Why do you not have groundbased gamma ray and x-ray telescopes?
Ground-based gamma ray and X-ray telescopes are a type of astronomical telescope designed to detect and study gamma rays and X-rays coming from celestial sources. There are several reasons why these telescopes are not commonly found on Earth's surface:
Atmospheric Absorption: The atmosphere of the Earth is composed of various gases and molecules that can absorb gamma rays and X-rays. The higher the energy of the photons, the more likely they are to be absorbed by the atmosphere. As a result, most gamma rays and high-energy X-rays from space are absorbed before reaching the ground, making it challenging for ground-based telescopes to detect them efficiently.
Background Radiation: The Earth is constantly bombarded with background radiation from various sources, including cosmic rays, radioactive elements in the Earth's crust, and human-made sources. This background radiation can interfere with the detection of faint gamma rays and X-rays from astronomical objects, making it difficult to distinguish the desired signals from the noise.
Telescope Design and Complexity: Designing and building gamma-ray and X-ray telescopes that can operate effectively in the presence of the Earth's atmosphere presents significant technical challenges. These telescopes often require complex instrumentation and specialized materials to shield them from background radiation and enable the detection of faint signals. The development of advanced detector technologies and shielding mechanisms has been an active area of research in the field of high-energy astrophysics.
High-Altitude Observatories: To partially overcome the challenges imposed by the atmosphere, some gamma-ray and X-ray observatories are placed at high altitudes, where the amount of atmospheric absorption is reduced. This approach helps improve the sensitivity and effectiveness of the telescopes in detecting high-energy radiation. Examples of such observatories include mountaintop facilities or balloon-borne telescopes that are carried to high altitudes.
While ground-based gamma-ray and X-ray telescopes have been developed and employed in certain cases, they face limitations due to atmospheric absorption, background radiation, and instrumental complexities. As a result, space-based observatories such as the Chandra X-ray Observatory and the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope are often used to study gamma-ray and X-ray sources in the universe. These space-based observatories are placed above the Earth's atmosphere, allowing them to collect and study high-energy radiation from cosmic sources without these limitations.