News from 2007

December 18, 2007 - 'Shot in the Dark' Star Explosion Stuns Astronomers: When a shot is fired, one expects to see a person with a gun. In the same way, whenever a giant star explodes, astronomers expect to see a galaxy of stars surrounding the site of the blast. This comes right out of basic astronomy, since almost all stars in our universe belong to galaxies.; + Learn More

December 7, 2007 - New Release of the Swift Software and Calibration Data: + Learn More

October 30, 2007 - Swift helps shatter Black Hole Record: NASA's Swift and Chandra satellites discover that stellar-mass black holes can be much larger than previously thought.; + Learn More

September 24, 2007 - New Release of the Swift Software and Calibration Data: + Learn More

September 18, 2007 - Swift Status and XRT Calibration Uncertainties: + Learn More

September 12, 2007 - NASA Astronomers Find Bizarre Planet-Mass Object Orbiting Neutron Star: Using NASA's Swift and Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) satellites, astronomers have discovered one of the most bizarre planet-mass objects ever found.; + Learn More

August 29, 2007 - Swift Cycle 4: Proposals Due November 9, 2007: Details on Swift Cycle 4 are now available. New in Cycle 4: proposals for non-GRB non-TOO astrophysical observations will be welcome, in addition to non-GRB TOO proposals and funding-only proposals accepted in previous rounds.; + Learn More

July 30, 2007 - New Swift Software Release: New release of the Swift software and calibration data is available for download.; + Learn More

July 30, 2007 - Japanese and NASA Satellites Unveil New Type of Active Galaxy: An international team of astronomers using NASA's Swift satellite and the Japanese/U.S. Suzaku X-ray observatory has discovered a new class of active galactic nuclei (AGN).; + Read More

July 5, 2007 - New Release of the Swift Software and Calibration Data is Available for Download: + Read More

July 11, 2007 - New Version of the Swift GRB Table Released: The Swift Gamma-Ray Burst Table has been updated to version 2.0. Highlights include: a new look, quick default and full views, stats mode, the ability to include/exclude observatory specific bursts, and the ability to place some pre-defined restrictions on the table.; + Check It Out

June 26, 2007 - NASA's Swift Sees Double Supernova in Galaxy: In just the past six weeks, two supernovae have flared up in an obscure galaxy in the constellation Hercules. Never before have astronomers observed two of these powerful stellar explosions occurring in the same galaxy so close together in time.; + Read More

June 15, 2007 - Workshop on Future Opportunities for Swift Science (May 1-2 at PSU)
: + View the presentations

May 22, 2007 - Gamma-ray Bursts Active Longer Than Thought
: Using NASA's Swift satellite, astronomers have discovered that energetic flares seen after gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are not just hiccups, they appear to be a continuation of the burst itself.; + Read the full press release

March 30, 2007 - CALDB Update
: An update of the XRT and Clock correction calibration files is available from the Swift calibration page.

March 15, 2007 - Robotic Telescope Unravels Mystery of Cosmic Blasts
: Scientists from Liverpool John Moores University and colleagues in the UK, Italy, France and Slovenia used the world's largest robotic telescope, the Liverpool Telescope on the island of La Palma, and its novel new polarimeter, RINGO, to perform the earliest-ever measurement (203 seconds) of the optical polarization following detection of a burst by NASA's Swift satellite. The article by Carole Mundell et al. appeared online in Science magazine.; + Read the PPARC press release

March 7, 2007 - An Update to the Swift Software is Now Available for Download
: + Read More

January 16, 2007 - Top High-Energy Astronomy Prize Awarded for Swift Discoveries
: This year's prestigious Bruno Rossi Prize has been awarded to Neil Gehrels and the team of scientists working on NASA's Swift Gamma-Ray Burst Explorer mission. The prize is the top award given each year by the High Energy Astrophysics Division (HEAD) of the American Astronomical Society (AAS), the largest professional organization of astronomers in the United States.; + Read More

January 5, 2007 - Updated XRT Calibration Files
: An update of the XRT calibration files is available from the Swift calibration page.

National Aeronautics and Space Administration