Exploring the extreme gamma-ray sky with HESS

Journal Article · Fri Nov 03 04:00:00 EST 2006 · AIP Conference Proceedings

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.2399652· OSTI ID:20891796

Sol, Helene ^[1]

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1. LUTH, Observatoire de Paris, Place J. Janssen, 92195, Meudon cedex (France)

The international HESS experiment. High Energy Stereoscopic System, fully operational since January 2004, is opening a new era for extreme gamma-ray astronomy. Located in Namibia, it is now the most sensitive detector for cosmic sources of very high energy (VHE) gamma-rays, in the tera-electron-volt (TeV) range. In July 2005, it had already more than double the number of sources detected at such energies, with the discovery of several active galactic nuclei (AGN), supernova remnants and plerions, a binary pulsar system, a microquasar candidate, and a sample of yet unidentified sources. HESS has also provide for the first time gamma-ray images of extended sources with the first astrophysical jet resolved in gamma-rays, and the first mapping of a shell supernova remnant, which proves the efficiency of in situ acceleration of particles up to 100 TeV and beyond.

• OSTI ID: 20891796
• Journal Information: AIP Conference Proceedings, Journal Name: AIP Conference Proceedings Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 861; ISSN APCPCS; ISSN 0094-243X
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
ACCELERATION
COSMIC GAMMA SOURCES
GAMMA ASTRONOMY
GAMMA DETECTION
GAMMA RADIATION
IMAGES
PULSARS
SUPERNOVA REMNANTS
TEV RANGE 100-1000