Observatory Status
The Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope was launched from Kennedy Space Center on June 11, 2008. The observatory checkout phase completed on August 11, 2008, and Fermi is now in nominal science operations. The current status (and beautiful graphics) can be found at www.nasa.gov/fermi.
The Fermi spacecraft supports two gamma-ray instruments; the Large Area Telescope (LAT) and the Gamma-ray Burst Monitor (GBM). The LAT is a wide-field gamma-ray telescope (20 MeV - 300 GeV) that continuously scans the sky, providing all-sky coverage every two orbits. LAT sky-survey observations may be interrupted by occasional pointed observations, autonomous repointing of the observatory to follow GRB afterglows, and by regular passages through the South Atlantic Anomaly (a region of high particle backgrounds). The GBM is an all-sky monitor (10 keV - 25 MeV) that detects transient events such as occultations and gamma-ray bursts. GBM detections of strong GRBs can result in an autonomous repoint of the observatory to allow the LAT to obtain afterglow observations.
For more details on the instrument hardware, see the home pages of the GBM, the LAT, and the ACD.
For the results of LAT and GBM observations, see:
- LAT:
- GBM:
More information on Fermi Observations:
- Observing Timeline - Interface to the Fermi Observatory pointing timelines (both planned and historical)
- Observation Types - Descriptions of the different types of Fermi Science observations
- Multiwavelength Observations - Resources for observers interested in correlated observations with Fermi
- Curator: J.D. Myers
- NASA Official: Phil Newman
- Science Official: Neil Gehrels
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- › Page Last Updated: Tue, Dec 20, 2011