What causes gamma ray bursts?
2 Answers
They come from huge explosions or collisions.
Explanation:
There are several different theories regarding what causes gamma ray bursts, but they focus around large amounts of energy being released from a huge explosion or collision.
The most commonly quoted theory is that they are the result of a black hole forming from a super massive star dying to form a supernova and then collapsing in on itself - an explosion that creates lots of high energy radiation.
It is also thought they could be from two incredibly dense neutron stars (another product of a stars death where the mass is compressed) colliding.
The reason gamma rays are released in these huge explosions (supernovae, colliding stars and nuclear bombs) is that they are such a high frequency, high energy wave - it needs to be a big explosion to have enough energy to form those waves.
Interestingly, gamma rays were first detected in the 1960's by scientists who were searching for gamma rays that would signal a violation of the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty signed during the cold war.
I hope this helps; let me know if I can do anything else:)
Electrical discharges in a normal star causes Gamma Ray Bursts, and has nothing to do with black holes compressing matter or neutron stars.
Explanation:
"The signal (gamma ray burst) comes from a normal star, where there's discharges in the magnetosphere which causes these ringing pulses to be sent out from a star; it has nothing to do with a lighthouse or spinning super-condensed object [i.e. neutron star]. I think the astrophysicists continually get into trouble by postulating states of matter and also the behavior of matter, which cannot be observed in the laboratory." -- Wal Thornhill
Evidencing source:
