BATSE's sky sensitivity map

The Burst and Transient Source Experiment (BATSE) detects any γ‐ray burst not obscured by the earth and intense enough to produce a sufficiently strong signal in at least two of its eight large area NaI detectors (LADs). For a given intensity, a LAD records a stronger signal from a source which directly faces it than from a source to its side. Thus, BATSE’s detection of a γ‐ray burst may depend upon the burst’s direction. We discuss the effect of this uneven exposure to the sky on the instrument’s measurement of the distribution of γ‐ray burst directions and intensities, and we describe our method of accounting for the effect.