The Status of VHE Gamma-Ray Astronomy

TL;DR

This paper reviews the current state of VHE gamma-ray astronomy as of 2006, highlighting recent astrophysical discoveries made mainly through ground-based atmospheric Cherenkov and air shower telescopes.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive summary of recent observational results and developments in the field of VHE gamma-ray astronomy up to 2006.

Findings

Majority of recent observations made by ground-based telescopes

Significant astrophysical results obtained from atmospheric Cherenkov techniques

Field has seen rapid progress with new detections and insights

Abstract

This paper presents a summary of the status of the field of very high-energy (VHE) gamma-ray astronomy, as of early 2006. The paper is based on the Rapporteur Talk given at the 29th International Cosmic Ray Conference in Pune, India (ICRC 2005). It covers astrophysical results from observations made by high-energy and very high-energy telescopes operating at photon energies above 1 GeV. The majority of recent observations in this field have been made by ground-based telescopes using the atmospheric Cherenkov or air shower techniques.