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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 127 records · Page 7
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1989

Radiation damage in scientific charge-coupled devices

Radiation damage is reported on CCDs (charge-coupled devices) that have been primarily exposed to 1.25-MeV gamma rays (Co-60 source). Two important classes of radiation damage are discussed, namely, bulk and ionization effects. Bulk damage or displacement damage is a process in which silicon atoms are displaced from their normal lattice positions by high-energy photons or particles. Single atomic displacements or cluster defect damage is produced, depending on the energy and type of radiation experienced by the detector. Bulk damage creates trapping sites within the CCD's signal channel which in turn degrades charge-transfer efficiency.

Janesick, James↗
NASA NTRS1990

Local normal galaxies

In the near future, high energy (E greater than 20 MeV) gamma ray astronomy offers the promise of a new means of examining the closest galaxies. Two and possibly three local galaxies, the Small and Large Magellanic Clouds and M31, should be visible to the high energy gamma ray telescope on the Gamma Ray Observatory, and the first should be seen by GAMMA-1. With the assumptions of adequate cosmic ray production and reasonable magnetic field strengths, both of which should likely be satisfied, specific predictions of the gamma ray emission can be made separating the concepts of the galactic and universal nature of cosmic rays. A study of the synchrotron radiation from the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) suggests that the cosmic ray density is similar to that in the local region of our galaxy, but not uniform. It is hoped the measurements will be able to verify this independent of assumptions about the magnetic fields in the LMC.

Fichtel, Carl E.↗
NASA NTRS1991

Positron annihilation radiation from the Galactic center region

Observations show that there are two components of positron annihilation radiation from the region of the Galactic center: a variable component resulting from one or just a few compact sources at or near the Galactic center and a steady, diffuse component resulting from positron annihilation in the Galactic disk. The diffuse component is modeled using the observed longitude distributions of 70-150 MeV gamma rays, CO, and hot plasma revealed by Fe line emission. Recent results on positron annihilation in the interstellar medium are reviewed and the implications of the annihilation processes on the fraction of positrons annihilating via positronium and on the shape of the 511 keV annihilation line are discussed. The sources of diffuse Galactic positrons are also reviewed and the nature of the compact source of annihilation radiation near the Galactic center is discussed.

Ramaty, R.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Gamma rays of 0.3 to 30 MeV from PSR 0531+21

Pulsed gamma rays from the Crab Pulsar PSR 0531+21 are reported for energies of 0.3 to 30 MeV. The observations were carried out with the UCR gamma ray double Compton scatter telescope launched on a balloon from Palestine, Texas at 4.5 GV, at 2200 LT, September 29, 1978. Two 8 hr observations of the pulsar were made, the first starting at 0700 UT (0200 LT) September 30 just after reaching float altitude of 4.5 g/sq cm. Analysis of the total gamma ray flux from the Crab Nebula plus pulsar using telescope vertical cell pairs was published previously. The results presented supersede the preliminary ones. The double scatter mode of the UCR telescope measures the energy of each incident gamma ray from 1 to 30 MeV and its incident angle to a ring on the sky. The time of arrival is measured to 0.05 ms. The direction of the source is obtained from overlapping rings on the sky. The count rate of the first scatter above a threshold of 0.3 MeV is recorded every 5.12 ms. The Crab Pulsar parameters were determined from six topocentric arrival times of optical pulses.

White, R. S.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Gamma rays of 1-30 MeV from the Galactic Center Region

Preliminary results are reported for gamma rays from the Galactic Center Region at 1-30 MeV made with a balloon-borne double Compton scatter gamma ray telescope. The Compton scatter angle, energy, and arrival time of the incident gamma ray and direction of the Compton scattered secondary for downward-moving gamma rays were measured. The handling of the data is described, and the results of Monte Carlo simulation angular resolutions and absolute efficiencies for different zenith angles of incident gamma rays are given. A contour sky map of the weighted fluxes for a southern sky region is shown whose primary feature is a significant enhancement in the Galactic Center Region. It is concluded that several discrete sources contribute to broaden the maximum in the horizontal or RA direction. Less broadening is indicated along the galactic plane.

Oneill, T.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Gamma rays of 1-30 MeV from the Vela Pulsar PSR 0833-45

Results are reported for observations of gamma rays of 1-30 MeV from the Vela Pulsar PSR 0833 - 45 carried out with the UCR double scatter gamma ray telescope on a balloon launched from Alice Springs, Australia on November 10, 1981. An integrated flux of (5.3 + or - 1.3) x 10 to the -4th photons/sq cm/s is found for the Vela region above 2 MeV. This value, together with those for the energy intervals of 2-4, 4-7, and 7-15 MeV are in reasonable agreement with the power law found by COS-B at energies above 50 MeV. A sky contour map of the fluxes is shown.

Tumer, T.↗
NASA NTRS1976

The solar gamma ray spectrum between 4 and 8 MeV

The properties of nuclear gamma ray emission in the 4 to 8 MeV range were evaluated. This emission consists of broad and narrow lines resulting from nuclear reactions of energetic H, He, C and O nuclei with ambient matter. Calculations were compared with observations of the 1972, August 4 flare and show that: (1) essentially all the observed radiation in the 4 to 8 MeV region is to the superposition of broad and narrow lines of nuclear origin with almost no contribution from other mechanisms; (2) the accelerated particles in the energy region from about 10 to 100 MeV/amu have a relatively flat Energy spectrum; (3) the calculated gamma ray spectrum, obtained from an isotropic distribution of accelerated particles, fits the observed spectrum better than the spectrum derived from an anisotropic distribution for which the particles' velocity vectors point towards the photosphere; and (4) it is possible to set a stringent upper limit on the ratio of relativistic electrons to protons in flares, consistent with the small, but finite, electron-to-proton ratio in galactic cosmic rays.

