A Very Long Lasting Gamma Ray Burst

[Fraser]

Gamma ray bursts are some of the most energetic events in the Universe. Even more amazing is just how quickly it all unfolds. One moment, everything's quiet. ...

Read the full blog entry

[Jerry]

Simply Amazing

[Nerthus]

The NASA release mentions its close distance as a factor, but it doesn't mention what that distance is. Does anyone know?

[Terry Gush]

How about a show on Magnetars? Their physical properties, composition, how they form?, why they are so rare? and their population densities through out the universe, where and how are they located?, the range of flare-ups they have and how these are detected.
What are they current theories and projects underway in this area? What powers them? Can we learn anything from them that might be applied back on Earth at some future point?, in the lab or in inductry such as electrical power generation.
I too have been fascinated these celestial oddities. Surely they rate a mention at least in some portion of a pod cast.

Thank you AstronomyCast
Best regards and clear skies,
Terry,
Auckland New Zealand

[trinitree88]

Years ago ,(60's), a TV ad for plumbing obstructions might give some insight here. They used a piece of clear pipe modeling your kitchen sink's trap. It was highly blocked up with some "gunk". The gadget they were selling hitched up to your water tap, was inserted into the the drain and had a bladder attached to the water tube. At first it would swell to the dimensions of the tube, just below the sink when the water was turned on. Then, having sealed itself hermetically, it would reach a limiting pressure, at which point a valve opened, and it would begin to squirt water down into the s-trap, slowly blowing out the obstruction with a chatter of pulses.
Now, since neutron stars have sizes that are orders of magnitude above the mean free path of neutrinos in degenerate matter (~ 3 cm..David W. Arnett, U Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, Physics Coll. MIT, following SN1987a)....I'm picturing a pulsar doing the same thing, filling up on neutrino energy, to a limiting pressure (the crust strength), and then ejecting GRB's and light elements, H, He, and multi-He-4's...such as Be-8, C-12 seen in superheavy nuclei decays. This would partially fit the long burst scenario, mimicing the "pulsar with a tail" seen, and would be slightly polar asymmetric.
There is of course a ready supply of rotational kinetic energy to power the emissions too. For this to be part of the phenomena, rotational losses ought not to match total bolometric emissions. Would that we should have a visiting pulsar pass near enough to send a mission to without perturbing our quaint little planet too much. pete.

[satori]

to account for the high luminosity, there should be a very high degree of bipolarity involved with those objects not just some degree

[trinitree88]

to account for the high luminosity, there should be a very high degree of bipolarity involved with those objects not just some degree

Satori. Agreed. Then the energetics follows known conservation laws and processes.Pete.

[satori]

i understand next to nothing of the thing, Peter
your little gem of a fact, that neutrinos should infact be so strongly enclosed in degenerate matter was indeed all new to me (take that as a mesure of my innocence)........
now much of what i heard about SN explosions shines in a new light.....

so thanks

[Nick4]

It looks like a slinky

[trinitree88]

i understand next to nothing of the thing, Peter
your little gem of a fact, that neutrinos should infact be so strongly enclosed in degenerate matter was indeed all new to me (take that as a mesure of my innocence)........
now much of what i heard about SN explosions shines in a new light.....

so thanks

satori. You're belatedly welcome...my humbles. pete