New Mysteries in the Night Sky

My research background is in the field of high-energy astrophysics, specifically working with the VERITAS Collaboration - a gamma-ray telescope array in southern Arizona. While this instrument does some very important work, the energy threshold of the experiment does not allow us to image the complete gamma-ray spectrum.

To compliment this work (and that of others), NASA launched the Fermi gamma-ray satellite a couple of years ago. This landmark instrument, orbiting high above the Earth has completed its two year survey of the entire visible sky.

All told, 1873 gamma-ray sources have been identified by Fermi. Most interesting, however, is that almost 600 of these objects currently do not have counterparts in other wavelengths. That is, these objects are a complete mystery.

Some of these objects are likely active galaxies containing supermassive black holes. While others could be pulsars.

NASA's David Thompson has also speculated that some of the sources could be clouds of dark matter, annihilating itself. This would be very exciting as dark matter has yet to be detected by such means.

But for those of you that are interested in such things you can get involved, and you aren't required to have a doctorate in astrophysics! Data from the Fermi catalog is publicly available, along with analysis software. So even amateur astronomers can try their hand at unveiling the nature of dark matter.

In the interim, Fermi is continuing to analyze the mysterious sources, and hopefully will be able to provide some answers in the near future. But don't let the professionals have all the fun; get cracking!

Image Credit: NASA/DOE/Fermi/LAT Collaboration