Ramaty, R.↗
NASA NTRS1995

Discovery of a transient MeV range gamma-ray source

The University of California, San Diego (UCSD)/MIT hard X-ray and gamma-ray instrument on the HEAO 1 surveyed the region near the Galactic center 3 times during its lifetime in 1977-1979. During the 1977 September-October scan, a gamma-ray source was detected south of the Galactic center. The source was below the threshold sensitivity in the spring and fall of 1978. The source was detected with the medium energy phoswich scintillation counters which operated over the 80 keV-2 MeV range, had an area of 42 sq cm each, and a 17 deg FWHM aperture. The error box for the source is centered on l = 2.4 deg, b = -12.2 deg, with a 90% confidence error circle of approximately 3.5 deg radius. The flux in the 333-635 keV range was (1.89 +/- 0.29) x 10(exp -5) photons/(sq cm s keV) and was constant within statistics during the 1 month period the source was in the field of view. The spectrum can be characterized as a Gaussian in the range 300 less than or = E less than or = 650 keV, with a FWHM of 249 +/- 51 keV centered on 461 +/- 22 keV. The flux of this broad Gaussian is (6.6 +/- 1.1) x 10(exp -3) photons/(sq cm s). The source is tentatively identified with the 5.57 hr period low-mass X-ray-emitting binary system 1H 1822-371. Assuming this is correct, the ratio of gamma-ray to X-ray luminosity during the outburst was about 5; at a distance of 8 kpc, the gamma ray luminosity is 4 x 10(exp 37) ergs. The emission may be interpreted as a positron-pair plasma ejected from a compact object, possibly a black hole, and annihilating in a thick accretion disk surrounding the object.

Briggs, M. S.↗
NASA NTRS1983

Measurements of galactic plane gamma-ray emission in the energy range 10-80 MeV

A spark chamber gamma ray telescope was developed and flown to observe diffuse gamma ray emission from the central region of the galaxy. The extension of observations down to 10 MeV provides important new data indicating that the galactic diffuse gamma ray spectrum continues as a power law down to about 10 MeV, an observation in good agreement with recent theoretical predictions. Data from other experiments in the range from 100 keV to 10 MeV show a significant departure from the extension of the power-law fit to the medium energy observations reported here, possibly indicating that a different mechanism may be responsible for the emissions below and above a few MeV. The intensity of the spectrum above 10 MeV implies a galactic electron spectrum which is also very intense down to about 10 MeV. Electrons in this energy range cannot be observed in the solar cavity because of solar modulation effects. The galactic gamma ray data are compared with recent theoretical predictions. Previously announced in STAR as N83-17444

Bertsch, D. L.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Measurement of the 0.3-8.5 MeV Galactic gamma-ray spectrum from the Galactic center direction

The low-energy gamma-ray spectrum from the direction of the Galactic center is determined using data obtained with the SMM Gamma-Ray Spectrometer. It is found that the diffuse gamma-ray spectrum from the Galactic center region can be interpreted in a straightforward way as the sum of five components of a presented equation. The components include a hard power law dominating the continuum at high energies caused principally by cosmic ray electron bremsstrahlung radiation, two narrow lines due to Al-26 decay and positron annihilation, an excess continuum component below 0.511 MeV consistent with the annihilation of positrons by formation of Ps, and a soft power law at low energies which is consistent with an extrapolation upward in energy of known hard X-ray sources in the Galactic center region.

Harris, M. J.↗
NASA NTRS1985

Observations of solar flare gamma-rays and protons

Solar flare gamma-rays (4 to 7 MeV) and protons (8 to 500 MeV) were simultaneously observed from six flares on 1 Apr., 4 Apr., 27, Apr. 13, May 1981, 1 Feb. and 6 June 1982 by the Hinotori and GMS satellites. The relationship between 4 to 7 MeV gamma-ray fluences and peak 16 to 34 MeV proton fluxes for these flares are analyzed. It does not reveal an apparent correlation between these two parameters. The present result implies that the protons producing gamma-rays and the protons observed near the Earth do not always belong to the same population.

Yoshimori, M.↗
NASA NTRS1987

High-energy processes in solar flares

A detailed study of high-energy processes in solar flares is reported, including the production of neutrons and pions, and incorporating isobaric and scaling models and a recent compilation of pion production data (Dermer, 1986). The broad-band gamma-ray spectrum resulting from the decay of neutral pions, the bremsstrahlung of positrons and electrons from the decay of charged pions, and the annihilation in flight of positrons is evaluated. Also evaluated is the 0.511 MeV gamma-ray line resulting from the annihilation of the positrons which survive annihilation in flight. Calculations were based on an isotropic, thick-target model using the best available nuclear data and models. Results are compared with extensive observation of the June 3, 1982 flare (10-120 MeV gamma rays), 0.511 and 2.2 MeV line emission, nuclear line emission, high-energy neutrons, and interplanetary charged particles.

Murphy, R. J.↗
NASA NTRS1990

Gamma ray astronomy and black hole astrophysics

The study of soft gamma emissions from black-hole candidates is identified as an important element in understanding black-hole phenomena ranging from stellar-mass black holes to AGNs. The spectra of Cyg X-1 and observations of the Galactic Center are emphasized, since thermal origins and MeV gamma-ray bumps are evident and suggest a thermal-pair cloud picture. MeV gamma-ray observations are suggested for studying black hole astrophysics such as the theorized escaping pair wind, the anticorrelation between the MeV gamma bump and the soft continuum, and the relationship between source compactness and temperature.

Liang, Edison P.↗