DOCSLIB.ORG

Exploring Gamma-Ray Bursts, Their Immediate Environment and Host Galaxies C 2015 Mette Friis

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Exploring Gamma-Ray Bursts, Their Immediate Environment and Host Galaxies C 2015 Mette Friis RH-10-2015 Dissertation for the degree of doctor of philosophy Exploring Gamma-Ray Bursts, Their Immediate Environment and Host Galaxies Mette Friis arXiv:1512.03205v1 [astro-ph.HE] 10 Dec 2015 School of Engineering and Natural Sciences Faculty of Physical Sciences Reykjavík, October 2015 A dissertation presented to the University of Iceland, School of Engineering and Natural Sciences, in candidacy for the degree of doctor of philosophy Doctoral committee Gunnlaugur Björnsson, Research Professor Science Institute, University of Iceland Páll Jakobsson, Professor University of Iceland Einar H. Guðmundsson, Professor University of Iceland Opponents Professor Sandra Savaglio Physics Department University of Calabria Via P. Bucci I-87036 Arcavacata di Rende Italy Dr. Stefano Covino INAF / Brera Astronomical Observatory Via Bianchi 46 23807 Merate (LC) Italy Exploring Gamma-Ray Bursts, Their Immediate Environment and Host Galaxies c 2015 Mette Friis Printed in Denmark by Reklamernes Fællestryk Science Institute Report RH-10-2015 ISBN 978-9935-9263-6-4 Dedicated to You. Thank you for reading. iii iv Contents Abstract xii Acknowledgements xiv 1 Gamma-Ray Bursts 1 1.1 InShort:WhatisaGamma-RayBurst? . 1 1.2 Classification ................................ 2 1.2.1 ShortGamma-RayBursts . 3 1.2.2 LongGamma-RayBursts . 3 1.2.3 UltraLongGamma-RayBursts. 5 1.2.4 X-RayFlashes ........................... 5 1.3 TheGamma-RayBurstModel . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 6 1.3.1 TheFireballModel......................... 6 1.3.2 TheJetModel ........................... 8 1.3.3 TheAfterglow ........................... 10 1.3.4 ShortGamma-RayBursts . 13 1.3.5 AlternativeModels. 14 1.4 Progenitor.................................. 14 1.4.1 TheCollapsarModel. 14 1.4.2 PotentialProblems. 15 1.4.3 ShortGamma-RayBursts . 16 1.5 HostGalaxies................................ 17 1.5.1 GalacticEnvironment . 19 1.5.2 Methods for Determining Redshift . 20 1.5.2.1 Line-of-sightabsorption . 20 1.5.2.2 Nebular-lineemission . 21 1.5.2.3 Photometricredshift. 21 v vi CONTENTS 1.6 ProspectsforAstronomy. 23 1.6.1 TracersofStar-Formation . 23 1.6.2 ProbingtheEpochofRe-ionisation. 25 1.7 Gamma-RayBurstsObservatories . 27 2 The Gamma-Ray Burst Spectrum 31 2.1 ThePromptSpectrum........................... 31 2.2 RadiativeProcesses............................. 34 2.2.1 SynchrotronRadiation. 34 2.2.2 InverseComptonemission . 39 2.2.3 Thermalemission.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 40 2.3 TheAfterglowSpectrum.. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 43 2.4 SupernovaConnection . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 44 2.5 ASNshockbreakout............................ 45 2.6 TheCocoonmodel ............................. 46 3 Thermal Emission in the Early X-ray Afterglows of GRBs: Following the Prompt Phase to Late Times. 49 3.1 Introduction................................. 50 3.2 Observationaldataandmethods . 51 3.3 Results.................................... 52 3.3.1 GRB061007............................. 54 3.3.2 GRB090424............................. 56 3.3.3 GRB061121,060202and060418 . 56 3.3.4 Previousdetections. 56 3.4 Originofthethermalcomponent . 58 3.4.1 SNshockbreakout ......................... 58 3.4.2 Alternativemodels . 61 3.5 Conclusions ................................. 64 3.6 Acknowledgements ............................. 65 4 Characterising the Environment 67 4.1 Voigt-ProfileFitting ............................ 67 4.1.1 Oscillatorstrength . 68 4.1.2 Numberdensity........................... 68 4.1.3 Dopplerbroadening . 68 4.1.4 Naturalbroadening. 70 CONTENTS vii 4.1.5 Instrumentalbroadening. 70 4.1.6 TheVoigtprofile .......................... 70 4.1.7 Determiningcolumndensity. 72 4.2 FittingEmissionLines ........................... 75 4.3 Nebular-LineDiagnostics . 75 4.3.1 R23 ................................. 76 4.3.2 O3N2 ................................ 77 4.3.3 N2.................................. 77 4.3.4 Calibrationissues. 78 4.4 Fitting the Stellar Population . .. 79 4.4.1 TheInitialMassFunction . 80 4.4.2 Age ................................. 81 4.4.3 Mass-loss .............................. 83 4.4.4 Gasanddust ............................ 83 4.5 Methods for Determining the Star Formation Rate . .... 83 4.5.1 UVluminosity ........................... 83 4.5.2 Emissionlinefluxes . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 84 4.5.3 FIRluminosity ........................... 85 4.5.4 RadioEmission........................... 86 4.5.5 X-rayemission ........................... 86 4.6 TheX-ShooterSample........................... 86 5 The Warm, the Excited, and the Molecular Gas: GRB121024A Shining Through its Star-Forming Galaxy. 91 5.1 Introduction................................. 93 5.2 ObservationsandDataReduction . 95 5.2.1 X-shooter NIR/Optical/UV Spectroscopy . 96 5.2.2 NOT,GTCandVLT/HAWK-Iimaging . 96 5.2.3 GRONDandSkynetPhotometry. 97 5.3 AnalysisandResults ............................ 98 5.3.1 AbsorptionLines .......................... 98 5.3.2 DustDepletion ........................... 106 5.3.3 Distance between GRB and Absorbing Gas . 108 5.3.4 MolecularHydrogen . 110 5.3.5 EmissionLines ........................... 113 5.3.6 Star-FormationRate . 114 viii CONTENTS 5.3.7 MetallicityfromEmissionLines. 116 5.3.8 BalmerDecrement . 117 5.3.9 Broad-Band Spectral Energy Distribution . 117 5.3.10 Stellar Population Synthesis Modelling . .. 118 5.3.11 Kinematics ............................. 119 5.3.12 InterveningSystems . 120 5.4 DiscussionandImplications . 120 5.4.1 Abundance Measurements from Absorption and Emission Lines 120 5.4.2 The Mass-Metallicity Relation at z 2 ............. 122 ∼ 5.4.3 GreyDustExtinction?. 122 5.4.4 MolecularHydrogeninGRB-DLAs. 125 5.4.5 Gas kinematics: dissecting the host components . 126 5.5 Appendix .................................. 129 5.5.1 Skynetmagnitudetables. 129 6 Interstellar Dust 133 6.1 PropertiesofDust ............................. 134 6.1.1 AbsorptionFeatures . 134 6.1.1.1 The2175Åbump . 134 6.1.1.2 Mid-IRsilicatefeatures . 135 6.1.1.3 DIBs ........................... 135 6.1.2 EmissionFeatures . 136 6.2 DustFormation............................... 137 6.3 DustEmission ............................... 139 6.4 DustAbsorptionandScattering. 139 6.5 ExtinctionandAttenuationCurves . 141 6.6 Methods of Determining Dust Extinction . 143 6.6.1 BalmerDecrement . 143 6.6.2 IRX-β Relation........................... 144 6.6.3 DusttoGas/MetalRatio . 145 6.6.4 AbundancePatterns . 146 6.7 Gamma-RayBurstsExtinctionCurves . 147 6.8 GreyDust.................................. 149 7 IsGreyDustCommonintheUniverse? 153 7.1 Introduction................................. 154 7.2 GRB121024A................................ 156 CONTENTS ix 7.2.1 Metallicity and dust depletion of the birth site of GRB 121024A 156 7.2.2 ExtinctionCurve. 158 7.2.3 AdifferentoriginfortheX-rays? . 159 7.2.4 A differential dust destruction by the GRB? . 161 7.3 GRBextinctioncurvesamples . 162 7.4 GreyDust.................................. 164 7.4.1 Theoriginofgreydust . 164 7.4.2 Ubiquityofgreydust . 166 7.4.3 Consequences of applying the wrong extinction curve . ..... 167 7.5 Conclusions ................................. 