHAASO observatory in China is opening up a new window on the ultra-high-energy Universe, with unprecedented sensitivity to the highest energy gamma-rays.
Recently the collaboration published a paper in Nature, reporting on the detection of 12 sources in our Galaxy that were detected at the highest energies for the first time. One of these sources was the famous Crab Nebula, a supernova remnant in the constellation of Taurus. At its centre is a pulsar, an incredibly dense neutron star rotating about 30 times a second on its axis, and this is surrounded by the dramatic “pulsar wind nebula”, seen above in a drawing by the Earl of Rosse in 1844 and as observed by the Hubble Space Telescope.
The Crab Nebula is the brightest gamma-ray source in the sky, and was the first source to be detected in the very-high-energy (VHE) gamma-ray band. This detection was achieved by the Whipple group in Arizona under the leadership of Trevor Weekes, a UCD alumnus and former student of Prof. Neil Porter who was one of the pioneers of the Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescope observing technique.
In the latest paper published in the journal Science [1], DIAS Professor Felix Aharonian and his colleagues in the LHAASO collaboration report on the LHAASO observations of the Crab Nebula, including the detection of a photon with energy above 1 peta-electron-Volt. This is larger than the energy gained a table-tennis ball as it gets hit by a bat. Together with observations from other high-energy observatories including H.E.S.S., this allowed the authors to measure the energy spectrum of the Crab Nebula over a range of a factor of 10,000 in energy. The new measurements show that the Crab Nebula is an extraordinarily efficient accelerator, operating at close to the theoretical maximum efficiency. Despite being the brightest and best-studied object in the high-energy sky, the Crab Nebula continues to surprise us today with these new results from LHAASO, nearly 180 years after the Earl of Rosse made his observations from Birr Castle.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
Leave a Comment
Last Updated: 9th July 2021 by Sophie Murray
First detection of peta-electron-Volt photons from the Crab Nebula
The LHAASO observatory in China is opening up a new window on the ultra-high-energy Universe, with unprecedented sensitivity to the highest energy gamma-rays.
Recently the collaboration published a paper in Nature, reporting on the detection of 12 sources in our Galaxy that were detected at the highest energies for the first time. One of these sources was the famous Crab Nebula, a supernova remnant in the constellation of Taurus. At its centre is a pulsar, an incredibly dense neutron star rotating about 30 times a second on its axis, and this is surrounded by the dramatic “pulsar wind nebula”, seen above in a drawing by the Earl of Rosse in 1844 and as observed by the Hubble Space Telescope.
The Crab Nebula is the brightest gamma-ray source in the sky, and was the first source to be detected in the very-high-energy (VHE) gamma-ray band. This detection was achieved by the Whipple group in Arizona under the leadership of Trevor Weekes, a UCD alumnus and former student of Prof. Neil Porter who was one of the pioneers of the Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescope observing technique.
In the latest paper published in the journal Science [1], DIAS Professor Felix Aharonian and his colleagues in the LHAASO collaboration report on the LHAASO observations of the Crab Nebula, including the detection of a photon with energy above 1 peta-electron-Volt. This is larger than the energy gained a table-tennis ball as it gets hit by a bat. Together with observations from other high-energy observatories including H.E.S.S., this allowed the authors to measure the energy spectrum of the Crab Nebula over a range of a factor of 10,000 in energy. The new measurements show that the Crab Nebula is an extraordinarily efficient accelerator, operating at close to the theoretical maximum efficiency. Despite being the brightest and best-studied object in the high-energy sky, the Crab Nebula continues to surprise us today with these new results from LHAASO, nearly 180 years after the Earl of Rosse made his observations from Birr Castle.
Related Articles
Science
Scientific American
New Scientist
Category: Astronomy and Astrophysics
Recent Posts
DIAS Astrophotography competition goes mobile for 2024
Irish scientists are part of groundbreaking discovery with James Webb Space Telescope
Dr Pauline Gagnon (formerly of CERN) to deliver two talks at DIAS
DIAS Professor announced as next President of the European Southern Observatory’s Council
Quake Shake: New programme encourages people to get involved in monitoring earthquakes
Language switcher