.: Who Found Them?

           Gamma ray bursts were discovered in the 1960's when the United States launched the US Vela nuclear detection satellites, into space. It was a time when the United Sates feared the USSR because of the continuous threat of NUKES on our country. The satellites' jobs were to detect gamma–radiation given off by nuclear tests in space. The satellites began detecting gamma-rays that usually lasted only a few seconds. These bursts were unlike anything ever seen. It took years of study and observation of the country's most intelligent military scientists to determine that these gamma rays weren't coming from nuclear bombs. Instead they were coming from space. The scientists publicized their discovery in 1973.

The Vela Satellite in orbit above the Earth.