169 8 Summary and Prospects 171 Bibliography 196 x CONTENTS Abstract The Universe has always been the source of wonder and the home to many mysteries. What goes on in distant parts, great beyond our own solar system, is difficult to decipher, even with the enormous technological progress of the last hundred years. One opportunity to study the distant, young Universe, is presented through observa- tions of Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs). GRBs are extremely bright transient objects, in principle observable out to cosmological redshifts or z > 10. Not only are they extremely bright in γ-rays, GRBs also have powerful afterglows, with bursts such as GRB 080319B, dubbed the ’naked-eye’ burst, as it was bright enough to be visible with the human eye, despite a redshift of z =0.9. Much work has been done on these objects, but there are still open questions to explore. In the first paper of this thesis I present work on the radiative mechanisms of GRBs. In particular, the work concerns the interpretation of the soft X-ray com- ponents observed in the early afterglow. To examine this component, we selected a sample of the X-ray brightest bursts observed by the Swift telescope XRT, on which we performed a systematic search for a thermal component. The results show that this emission is more ubiquitous than previously thought. Most of the afterglows show signs of a thermal component, with about one fourth having a statistical sig- nificant detection. Previously, these components have often been interpreted as the supernova (SN) shock break-out. Model calculations show that the total energy from the break-out will never be more than 1047 ergs. This result fits poorly with the already discovered thermal components, and is even more difficult to reconcile with the new-found additions from our search. The energetics are simply too large. The blackbody temperatures and luminosities are so high that a physical origin is diffi- cult to construct. On that background, and because thermal emission is frequently observed in the prompt (γ- and hard X-ray) emission of the GRBs, we propose the model of late photospheric emission. In this model, the emission originates within the jet, from material moving at relativistic speed. This is supported by the evolution of xi xii Abstract the simple blackbody radius, seen to evolve with an apparent velocity faster than the speed of light. Compared with the results from the prompt phase,
Load more

Recommended publications
  • JOHN R. THORSTENSEN Address
    CURRICULUM VITAE: JOHN R. THORSTENSEN Address: Department of Physics and Astronomy Dartmouth College 6127 Wilder Laboratory Hanover, NH 03755-3528; (603)-646-2869 [email protected] Undergraduate Studies: Haverford College, B. A. 1974 Astronomy and Physics double major, High Honors in both. Graduate Studies: Ph. D., 1980, University of California, Berkeley Astronomy Department Dissertation : \Optical Studies of Faint Blue X-ray Stars" Graduate Advisor: Professor C. Stuart Bowyer Employment History: Department of Physics and Astronomy, Dartmouth College: { Professor, July 1991 { present { Associate Professor, July 1986 { July 1991 { Assistant Professor, September 1980 { June 1986 Research Assistant, Space Sciences Lab., U.C. Berkeley, 1975 { 1980. Summer Student, National Radio Astronomy Observatory, 1974. Summer Student, Bartol Research Foundation, 1973. Consultant, IBM Corporation, 1973. (STARMAP program). Honors and Awards: Phi Beta Kappa, 1974. National Science Foundation Graduate Fellow, 1974 { 1977. Dorothea Klumpke Roberts Award of the Berkeley Astronomy Dept., 1978. Professional Societies: American Astronomical Society Astronomical Society of the Pacific International Astronomical Union Lifetime Publication List * \Can Collapsed Stars Close the Universe?" Thorstensen, J. R., and Partridge, R. B. 1975, Ap. J., 200, 527. \Optical Identification of Nova Scuti 1975." Raff, M. I., and Thorstensen, J. 1975, P. A. S. P., 87, 593. \Photometry of Slow X-ray Pulsars II: The 13.9 Minute Period of X Persei." Margon, B., Thorstensen, J., Bowyer, S., Mason, K. O., White, N. E., Sanford, P. W., Parkes, G., Stone, R. P. S., and Bailey, J. 1977, Ap. J., 218, 504. \A Spectrophotometric Survey of the A 0535+26 Field." Margon, B., Thorstensen, J., Nelson, J., Chanan, G., and Bowyer, S.
