Comments on: GORT bags a burst

By: lynnc

lynnc — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 05:20:45 +0000

Thanks to Phil for writing this nice article. He is being unusually modest though – the name GORT was his idea. We even bought a little statue of GORT to put out at the telescope. We have written an article for SSU’s Newsbytes, which Steve could read if he is still on campus. Or if he is really interested, he could come visit us on the third floor of the Schulz library. We are always happy to show locals what we are doing. Just because Phil lives in Colorado now doesn’t mean we don’t communicate with him anymore. We still e-mail even if we don’t talk F2F as much anymore….

By: Sili

Sili — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 18:15:07 +0000

If this is made with off the shelf components, shouldn’t it be possible to set up a network of them around the world relatively cheaply? Then we could follow Fermi and/or Swift as they observe, rather than wait until they make a detection – that should get us a coupla important minutes more of observation.

Or is that a pipedream?

By: steve

steve — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 15:55:40 +0000

Very cool. Sad, though, that I have to read a blog by a guy in Colorado to find out what’s happening across campus from me.

By: Jonathan Lubin

Jonathan Lubin — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 15:35:47 +0000

At magnitude 12, isn’t that six mags fainter than what’s visible to naked eye, and thus 1/250 as bright?

By: philippec

philippec — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 15:31:05 +0000

About the name:
Good thing they used the G of GLAST, and not the F from Fermi for the name… It would have been (almost) rude just to pronounce the name…..

By: PP

PP — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 13:57:06 +0000

“GRB081203A (named thus because it was the first burst seen on 2008 Dec. 3) ”

So what are they gonna call GRBs after 2100? Have we already created a new ‘millennium bug’? (It was/is of course a centennial bug.)

By: Mike Simonsen

Mike Simonsen — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 11:37:41 +0000

Nice article, Phil. I’ve included it in the AAVSO Writer’s Bureau for December. Write more variable star stuff!

By: Levi

Levi — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 10:34:28 +0000

100 sextillion km ≈ 1.057 × 10¹⁰ light years

Google knows all.

By: Pouria

Pouria — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 08:59:32 +0000

Kilometers? I use kilometers to think “I need to get to work, that’s about 10 kilometers”. Whenever it is used in astronomy, I lose the grand perspective, I can’t really relate. The numbers simply get too big. Please please please, use lightyears instead in your posts. I’ll take lightyears over kilometers anyday.

By: JB of Brisbane

JB of Brisbane — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 05:02:28 +0000

@Lab Lemmming – so it can hear its sweet baby say,
“Keep on a-rockin’ me ba-by…”

Sorry, but someone had to say it (with apologies to Steve Miller and his band).

By: Phil Plait

Phil Plait — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 02:32:46 +0000

Lab Lemming, that’s because that’s where SSU is.

By: Jewel

Jewel — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 02:09:57 +0000

Hey, why not! I know what you mean, though. There are places with more suitable skies. I don’t live in one of those places myself, but maybe someday.

By: Shane

Shane — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 02:08:54 +0000

Michael L, if they’re close enough, all of ‘em.

By: Lab Lemming

Lab Lemming — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 01:50:01 +0000

Of all the places to put a telescope, why Northern California?

By: Michael L

Michael L — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 01:24:34 +0000

Whenever I read about a GRB, and the energy they release, I often wonder how many civilizations (if any) have been wiped out.

By: Jewel

Jewel — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 01:17:59 +0000

Sexy indeed!

By: Stephen Sykes

Stephen Sykes — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 01:11:54 +0000

Amazing what you can do with a Celestron 14″ Schmidt-Cassegrain. And they are only a tad over six grand, not bad at all.

Thanks for the info, Phil.

By: Kunal

Kunal — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 00:43:14 +0000

I may be incorrect but isn’t a GRB possible when 2 neutron stars collide ?

In any case almost all objects withing 3000 lights years will get incinerated by a GRB ,, they are the biggest bang known since the big bang

By: Shane

Shane — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 00:29:25 +0000

GORT = Gort eh. It is as I suspected. The Big Bang Theory isn’t a sitcom. It is a a fly-on-the-wall reality tv show.

By: Chip

Chip — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 00:29:20 +0000

Its appropriate that a device that detects GRBs be also named after GORT, of whom Klaatu said, (in response to the question “such power exists?!”): “there’s no limit to what he could do…reduce the Earth to a burned out cinder.”
That’s what would happen to an unfortunate planet too close to the path of a gamma-ray burst.

By: Levi

Levi — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 00:12:01 +0000

100 sextillion kilometers away? And who said science wasn’t sexy?