gamma-ray burst
noun
gam·ma-ray burst
ˈga-mə-ˈrā-
variants
or less commonly gamma ray burst
plural gamma-ray bursts also gamma ray bursts
: a brief, powerful jet of gamma rays detected deep in space that is generated by the collapse and explosion of a celestial object
… researchers … have discovered a gamma-ray burst (GRB) approximately 2.4 billion light-years away in the constellation Sagitta that ranks as the brightest ever observed.—Space Daily
Eventually, though, the neutron star slows down, probably because of magnetic braking. Then it implodes, touching off a gamma ray burst.—Govert Schilling
—abbreviation GRB
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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