    [Show full text]
  • Gravitational Waves and Gamma-Rays from a Binary Neutron Star Merger: Gw170817 and Grb 170817A
    Draft version October 15, 2017 Typeset using LATEX twocolumn style in AASTeX61 GRAVITATIONAL WAVES AND GAMMA-RAYS FROM A BINARY NEUTRON STAR MERGER: GW170817 AND GRB 170817A B. P. Abbott,1 R. Abbott,1 T. D. Abbott,2 F. Acernese,3, 4 K. Ackley,5, 6 C. Adams,7 T. Adams,8 P. Addesso,9 R. X. Adhikari,1 V. B. Adya,10 C. Affeldt,10 M. Afrough,11 B. Agarwal,12 M. Agathos,13 K. Agatsuma,14 N. Aggarwal,15 O. D. Aguiar,16 L. Aiello,17, 18 A. Ain,19 P. Ajith,20 B. Allen,10, 21, 22 G. Allen,12 A. Allocca,23, 24 M. A. Aloy,25 P. A. Altin,26 A. Amato,27 A. Ananyeva,1 S. B. Anderson,1 W. G. Anderson,21 S. V. Angelova,28 S. Antier,29 S. Appert,1 K. Arai,1 M. C. Araya,1 J. S. Areeda,30 N. Arnaud,29, 31 K. G. Arun,32 S. Ascenzi,33, 34 G. Ashton,10 M. Ast,35 S. M. Aston,7 P. Astone,36 D. V. Atallah,37 P. Aufmuth,22 C. Aulbert,10 K. AultONeal,38 C. Austin,2 A. Avila-Alvarez,30 S. Babak,39 P. Bacon,40 M. K. M. Bader,14 S. Bae,41 P. T. Baker,42 F. Baldaccini,43, 44 G. Ballardin,31 S. W. Ballmer,45 S. Banagiri,46 J. C. Barayoga,1 S. E. Barclay,47 B. C. Barish,1 D. Barker,48 K. Barkett,49 F. Barone,3, 4 B. Barr,47 L. Barsotti,15 M. Barsuglia,40 D. Barta,50 J.
    [Show full text]
  • Plasmas in Gamma-Ray Bursts: Particle Acceleration, Magnetic Fields, Radiative Processes and Environments
    galaxies Article Plasmas in Gamma-Ray Bursts: Particle Acceleration, Magnetic Fields, Radiative Processes and Environments Asaf Pe’er Physics Department, Bar Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 52900, Israel; [email protected]; Tel.: +972-3-5318438 Received: 22 November 2018; Accepted: 7 February 2019; Published: 15 February 2019 Abstract: Being the most extreme explosions in the universe, gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) provide a unique laboratory to study various plasma physics phenomena. The complex light curve and broad-band, non-thermal spectra indicate a very complicated system on the one hand, but, on the other hand, provide a wealth of information to study it. In this chapter, I focus on recent progress in some of the key unsolved physical problems. These include: (1) particle acceleration and magnetic field generation in shock waves; (2) possible role of strong magnetic fields in accelerating the plasmas, and accelerating particles via the magnetic reconnection process; (3) various radiative processes that shape the observed light curve and spectra, both during the prompt and the afterglow phases, and finally (4) GRB environments and their possible observational signature. Keywords: jets; radiation mechanism: non-thermal; galaxies: active; gamma-ray bursts; TBD 1. Introduction Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are the most extreme explosions known since the big bang, releasing as much as 1055 erg (isotropically equivalent) in a few seconds, in the form of gamma rays [1]. Such a huge amount of energy released in such a short time must be accompanied by a relativistic motion of a relativistically expanding plasma. There are two separate arguments for that. First, the existence of > ± photons at energies ∼ MeV as are observed in many GRBs necessitates the production of e pairs by photon–photon interactions, as long as the optical depth for such interactions is greater than unity.
