NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2011B-0484
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NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2011B-0484 |
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PI: Antonino Cucchiara, UC Berkeley (Astronomy), acucchiara@lbl.gov
Address: Department of Astronomy, 601 Campbell Hall #3411, Berkeley, CA, 94720-3411, USA
CoI: Nial Tanvir, University of Leicester, Department of Physics and Astronomy, University Road, Leicester LE1 7RH, United Kingdom
CoI: Bethany Cobb, The George Washington University
CoI: Derek Fox, Pennsylvania State University
CoI: David Bersier, Liverpool John Moores University
CoI: Joshua Bloom, UC Berkeley (Astronomy)
CoI: Andrew Bunker, Oxford
CoI: Nat Butler, UC Berkeley (Astronomy)
CoI: Brad Cenko, UC Berkeley (Astronomy)
CoI: Hsiao-Wen Chen, University of Chicago
CoI: Andrew Fruchter, Space Telescope Science Institute
CoI: Karl Glazebrook, Swinburne University of Technology
CoI: John Graham, Space Telescope Science Institute
CoI: Jochen Greiner, Max-Planck-Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics
CoI: Jens Hjorth, NBI: DARK, Copenhagen
CoI: Palle Jakobsson, University of Iceland
CoI: Andrew Levan, University of Warwick
CoI: Sebastian Lopez, Universidad de Chile
CoI: Chris Matzner, University of Toronto
CoI: Adam Morgan, UC Berkeley (Astronomy)
CoI: Paul O'Brien, University of Leicester
CoI: Daniel Perley, UC Berkeley (Astronomy)
CoI: Max Pettini, Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge
CoI: Jason X Prochaska, UC Santa Cruz
CoI: Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz, UC Santa Cruz
CoI: Daniel Reichart, University of North Carolina
CoI: James Rhoads, Arizona State University
CoI: Rhaana Starling, University of Leicester,
CoI: Klaas Wiersema, University of Leicester
CoI: Brian Schmidt, Australian National University
CoI: Edo Berger, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
CoI: Shrinivas Kulkarni, Caltech Astronomy
CoI: Kathy Roth, Gemini Observatory
CoI: Robert Rutledge, McGill University
CoI: Philipp Podsiadloswski, Oxford University
CoI: Wen-fai Fong, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
CoI: Tanmoy Laskar, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
CoI: Ryan Chornock, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
CoI: Mike Dopita, Australian National University
CoI: Alicia Soderberg, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
CoI: Avishay Gal-Yam, Benoziyo Center for Astrophysics
CoI: Christian Wolf, Oxford University
CoI: Bryan Penprase, Pomona College
CoI: Ryan Foley, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Title: Exceptional Swift and Fermi GRBs: Gemini South Rapid Targets of Opportunity
Abstract:
Swift and Fermi have sparked a renaissance in the study of GRBs, discovering
an unprecedented number of events and promptly alerting the community with
accurate localizations. However, it is in the follow-up, particularly at
optical/infrared (OIR) wavebands, where the full scientific potential of
these missions is realized. This semester our three teams have merged
proposals in order to optimize GRB science using the OIR instrument suites on
both Gemini telescopes. Our focus is on extreme and rare GRBs that hold the
greatest potential as unique probes of the early universe and stellar death:
(1) high-redshift bursts (z > 6), offering spectroscopic probes of the
universe during reionization; (2) low-redshift bursts (z<1), the keystone
events for understanding the nature of the GRB progenitor; (3) Fermi-LAT
bursts, which can constrain theories of quantum gravity and place limits on
the Lorentz factor of the outflow; and (4) short GRBs, with the goal of
constraining their still-mysterious progenitors. Gemini has emerged as the
cornerstone facility of global GRB research and we will continue to use our
proprietary access on smaller facilities and our wide network of
collaborators to maximize the return of Gemini observations.
National Optical Astronomy Observatory, 950 North Cherry Avenue, P.O. Box 26732, Tucson, Arizona 85726, Phone: (520) 318-8000, Fax: (520) 318-8360
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NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2011B-0484 |
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