Fact Sheet
Gamma-Ray Burst
In December 1997, two days after orbiting satellites detected the biggest gamma-ray burst yet, astronomers using the 10-meter telescope at Keck Observatory could still see the visible afterglow of the powerful, distant explosion (left). Four months later, the glow was gone. In its place, Hubble Space Telescope saw a faint galaxy where astronomers suspect the burst occurred (right).
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