The Crab Nebula and Geminga in Gamma Rays
NASA, Compton Gamma Ray Observatory
What if you could "see" in gamma-rays? If you could, these two
spinning
neutron stars
or pulsars
would be among the brightest objects in the sky. This computer processed
image shows the Crab Nebula pulsar (below and right of center)
and the Geminga pulsar (above and left of center) in the "light" of
gamma-rays. Gamma-ray photons are more than 10,000 times more
energetic than visible light photons and are blocked from the
Earths's surface by the atmosphere. This image was produced by
the high energy gamma-ray telescope "EGRET" on board NASA's orbiting
Compton Observatory satellite.