    [Show full text]
  • Important Events in Chile
    No. 87 – March 1997 Important Events in Chile R. GIACCONI, Director General of ESO The political events foreseen in the December 1996 issue of The Messenger did take place in Chile in the early part of December 1996. On December 2, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Chile, Mr. Miguel Insulza, and the Director General of ESO, Professor Riccardo Giacconi, exchanged in Santiago Instruments of Ratification of the new “Interpretative, Supplementary and Amending Agreement” to the 1963 Convention between the Government of Chile and the European Southern Observatory. This agreement opens a new era of co-operation between Chilean and European Astronomers. On December 4, 1996, the “Foundation Ceremony” for the Paranal Observatory took place on Cerro Paranal, in the presence of the President of Chile, Mr. Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle, the Royal couple of Sweden, King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia, the Foreign Minister of the Republic of Chile, Mr. José Miguel Insulza, the Ambassadors of the Member States, members of the of the ESO Executive, ESO staff and the Paranal contractors’ workers. The approximately 250 guests heard addresses by Dr. Peter Creo- la, President of the ESO Council, Professor Riccardo Giacconi, Direc- tor General of ESO, Foreign Minis- ter José Miguel Insulza and Presi- dent Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle. The original language version of the four addresses follows this introduction. (A translation in English of the Span- ish text is given on pages 58 and 59 in this issue of The Messenger.) A time capsule whose contents are described in Dr. Richard West's article was then deposited by Presi- dent Frei with the works being bless- ed by the Archbishop of Antofagas- ta, Monsignor Patricio Infante.
    [Show full text]
  • Downloaded Data
    Spectral and Timing Analysis of the Prompt Emission of Gamma Ray Bursts A Thesis Submitted to the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Physics by Rupal Basak School of Natural Sciences Tata Institute of Fundamental Research Mumbai Final Submission: Aug, 2014 arXiv:1409.5626v1 [astro-ph.HE] 19 Sep 2014 To my Parents Contents List of Publication viii 1 GRBs: The Extreme Transients 1 1.1 Overview ........................................ .............. 1 1.2 ThesisOrganization.. ... .... .... .... ... .... .... .. ................... 2 1.3 HistoryAndClassification . .................... 2 1.3.1 Discovery,AfterglowandDistanceScale . ...................... 2 1.3.2 ClassificationofGRBs . ................ 3 1.4 Observables..................................... ................ 7 1.4.1 PromptEmissionCharacteristics . ..................... 7 1.4.2 GenericFeaturesOfAfterglows . ................... 9 1.4.3 GeVEmission ................................... ............ 10 1.4.4 GRBCorrelations ............................... .............. 10 1.5 AWorkingModelforGRBs .... .... .... ... .... .... .... ................ 11 1.5.1 CompactnessAndRelativisticMotion . ..................... 11 1.5.2 “FireballModel”AndRadiationMechanism . ..................... 12 1.5.3 CentralEngineAndProgenitor. ................... 15 1.6 GRBResearch ..................................... .............. 16 1.7 BooksAndReviewArticles . .................. 17 2 Instruments And Data Analysis 18 2.1 Overview .......................................
