An intrinsic correlation has been identified between the luminosity and duration of plateaus in the X-ray afterglows of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs; Dainotti et al. 2008), suggesting a central engine ...origin. The magnetar central engine model predicts an observable plateau phase, with plateau durations and luminosities being determined by the magnetic fields and spin periods of the newly formed magnetar. This paper analytically shows that the magnetar central engine model can explain, within the 1σ uncertainties, the correlation between plateau luminosity and duration. The observed scatter in the correlation most likely originates in the spread of initial spin periods of the newly formed magnetar and provides an estimate of the maximum spin period of ∼35 ms (assuming a constant mass, efficiency and beaming across the GRB sample). Additionally, by combining the observed data and simulations, we show that the magnetar emission is most likely narrowly beamed and has ≲20 per cent efficiency in conversion of rotational energy from the magnetar into the observed plateau luminosity. The beaming angles and efficiencies obtained by this method are fully consistent with both predicted and observed values. We find that short GRBs and short GRBs with extended emission lie on the same correlation but are statistically inconsistent with being drawn from the same distribution as long GRBs, this is consistent with them having a wider beaming angle than long GRBs.
GRB 130427A was extremely bright as a result of occurring at low redshift whilst the energetics were more typical of high-redshift gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). We collected well-sampled light curves at ...1.4 and 4.8 GHz of GRB 130427A with the Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope (WSRT); and we obtained its most accurate position with the European Very Long Baseline Interferometry Network (EVN). Our flux density measurements are combined with all the data available at radio, optical and X-ray frequencies to perform broad-band modelling in the framework of a reverse–forward shock model and a two-component jet model, and we discuss the implications and limitations of both models. The low density inferred from the modelling implies that the GRB 130427A progenitor is either a very low metallicity Wolf–Rayet star, or a rapidly rotating, low-metallicity O star. We also find that the fraction of the energy in electrons is evolving over time, and that the fraction of electrons participating in a relativistic power-law energy distribution is less than 15 per cent. We observed intraday variability during the earliest WSRT observations, and the source sizes inferred from our modelling are consistent with this variability being due to interstellar scintillation effects. Finally, we present and discuss our limits on the linear and circular polarization, which are among the deepest limits of GRB radio polarization to date.
ABSTRACT
The 21-cm absorption feature reported by the EDGES collaboration is several times stronger than that predicted by traditional astrophysical models. If genuine, a deeper absorption may lead ...to stronger fluctuations on the 21-cm signal on degree scales (up to 1 K in rms), allowing these fluctuations to be detectable in nearly 50 times shorter integration times compared to previous predictions. We commenced the ‘AARTFAAC Cosmic Explorer’ (ACE) program, which employs the AARTFAAC wide-field image, to measure or set limits on the power spectrum of the 21-cm fluctuations in the redshift range z = 17.9–18.6 (Δν = 72.36–75.09 MHz) corresponding to the deep part of the EDGES absorption feature. Here, we present first results from two LST bins: 23.5–23.75 and 23.75–24.00 h, each with 2 h of data, recorded in ‘semi drift-scan’ mode. We demonstrate the application of the new ACE data-processing pipeline (adapted from the LOFAR-EoR pipeline) on the AARTFAAC data. We observe that noise estimates from the channel and time-differenced Stokes V visibilities agree with each other. After 2 h of integration and subtraction of bright foregrounds, we obtain 2σ upper limits on the 21-cm power spectrum of $\Delta _{21}^2 \lt (8139~\textrm {mK})^2$ and $\Delta _{21}^2 \lt (8549~\textrm {mK})^2$ at $k = 0.144~h\, \textrm {cMpc}^{-1}$ for the two LST bins. Incoherently averaging the noise bias-corrected power spectra for the two LST bins yields an upper limit of $\Delta _{21}^2 \lt (7388~\textrm {mK})^2$ at $k = 0.144~h\, \textrm {cMpc}^{-1}$. These are the deepest upper limits thus far at these redshifts.
