arXiv subjects

E. Gogus

Publications and source records attributed to E. Gogus.

45 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2006

The Anomalous Early Afterglow of GRB 050801

The ROTSE-IIIc telescope at the H.E.S.S. site, Namibia, obtained the earliest detection of optical emission from a Gamma-Ray Burst (GRB), beginning only 21.8 s from the onset of Swift GRB 050801. The optical lightcurve does not fade or brighten significantly over the first ~250 s, after which there is an achromatic break and the lightcurve declines in typical power-law fashion. The Swift/XRT also obtained early observations starting at 69 s after the burst onset. The X-ray lightcurve shows the same features as the optical lightcurve. These correlated variations in the early optical and X-ray emission imply a common origin in space and time. This behavior is difficult to reconcile with the standard models of early afterglow emission.

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arXiv2005

X-Ray and Infrared Enhancement of Anomalous X-ray Pulsar 1E 2259+58

The long term (~1.5 years) X-ray enhancement and the accompanying infrared enhancement light curves of the anomalous X-ray pulsar 1E 2259+58 following the major bursting epoch can be accounted for by the relaxation of a fall back disk that has been pushed back by a gamma-ray flare. The required burst energy estimated from the results of our model fits is low enough for such a burst to have remained below the detection limits. We find that an irradiated disk model with a low irradiation efficiency is in good agreement with both X-ray and infrared data. Non-irradiated disk models also give a good fit to the X-ray light curve, but are not consistent with the infrared data for the first week of the enhancement.

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arXiv2005

Optical Lightcurve & Cooling Break of GRB 050502A

We present lightcurves of the afterglow of GRB050502A, including very early data at t-t_{GRB} < 60s. The lightcurve is composed of unfiltered ROTSE-IIIb optical observations from 44s to 6h post-burst, R-band MDM observations from 1.6 to 8.4h post-burst, and PAIRITEL J H K_s observations from 0.6 to 2.6h post-burst. The optical lightcurve is fit by a broken power law, where t^{alpha} steepens from alpha = -1.13 +- 0.02 to alpha = -1.44 +- 0.02 at \~5700s. This steepening is consistent with the evolution expected for the passage of the cooling frequency nu_c through the optical band. Even in our earliest observation at 44s post-burst, there is no evidence that the optical flux is brighter than a backward extrapolation of the later power law would suggest. The observed decay indices and spectral index are consistent with either an ISM or a Wind fireball model, but slightly favor the ISM interpretation. The expected spectral index in the ISM interpretation is consistent within 1 sigma with the observed spectral index beta = -0.8 +- 0.1; the Wind interpretation would imply a slightly (~2 sigma) shallower spectral index than observed. A small amount of dust extinction at the source redshift could steepen an intrinsic spectrum sufficiently to account for the observed value of beta. In this picture, the early optical decay, with the peak at or below 4.7e14 Hz at 44s, requires very small electron and magnetic energy partitions from the fireball.

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arXiv2005

Two years of INTEGRAL monitoring of the Soft Gamma-Ray Repeater SGR 1806-20: from quiescence to frenzy

SGR 1806-20 has been observed for more than 2 years with the INTEGRAL satellite. In this period the source went from a quiescent state into a very active one culminating in a giant flare on December 27 2004. Here we report on the properties of all the short bursts detected with INTEGRAL before the giant flare. We derive their number-intensity distribution and confirm the hardness-intensity correlation for the bursts found by Gotz et al. (2004a). Our sample includes a very bright outburst that occurred on October 5 2004, during which over one hundred bursts were emitted in 10 minutes, involving an energy release of 3 x 1E42 erg. We present a detailed analysis of it and discuss our results in the framework of the magnetar model.

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arXiv2003

Unraveling the cooling trend of the Soft Gamma Repeater, SGR 1627-41

SGR 1627-41 was discovered in 1998 after a single active episode which lasted \~6 weeks. We report here our monitoring results of the decay trend of the persistent X-ray luminosity of the source during the last 5 years. We find an initial temporal power law decay with index 0.47, reaching a plateau which is followed by a sharp (factor of ten) flux decline ~800 days after the source activation. The source spectrum is best described during the entire period by a single power law with high absorption (N_H=9.0(7)x10^(22) cm^(-2)); the spectral index, however, varies dramatically between 2.2-3.8 spanning the entire range for all known SGR sources. We discuss the cooling behavior of the neutron star assuming a deep crustal heating initiated by the burst activity of the source during 1998.

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arXiv2003

The 2001 April Burst Activation of SGR 1900+14: Pulse Properties and Torque

We report on observations of SGR 1900+14 made with the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) and BeppoSAX during the April 2001 burst activation of the source. Using these data, we measure the spindown torque on the star and confirm earlier findings that the torque and burst activity are not directly correlated. We compare the X-ray pulse profile to the gamma-ray profile during the April 18 intermediate flare and show that (i) their shapes are similar and (ii) the gamma-ray profile aligns closely in phase with the X-ray pulsations. The good phase alignment of the gamma-ray and X-ray profiles suggests that there was no rapid spindown following this flare of the magnitude inferred for the August 27 giant flare. We discuss how these observations further constrain magnetic field reconfiguration models for the large flares of SGRs.

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arXiv2003

An Extended Burst Tail from SGR 1900+14 with a Thermal X-ray Spectrum

The Soft Gamma Repeater, SGR 1900+14, entered a new phase of activity in April 2001 initiated by the intermediate flare recorded on April 18. Ten days following this flare, we discovered an abrupt increase in the source flux between consecutive RXTE orbits. This X-ray flux excess decayed over the next several minutes and was subsequently linked to a high fluence burst from SGR 1900+14 recorded by other spacecraft (Ulysses and KONUS) while the SGR was Earth-occulted for RXTE. We present here spectral and temporal analysis of both the burst of 28 April and the long X-ray tail following it. We find strong evidence of an exclusively thermal X-ray tail in this event and bring this evidence to bear on other bursts and flares from SGR 1900+14 which have shown extended X-ray excesses (e.g. 1998 August 29). We include in this comparison a discussion of the physical origins of SGR bursts and extended X-ray tails.

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arXiv2001

Multi-wavelength observations of the Soft Gamma Repeater SGR 1900+14 during its April 2001 activation

The soft-gamma repeater SGR 1900+14 became active on 18 April 2001 after about two years of quiescence; it had remained at a very low state of activity since the fall of 1998, when it exhibited extraordinary flaring. We have observed the source in the gamma and X rays with Ulysses and Chandra, and in the radio with MERLIN. We report here the confirmation of a two component X-ray spectrum (power law + blackbody), indicating emission from the neutron star surface. We have determined that there is a dust halo surrounding the source that extends up to >~ 100'' from the center of SGR 1900+14, due to scattering in the interstellar medium.

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arXiv1998

The Spectrum and Dips of RE 0751+14: A joint evaluation of ROSAT and ASCA Archival Data

Using archival ASCA and ROSAT observations of RE 0751+14, X-ray energy spectra, pulse profiles and the results of pulse timing analysis are presented. The energy spectra are well-fitted by a blackbody model at low energy and a Raymond-Smith model at high energy, together with a partial covering absorber. A fluorescence emission line at 6.4 keV with an equivalent width $\sim 220 $ eV was resolved for the first time.

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