Abstract
Abstract Cosmic-ray interactions with interstellar gas and low-energy photons make the Milky Way galaxy a gamma-ray source that spans the whole sky. The low instrumental background, large effective area, good angular resolution, and long mission life of the Energetic Gamma-Ray Experiment Telescope (EGRET) on the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory provided the first opportunity for comprehensive study of this diffuse gamma-ray emission. I will discuss what has been learned from EGRET about the cosmic rays and interstellar gas in the Milky Way, including the apparent excess of GeV emission from the interstellar medium, the potential Galactic halo at GeV energies, and the implications of EGRET observations for the nature of dark matter in the Milky Way. For many gamma-ray astronomers, the emission of the Milky Way is primarily a background to be removed in the study of point sources. I will illustrate the potential for diffuse emission to confuse or contaminate the EGRET source catalogs, and conclude with the prospects for advances with the Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST).
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Digel, S.W. (2001). Diffuse Sources of High-Energy Gamma Rays in The Milky Way. In: Carramiñana, A., Reimer, O., Thompson, D.J. (eds) The Nature of Unidentified Galactic High-Energy Gamma-Ray Sources. Astrophysics and Space Science Library, vol 267. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-010-1007-8_14
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-010-1007-8_14
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