ABSTRACT
We present high-cadence multifrequency radio observations of the long gamma-ray burst (GRB) 190829A, which was detected at photon energies above 100 GeV by the High Energy Stereoscopic ...System (H.E.S.S.). Observations with the Meer Karoo Array Telescope (MeerKAT, 1.3 GHz) and Arcminute Microkelvin Imager – Large Array (AMI-LA, 15.5 GHz) began one day post-burst and lasted nearly 200 d. We used complementary data from Swift X-Ray Telescope (XRT), which ran to 100 d post-burst. We detected a likely forward shock component with both MeerKAT and XRT up to over 100 d post-burst. Conversely, the AMI-LA light curve appears to be dominated by reverse shock emission until around 70 d post-burst when the afterglow flux drops below the level of the host galaxy. We also present previously unpublished observations of the other H.E.S.S.-detected GRB, GRB 180720B from AMI-LA, which shows likely forward shock emission that fades in less than 10 d. We present a comparison between the radio emission from the three GRBs with detected very high energy (VHE) gamma-ray emission and a sensitivity-limited radio afterglow sample. GRB 190829A has the lowest isotropic radio luminosity of any GRB in our sample, but the distribution of luminosities is otherwise consistent, as expected, with the VHE GRBs being drawn from the same parent distribution as the other radio-detected long GRBs.
ABSTRACT
High brightness temperature radio transients such as pulsars and fast radio bursts (FRBs) require the coherent radiation of particles. The antenna class of coherent radiation models require ...a large number of charged particles radiating in phase, therefore the particles must be spatially confined and have well-aligned velocities. Given these necessary conditions, we look at the magnetic field induced by the currents associated with coherently emitting accelerated particles and consider the interaction between the radiating particles and the induced magnetic field. We find a maximum luminosity of coherent curvature radiation that depends on source parameters such as surface magnetic field and neutron star spin period. We find that coherent radio emission across all luminosities can be explained by coherent curvature radiation and suggest it could be universally responsible for both FRBs and extreme galactic sources. Using the Crab Pulsar as an example, we constrain the emission parameters and origin of the most extreme nanoshots to within 60 km of the pulsar surface assuming coherent curvature radiation. In agreement with recent observations, we also predict simultaneous X-ray emission from small-scale particle gyration due to the induced field.
It has been known for decades that the observed number of baryons in the local Universe falls about 30-40 per cent short
of the total number of baryons predicted
by Big Bang nucleosynthesis, as ...inferred
from density fluctuations of the cosmic microwave background and seen during the first 2-3 billion years of the Universe in the so-called 'Lyman α forest'
(a dense series of intervening H I Lyman α absorption lines in the optical spectra of background quasars). A theoretical solution to this paradox locates the missing baryons in the hot and tenuous filamentary gas between galaxies, known as the warm-hot intergalactic medium. However, it is difficult to detect them there because the largest by far constituent of this gas-hydrogen-is mostly ionized and therefore almost invisible in far-ultraviolet spectra with typical signal-to-noise ratios
. Indeed, despite large observational efforts, only a few marginal claims of detection have been made so far
. Here we report observations of two absorbers of highly ionized oxygen (O VII) in the high-signal-to-noise-ratio X-ray spectrum of a quasar at a redshift higher than 0.4. These absorbers show no variability over a two-year timescale and have no associated cold absorption, making the assumption that they originate from the quasar's intrinsic outflow or the host galaxy's interstellar medium implausible. The O VII systems lie in regions characterized by large (four times larger than average
) galaxy overdensities and their number (down to the sensitivity threshold of our data) agrees well with numerical simulation predictions for the long-sought warm-hot intergalactic medium. We conclude that the missing baryons have been found.
Whether stars could have driven the reionization of the intergalactic medium depends critically on the proportion of ionizing radiation that escapes the galaxies in which it is produced. Spectroscopy ...of gamma-ray burst (GRB) afterglows can be used to estimate the opacity to extreme ultraviolet (EUV) radiation along the lines-of-sight to the bursts. Assuming that long-duration GRBs trace the locations of the massive stars dominating EUV production, the average escape fraction of ionizing radiation can be calculated independently of galaxy size or luminosity. Here we present a compilation of HI column density (N(HI)) measures for 140 GRBs in the range 1.6 < z <6.7. Although the sample is heterogeneous, in terms of spectral resolution and signal-to-noise ratio, fits to the Ly α absorption line provide robust constraints on N(HI), even for spectra of insufficient quality for other purposes. Thus we establish an escape fraction at the Lyman limit of {f(esc)} ≈ 0.005, with a 98 per cent confidence upper limit of {f(esc)} ≈ 0.015. This analysis suggests that stars provide a small contribution to the ionizing radiation budget at z < 5. At higher redshifts firm conclusions are limited by the small size of the GRB sample (7/140), but any decline in average HI column density seems to be modest. We also find no significant correlation of N(HI) with galaxy UV luminosity or host stellar mass. We discuss in some detail potential biases and argue that, while not negligible, systematic errors in f(esc) are unlikely to be more than a factor ∼2 in either direction, and so would not affect the primary conclusions. Given that many GRB hosts are low-metallicity dwarf galaxies with high specific star-formation rates, these results present a particular problem for the hypothesis that such galaxies dominated the reionization of the Universe.
