Tuesday, April 28, 2009

A Real Blast From The Past

TG Daily - NASA satellite observes ancient gamma-ray burst

Houston (TX) - A NASA satellite has observed a gamma-ray burst from an ancient star that died when the universe was only 630 million years old.

The event, known as GRB 090423, was the most distant cosmic explosion ever recorded.

"The Swift [satellite] was designed to catch these very distant bursts," explained Swift lead scientist Neil Gehrels. "The incredible distance to this burst exceeded our greatest expectations - it was a true blast from the past."