blowing way, «If you added together everything in the rest of the universe during that second, it would not be as bright as the gamma ray burst,» said Pennsylvania State University astrophysicist John Nousek, director of mission operations. So far, astronomers have managed to identify only a couple dozen gamma ray bursts, as close as a few million light years and as far as 12 billion light years. Swift should zero in on two gamma ray bursts a week as far away as 15 billion light years, representing the very first generation of stars, for a grand total of more than 200 during the planned two-year mission. The spacecraft will scan one-sixth of the sky at any one time and thus see one-sixth of all gamma ray bursts out there. The observations will help scientists learn more about what the bursts are, how black holes are formed and how many are out there. --More 2309 Local Time 2009 GMT