    [Show full text]
  • The Early Optical Afterglow and Non-Thermal Components of GRB 060218
    MNRAS 484, 5484–5498 (2019) doi:10.1093/mnras/stz373 Advance Access publication 2019 February 7 The early optical afterglow and non-thermal components of GRB 060218 S. W. K. Emery ,1‹ M. J. Page ,1 A. A. Breeveld,1 P. J. Brown,2 N. P. M. Kuin,1 S. R. Oates3 and M. De Pasquale4 1Mullard Space Science Laboratory, University College London, Holmbury St Mary, Dorking, Surrey RH5 6NT, UK Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/mnras/article-abstract/484/4/5484/5308848 by University College London user on 16 April 2019 2George P. and Cynthia Woods Mitchell Institute for Fundamental Physics and Astronomy, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Texas A&M University, 4242 TAMU, College Station, TX 77843, USA 3Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, UK 4Istanbul˙ University Department of Astronomy and Space Sciences, 34119 Beyazit, Istanbul,˙ Turkey Accepted 2019 February 5. Received 2018 November 13; in original form 2018 March 21 ABSTRACT We re-examine the UV/optical and X-ray observations of GRB 060218 during the prompt and afterglow phases. We present evidence in the UV/optical spectra that there is a synchrotron component contributing to the observed flux in the initial 1350 s. This result suggests that GRB 060218 is produced from a low-luminosity jet, which penetrates through its progenitor envelope after core collapse. The jet interacts with the surrounding medium to generate the UV/optical external shock synchrotron emission. After 1350 s, the thermal radiation in the UV/optical and X-ray becomes the dominant contribution to the observed flux.
    [Show full text]
  • The GRB 060218/SN 2006Aj Event in the Context of Other Gamma-Ray Burst Supernovae,
    A&A 457, 857–864 (2006) Astronomy DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361:20065530 & c ESO 2006 Astrophysics The GRB 060218/SN 2006aj event in the context of other gamma-ray burst supernovae, P. Ferrero1,D.A.Kann1,A.Zeh2,S.Klose1,E.Pian2, E. Palazzi3, N. Masetti3,D.H.Hartmann4, J. Sollerman5,J.Deng6, A. V. Filippenko7, J. Greiner8, M. A. Hughes9, P. Mazzali2,10, W. Li7,E.Rol11,R.J.Smith12, and N. R. Tanvir9,11 1 Thüringer Landessternwarte Tautenburg, 07778 Tautenburg, Germany e-mail: [email protected] 2 Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica-OATs, 34131 Trieste, Italy 3 INAF, Istituto di Astrofisica Spaziale e Fisica Cosmica, Sez. di Bologna, 40129 Bologna, Italy 4 Clemson University, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Clemson, SC 29634-0978, USA 5 Dark Cosmology Center, Niels Bohr Institute, Copenhagen University, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark 6 National Astronomical Observatories, CAS, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100012, PR China 7 Department of Astronomy, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-3411, USA 8 Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestische Physik, 85741 Garching, Germany 9 Centre for Astrophysics Research, University of Hertfordshire, College Lane, Hatfield, AL10 9AB, UK 10 Max-Planck Institut für Astrophysik, 85748 Garching, Germany 11 Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, Leicester, LE1 7RH, UK 12 Astrophysics Research Institute, Liverpool John Moores University, Twelve Quays House, Birkenhead, CH41 1LD, UK Received 2 May 2006 / Accepted 13 July 2006 ABSTRACT The supernova SN 2006aj associated with GRB 060218 is the second-closest GRB-SN observed to date (z = 0.033). We present Very Large Telescope, Liverpool Telescope, and Katzman Automatic Imaging Telescope multi-color photometry of SN 2006aj.
