GRB 090429B
GRB 090429B was a gamma-ray burst observed on 29 April 2009 by the Burst Alert Telescope aboard the Swift satellite. The burst triggered a standard burst-response observation sequence, which started 106 seconds after the burst.[1] The X-ray telescope aboard the satellite identified an uncatalogued fading source. No optical or UV counterpart was seen in the UV–optical telescope. Around 2.5 hours after the burst trigger, a series of observations was carried out by the Gemini North telescope, which detected a bright object in the infrared part of the spectrum. No evidence of a host galaxy was found either by Gemini North or by the Hubble Space Telescope.[1] Though this burst was detected in 2009, it was not until May 2011 that its distance estimate of 13.14 billion light-years was announced. With 90% likelihood, the burst had a photometric redshift greater than z = 9.06, which would make it the most distant GRB known, although the error bar on this estimate is large, providing a lower limit of z > 7.[1][2]
 | |
| Other designations | GRB 090429B |
|---|---|
| Event type | Gamma-ray burst  |
| Date | 29 April 2009 |
| Duration | 5.5 ±0.1 second |
| Instrument | Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory |
| Constellation | Canes Venatici |
| Right ascension | 14h 02m 40.10s |
| Declination | +32° 10′ 14.6″ |
| Total energy output | 3.5 × 1052 erg |
The amount of energy released in the burst was estimated at 3.5 × 1052 erg. For a comparison, the Sun's luminosity is 3.8 × 1033 erg/s.
See also
- GRB 090423, the most distant gamma-ray burst with spectroscopic confirmation
References
- Cucchiara, A.; Levan, A. J.; Fox, D. B.; Tanvir, N. R.; Ukwatta, T. N.; Berger, E.; Krühler, T.; Yoldaş, A. Küpcü; Wu, X. F.; Toma, K.; Greiner, J.; E. Olivares, F.; Rowlinson, A.; Amati, L.; Sakamoto, T.; Roth, K.; Stephens, A.; Fritz, Alexander; Fynbo, J. P. U.; Hjorth, J.; Malesani, D.; Jakobsson, P.; Wiersema, K.; O'Brien, P. T.; Soderberg, A. M.; Foley, R. J.; Fruchter, A. S.; Rhoads, J.; Rutledge, R. E.; Schmidt, B. P.; Dopita, M. A.; Podsiadlowski, P.; Willingale, R.; Wolf, C.; Kulkarni, S. R.; D’Avanzo, P. (20 July 2011). "A PHOTOMETRIC REDSHIFT OF ∼ 9.4 FOR GRB 090429B". The Astrophysical Journal. 736 (1): 7. arXiv:1105.4915. Bibcode:2011ApJ...736....7C. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/736/1/7.
- Space Daily, Explosion Helps Researcher Spot Universe's Most Distant Object, 27 May 2011
This article incorporates public domain material from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration document: "NASA's Swift Finds Most Distant Gamma-ray Burst Yet".
