The Compton Gamma Ray Observatory is like a really fancy telescope that can see things that our eyes can't see. It looks up into space and detects a kind of light called gamma rays. These gamma rays come from really powerful events in space, like exploding stars and black holes that are gobbling up everything around them.
The observatory had four different instruments that helped scientists study these gamma rays. One instrument, called the Burst and Transient Source Experiment, helped scientists study bursts of gamma rays that happen really quickly. Another instrument, called the Imaging Compton Telescope, helped scientists map where the gamma rays were coming from.
The Compton Gamma Ray Observatory was launched into space in 1991 and was up there for almost 10 years, helping scientists learn more about the Universe and the powerful events that happen in it. So, in summary, the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory is like a space telescope that helps us see gamma rays from really powerful events in space.