    [Show full text]
  • GRB 060218/SN 2006Aj: a Gamma-Ray Burst and Prompt Supernova Atz= 0.0335
    Dartmouth College Dartmouth Digital Commons Open Dartmouth: Published works by Dartmouth faculty Faculty Work 6-1-2006 GRB 060218/SN 2006aj: A Gamma-Ray Burst and Prompt Supernova atz= 0.0335 N. Mirabal University of Michigan-Ann Arbor J. P. Halpern Columbia University D. An Ohio State University J. R. Thorstensen Dartmouth College D. M. Terndrup Ohio State University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.dartmouth.edu/facoa Part of the Stars, Interstellar Medium and the Galaxy Commons Dartmouth Digital Commons Citation Mirabal, N.; Halpern, J. P.; An, D.; Thorstensen, J. R.; and Terndrup, D. M., "GRB 060218/SN 2006aj: A Gamma-Ray Burst and Prompt Supernova atz= 0.0335" (2006). Open Dartmouth: Published works by Dartmouth faculty. 2235. https://digitalcommons.dartmouth.edu/facoa/2235 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Faculty Work at Dartmouth Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Open Dartmouth: Published works by Dartmouth faculty by an authorized administrator of Dartmouth Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. The Astrophysical Journal, 643: L99–L102, 2006 June 1 ൴ ᭧ 2006. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved. Printed in U.S.A. GRB 060218/SN 2006aj: A GAMMA-RAY BURST AND PROMPT SUPERNOVA AT z p 0.0335 N. Mirabal,1 J. P. Halpern,2 D. An,3 J. R. Thorstensen,4 and D. M. Terndrup3 Received 2006 March 19; accepted 2006 April 18; published 2006 May 8 ABSTRACT We report the imaging and spectroscopic localization of GRB 060218 to a low-metallicity dwarf starburst In addition to making it the second nearest gamma-ray burst known, optical .
    [Show full text]
  • The Messenger
    Czech Republic joins ESO The Messenger Progress on ALMA CRIRES Science Verification Gender balance among ESO staff No. 128 – JuneNo. 2007 The Organisation The Czech Republic Joins ESO Catherine Cesarsky The XXVIth IAU General Assembly, held This Agreement was formally confirmed (ESO Director General) in Prague in 2006, clearly provided a by the ESO Council at its meeting on boost for the Czech efforts to join ESO, 6 December and a few days thereafter by not the least in securing the necessary the Czech government, enabling a sign- I am delighted to welcome the Czech public and political support. Thus our ing ceremony in Prague on 22 December Republic as our 13th member state. From Czech colleagues used the opportunity (see photograph below). This was impor- its size, the Czech Republic may not be- to publish a fine and very interesting pop- tant because the Agreement foresaw long to the ‘big’ member states, but the ular book about Czech astronomy and accession by 1 January 2007. With the accession nonetheless marks an impor- ESO, which, together with the General signatures in place, the agreement could tant point in ESO’s history and, I believe, Assembly, created considerable media be submitted to the Czech Parliament in the history of Czech astronomy as well. interest. for ratification within an agreed ‘grace pe- The Czech Republic is the first of the riod’. This formal procedure was con- Central and East European countries to On 20 September 2006, at a meeting at cluded on 30 April 2007, when I was noti- join ESO. The membership underlines ESO Headquarters, the negotiating teams fied of the deposition of the instrument of ESO’s continuing evolution as the prime from ESO and the Czech Republic arrived ratification at the French Ministry of European organisation for astronomy, at an agreement in principle, which was Foreign Affairs.
    [Show full text]
  • Annual Report 2012
    ESO European Organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere Annual Report 2012 ESO European Organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere Annual Report 2012 presented to the Council by the Director General Prof. Tim de Zeeuw The European Southern Observatory ESO, the European Southern Obser­ ) vatory, is the foremost intergovern ­ mental astronomy organisation in Europe. It is supported by 15 countries: Austria, josefrancisco.org Belgium, Brazil1, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Finland, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Several other countries have expressed an interest in membership. ESO/José Francisco Salgado ( Salgado Francisco ESO/José Created in 1962, ESO carries out an ambitious programme focussed on the design, construction and operation of powerful ground­based observing facilities, enabling astronomers to make important scientific discoveries. ESO also plays a leading role in promoting The ridge at La Silla. and organising cooperation in astro­ nomical research. forefront of astronomy, and is still the The VLT is a most unusual telescope, third most scientifically productive in based on the latest technology. It is ESO operates three unique world­class ground ­based astronomy (after Paranal not just one, but an array of four tele­ observing sites in the Atacama Desert and the Keck Observatory), the Paranal scopes, each with a main mirror of re gion of Chile: La Silla, Paranal and site, at 2600 metres above sea level, with 8.2 metres in diameter. With one such Chajnantor. ESO’s first site is at La Silla, the Very Large Telescope array (VLT), telescope, images of celestial objects a mountain of height 2400 metres, 600 the Visible and Infrared Survey Telescope as faint as magnitude 30 have been kilo metres north of Santiago de Chile.
