How are Gamma Ray bursts created? Are they in our galaxy or at the edge of the universe?

Question

Gamma Rays are the most destructive force in the universe. They come from one place, not many! Scientists say about 10 billion light years away from us. Something sets them off and when the gamma rays burst, they go in all directions. The gamma ray bursts could very well be violating Einstein's E=MC2. What do you think?

Answer 1

Gamma rays are the strongest form or radiation and can be created in several fashions. A gamma ray is actually a very fast moving free electron. A gamma ray then is a stream of very fast moving electrons. They are so strong that they can penetrate the earth without hardly slowing down. True some of it will get blocked, but it takes a lot of material to block gamma rays. Some nuclear material generates gamma rays and when an atomic bomb blows up there are a lot of gamma rays and other radiation generated. The strongest radiation that man can create is a gamma ray.

Gamma ray bursts are a special way to create a gamma rays and it is only done by a black hole.

There are a lot of black holes in the universe, and in our galaxy. Recently scientists have found that most galaxies contain a dormant super-massive black hole at its center, and yes so does the Milk Way Galaxy.

A black hole sucks everything in. They started as stars and stars rotate so the black hole is still rotating. When they suck things in it is easier to crowd it all in at the equator than at the poles. As the matter tries to shove itself into the black hole there are violent collisions which create a gamma ray burst. What is actually happening is the matter can’t get out of the way of other matter so it is destroying itself and transforming the matter into energy.

The most powerful sources of energy in the universe are quasars. We have now discovered that a quasar is a gamma ray burst from a black hole that is pointed near us so we can see it. The quasar fluctuates as the black hole rotates and the rate of matter being sucked into it increases.

Think of it this way: The pole of a black hole is like the drain in your sink if you watch the water as it goes down the narrow hole it speeds up. The water has to move faster so more of it can get down that narrow hole. Gravity is causing it to go down the hole and it will speed the water up if the hole is narrow. The matter going in at the equator has a huge mouth to fall into, but the matter at the poles has only a tiny mouth to go into and it all has to get in there.

Now in this case our water is random matter in space, usually dust and debris. It is going so fast down that drain hole that some of it is colliding, it can't get out of its own way fast enough. These collisions are strong enough to create a gamma ray burst. The collisions are actually destroying the matter and converting it into energy. The black hole is shouting out energy because it can’t suck the matter in fast enough because the matter is colliding and breaking down into energy before it can enter the black hole.

An atomic bomb is an example of when a small bit of matter is converted to energy; so you can see that a gamma ray burst is a huge source of energy. A planet rotating around a star 5-10 lightyears away form that black hole could be incinerated if the gamma ray burst grazes the planet. It would make the asteroid hit that killed the dinosaurs look like popcorn popping. A gamma ray burst is a HUGE amount of energy that outshines even a super nova. Luckily space isn’t empty there are huge dust clouds (mostly hydrogen) that get in the way and block some of the energy of a gamma ray burst, and the distances involved are so immense it is like an ant trying to walk to the moon and back. This is why we don’t get killed by all these gamma ray bursts. But, if one happened nearby….

Gamma ray burst are perfect examples of E=mc^2 in action. That is the formula for the reaction that is taking place. They don't violate Einstein's formula; they prove it.

Answer 2

Whilst a local Gamma Ray Burst would surely damage the Earth a great deal, a recent study has concluded that it is unlikely to happen in our galaxy - the calculations are based around the metal content of the galaxy. The odds work out at about 0.15% in our galaxy - and it would have to be within about 3000 light years to cause the mass extinction we're talking about, so the likelihood is extremely low. Check below source for the details (dated 19 April 2006). (Obviously the research could be wrong, but we can only run on the information we have :))

Answer 3

Gamma ray bursts (GRBs) are the result of two separate phenomena - long, 'soft' bursts are created when a massive star (40 times the mass of the sun or greater) collapses. Short, 'hard' bursts occur when two neutron stars collide. Although neutron stars collide in galaxies near us, the more intense bursts from massive stars mostly occurred near the beginning of the universe - there are very few of these very massive stars left, and very VERY few in our own galaxy. We've never detected a GRB in our own galaxy.

The gamma rays don't go off in all directions; they are collimated - along jets. So you only see them if you're sitting along the jet - and we miss most of them that way.

GRBs are not violating E=MC^2. They put out a great deal of energy, yes - the equivalent of turning a small star into energy instantaneously - but it's still very little of the star's mass. We've seen nothing to suggest Einstein was wrong.