Universe  ID: 10531

Fermi telescope detects gamma-rays from Cygnus X-3

In Cygnus X-3, a hot, massive star is paired with a compact object — either a neutron star or a black hole — that blasts twin radio-emitting jets of matter into space at more than half the speed of light. Astronomers call these systems microquasars. Their properties — strong emission across a broad range of wavelengths, rapid brightness changes, and radio jets — resemble miniature versions of distant galaxies (called quasars and blazars) whose emissions are thought to be powered by enormous black holes. Cygnus X-3, first detected in 1966 as among the sky's strongest X-ray sources, was also one of the earliest claimed gamma-ray sources. Efforts to confirm those observations helped spur the development of improved gamma-ray detectors, a legacy culminating in the Large Area Telescope (LAT) aboard NASA's Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope.

Credits

Walt Feimer (HTSI): Lead Animator
Francis Reddy (SPSYS): Writer
Please give credit for this item to:
Walt Feimer/NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center

Short URL to share this page:
https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/10531

Mission:
Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope

Data Used:
Note: While we identify the data sets used in these visualizations, we do not store any further details nor the data sets themselves on our site.

This item is part of this series:
Astrophysics Animations

Keywords:
SVS >> HDTV
GCMD >> Earth Science >> Spectral/Engineering >> Gamma Ray
SVS >> Black Hole
SVS >> Astrophysics
SVS >> Fermi
SVS >> Binary Star
NASA Science >> Universe

GCMD keywords can be found on the Internet with the following citation: Olsen, L.M., G. Major, K. Shein, J. Scialdone, S. Ritz, T. Stevens, M. Morahan, A. Aleman, R. Vogel, S. Leicester, H. Weir, M. Meaux, S. Grebas, C.Solomon, M. Holland, T. Northcutt, R. A. Restrepo, R. Bilodeau, 2013. NASA/Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Earth Science Keywords. Version 8.0.0.0.0