    [Show full text]
  • A Relativistic Type Ibc Supernova Without a Detected C-Ray Burst
    Vol 463 | 28 January 2010 | doi:10.1038/nature08714 LETTERS A relativistic type Ibc supernova without a detected c-ray burst A. M. Soderberg1, S. Chakraborti2, G. Pignata3, R. A. Chevalier4, P. Chandra5, A. Ray2, M. H. Wieringa6, A. Copete1, V. Chaplin7, V. Connaughton7, S. D. Barthelmy8, M. F. Bietenholz9,10, N. Chugai11, M. D. Stritzinger12,13, M. Hamuy3, C. Fransson14, O. Fox4, E. M. Levesque1,15, J. E. Grindlay1, P. Challis1, R. J. Foley1, R. P. Kirshner1, P. A. Milne16 & M. A. P. Torres1 Long duration c-ray bursts (GRBs) mark1 the explosive death of some GRBs preferentially discovered at larger distances. Further VLA massive stars and are a rare sub-class of type Ibc supernovae. They are observations of SN 2009bb revealed a power-law flux decay, 21.4 13 distinguished by the production of an energetic and collimated relati- Fn,8.46 GHz < t , in line with the radio afterglow evolution seen vistic outflow powered2 by a central engine (an accreting black hole or for the nearest c-ray burst, namely GRB 980425 at a similar distance neutron star). Observationally, this outflow is manifested3 in the pulse of d < 38 Mpc (Fig. 1). of c-rays and a long-lived radio afterglow. Until now, central-engine- driven supernovae have been discovered exclusively through their 1030 c-ray emission, yet it is expected4 that a larger population goes un- GRB 980425 GRB 031203 detected because of limited satellite sensitivity or beaming of the col- SN 2009bb limated emission away from our line of sight. In this framework, the GRB 060218 1029 recovery of undetected GRBs may be possible through radio searches5,6 for type Ibc supernovae with relativistic outflows.
    [Show full text]
  • A Tidal Disruption Event in a Nearby Galaxy Hosting an Intermediate Mass Black Hole
    The Astrophysical Journal,781:59(13pp),2014February1 doi:10.1088/0004-637X/781/2/59 C 2014. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved. Printed in the U.S.A. ! A TIDAL DISRUPTION EVENT IN A NEARBY GALAXY HOSTING AN INTERMEDIATE MASS BLACK HOLE D. Donato1,2,S.B.Cenko3,4,S.Covino5,E.Troja1,T.Pursimo6,C.C.Cheung7,O.Fox3,A.Kutyrev8, S. Campana4,D.Fugazza4,H.Landt9,andN.R.Butler10 1 CRESST and Astroparticle Physics Laboratory NASA/GSFC, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA; [email protected] 2 Department of Astronomy, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA 3 Astrophysics Science Division, NASA/GSFC, Mail Code 661, Greenbelt, MD 20771, USA 4 Joint Space Science Institute, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA 5 INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera, via E. Bianchi 46, I-23807 Merate (LC), Italy 6 Nordic Optical Telescope, Apartado 474, E-38700 Santa Cruz de La Palma, Spain 7 Space Science Division, Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC 20375-5352, USA 8 Observational Cosmology Laboratory, NASA/GSFC, 8800 Greenbelt Road, Greenbelt, MD 20771-2400, USA 9 Department of Physics, Durham University, South Road, Durham DH1 3LE, UK 10 School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287, USA Received 2013 July 26; accepted 2013 November 22; published 2014 January 8 ABSTRACT We report the serendipitous discovery of a bright point source flare in the Abell cluster A1795 with archival EUVE and Chandra observations. Assuming the EUVE emission is associated with the Chandra source, the X-ray 0.5–7 keV flux declined by a factor of 2300 over a time span of 6 yr, following a power-law decay with index 2.44 0.40.
    [Show full text]