Gamma-ray astrophysics probes the most extreme particle accelerators and explosive transients in the Universe. From pioneering theoretical predictions in the 1950s and the first space-borne detections in the 1960s, mostly exploring the sub-MeV region, the field has evolved into a mature, multi-decade enterprise that spans nine orders of magnitude in photon energy up to PeV energies and interfaces naturally with neutrino and gravitational-wave astronomy. Yet the energy range from a few hundred keV to a few GeV—the “MeV gap”, constraining progress on nucleosynthesis, positron annihilation, transient physics, dark-matter signatures, and electromagnetic counterparts to high-energy neutrinos and gravitational waves—remains sensitivity-limited. In this paper, we survey the scientific motivations for gamma-ray astrophysics, sketch a concise history from the first ideas to key milestones in space- and ground-based gamma-ray astronomy, and discuss programmatic attempts to close the MeV gap.
Alessandro De Angelis (2026) studied this question.