ESA sets pace for gamma-ray observations

PARIS, Feb. 20 (UPI) -- The European Space Agency said its orbiting gamma ray observatory is providing data that are changing the way astronomers view the high-energy cosmos.

With more than 70 percent of the sky observed by the Integral spacecraft, the ESA said astronomers have been able to construct the largest catalog yet of individual gamma ray-emitting celestial objects. And there is no end in sight for the discoveries.

For 3 1/2 years, Integral has been collecting survey data. At the end of every year, the data have been turned into a catalog of sources. Now a European team of astronomers led by Antony Bird of the University of Southampton has turned all three years' data into an Integral catalog that contains 421 gamma ray objects.

"Integral represents a milestone in gamma-ray astronomy," says Anthony Dean of the University of Southampton. "Thirty years ago, NASA's Einstein observatory produced a catalog of X-ray sources that became the standard reference document for all X-ray observatories, including ESA's XMM-Newton. Integral is doing the same for gamma ray astronomy."