Lightning is a dangerous yet poorly understood natural phenomenon. Lightning forms a network of plasma channels propagating away from the initiation point with both positively and negatively charged ...ends-called positive and negative leaders
. Negative leaders propagate in discrete steps, emitting copious radio pulses in the 30-300-megahertz frequency band
that can be remotely sensed and imaged with high spatial and temporal resolution
. Positive leaders propagate more continuously and thus emit very little high-frequency radiation
. Radio emission from positive leaders has nevertheless been mapped
, and exhibits a pattern that is different from that of negative leaders
. Furthermore, it has been inferred that positive leaders can become transiently disconnected from negative leaders
, which may lead to current pulses that both reconnect positive leaders to negative leaders
and cause multiple cloud-to-ground lightning events
. The disconnection process is thought to be due to negative differential resistance
, but this does not explain why the disconnections form primarily on positive leaders
, or why the current in cloud-to-ground lightning never goes to zero
. Indeed, it is still not understood how positive leaders emit radio-frequency radiation or why they behave differently from negative leaders. Here we report three-dimensional radio interferometric observations of lightning over the Netherlands with unprecedented spatiotemporal resolution. We find small plasma structures-which we call 'needles'-that are the dominant source of radio emission from the positive leaders. These structures appear to drain charge from the leader, and are probably the reason why positive leaders disconnect from negative ones, and why cloud-to-ground lightning connects to the ground multiple times.
We present a study of the intermediate regime between ultrarelativistic and non-relativistic flow for gamma-ray burst afterglows. The hydrodynamics of spherically symmetric blast waves is numerically ...calculated using the amrvac adaptive mesh refinement code. Spectra and light curves are calculated using a separate radiation code that, for the first time, links a parametrization of the microphysics of shock acceleration, synchrotron self-absorption and electron cooling to a high-performance hydrodynamic simulation. For the dynamics, we find that the transition to the non-relativistic regime generally occurs later than expected, the Sedov–Taylor solution overpredicts the late-time blast wave radius and the analytical formula for the blast wave velocity from Huang, Dai & Lu overpredicts the late-time velocity by a factor of 4/3. Also, we find that the lab frame density directly behind the shock front divided by the fluid Lorentz factor squared remains very close to four times the unshocked density, while the effective adiabatic index of the shock changes from relativistic to non-relativistic. For the radiation, we find that the flux may differ up to an order of magnitude depending on the equation of state that is used for the fluid and that the counterjet leads to a clear rebrightening at late times for hard-edged jets. Simulating GRB 030329 using predictions for its physical parameters from the literature leads to spectra and light curves that may differ significantly from the actual data, emphasizing the need for very accurate modelling. Predicted light curves at low radio frequencies for a hard-edged jet model of GRB 030329 with opening angle 22° show typically two distinct peaks, due to the combined effect of jet break, non-relativistic break and counterjet. Spatially resolved afterglow images show a ring-like structure.
ABSTRACT
The nature of the central engines of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) and the composition of their relativistic jets are still under debate. If the jets are Poynting flux dominated rather than baryon ...dominated, a coherent radio flare from magnetic reconnection events might be expected with the prompt gamma-ray emission. There are two competing models for the central engines of GRBs; a black hole or a newly formed millisecond magnetar. If the central engine is a magnetar it is predicted to produce coherent radio emission as persistent or flaring activity. In this paper, we present the deepest limits to date for this emission following LOFAR rapid response observations of GRB 180706A. No emission is detected to a 3σ limit of 1.7 mJy beam−1 at 144 MHz in a 2-h LOFAR observation starting 4.5 min after the gamma-ray trigger. A forced source extraction at the position of GRB 180706A provides a marginally positive (1σ) peak flux density of 1.1 ± 0.9 mJy. The data were time sliced into different sets of snapshot durations to search for FRB like emission. No short duration emission was detected at the location of the GRB. We compare these results to theoretical models and discuss the implications of a non-detection.
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