Transient Faraday-complex spectropolarimetric structure detected during radio flaring of Swift J1727 implies internal Faraday rotation from electron-proton jet plasma with rotating mass ~10^21 g, a small fraction of accreted mass.
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The Swift Gamma-Ray Burst Mission
23 Pith papers cite this work. Polarity classification is still indexing.
abstract
The Swift mission, scheduled for launch in early 2004, is a multiwavelength observatory for gamma-ray burst (GRB) astronomy. It is the first-of-its-kind autonomous rapid-slewing satellite for transient astronomy and pioneers the way for future rapid-reaction and multiwavelength missions. It will be far more powerful than any previous GRB mission, observing more than 100 bursts per year and performing detailed X-ray and UV/optical afterglow observations spanning timescales from 1 minute to several days after the burst. The objectives are to determine the origin of GRBs; classify GRBs and search for new types; study the interaction of the ultra-relativistic outflows of GRBs with their surrounding medium; and use GRBs to study the early universe out to z>10. The mission is being developed by a NASA-led international collaboration. It will carry three instruments: a new-generation wide-field gamma-ray (15-150 keV) detector; a narrow-field X-ray telescope; and a narrow-field UV/optical telescope. Redshift determinations will be made for most bursts. In addition to the primary GRB science, the mission will perform a hard X-ray survey to a sensitivity of ~1 mCrab (~2x10^{-11} erg cm^{-2} s^{-1} in the 15-150 keV band), more than an order of magnitude better than HEAO A-4. A flexible data and operations system will allow rapid follow-up observations of all types of high-energy transients, with rapid data downlink and uplink available through the NASA TDRSS system. The mission is currently funded for 2 years of operations and the spacecraft will have a lifetime to orbital decay of ~8 years. [ABRIDGED]
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background 1representative citing papers
Spatially resolved spectroscopy shows SDSS1335+0728 has a three-zone ionisation structure, optically thin dust, and sustained low-level nuclear activity for at least 1500 years, implying the Ansky event is a faint transient in an already accreting low-mass SMBH.
Using simultaneous modeling of continuum lag-spectrum and broadband SED of Fairall 9 with the H0RIZON-AGN model, the authors obtain H0 = 72.4_{-3.7}^{+3.4} km s^{-1} Mpc^{-1}.
Mode-by-mode filtering of higher-order modes enables low-latency marginalization over mode information in NSBH gravitational-wave signals, tightening constraints on distance, inclination, and secondary mass.
Fe Kα lines from accreting black holes are produced mostly outside 10 gravitational radii due to radial ionization gradients, allowing broad profiles without high spin.
EP250905a is best explained as a mildly off-axis structured-jet afterglow at z=2.714, possibly weakly magnified by a foreground galaxy at z=0.374.
Discovery and multiwavelength follow-up of EP J175257.3-351923, classified as a candidate black hole LMXB based on its 250-day FRED outburst, persistent hard state, truncated disk spectrum with ~217 keV cutoff, and flux ratios.
EP250304a/SN 2025fhm is presented as a member of an emerging subclass of shocked cocoon-dominated low-luminosity GRB-SNe based on spectral, photometric, and light-curve modeling comparisons to prior events.
SN 2023rve exhibits absent [O I] nebular lines with inferred 14-18 solar mass progenitor, 0.27e51 erg explosion energy, and 0.0064 solar mass nickel, possibly indicating partial fallback.
Optical imaging and BAGPIPES SED fitting of eight FXTs yields candidate hosts consistent with WD-IMBH TDEs or BNS mergers for most events, with one reclassified as a Galactic flare and evidence for diverse origins.
EP260321a is identified as the faintest shock breakout X-ray transient associated with broad-lined Ic supernova SN 2026gzf, interpreted as originating from a mildly relativistic weak outflow choked inside the progenitor star.
New IXPE X-ray polarimetry and optical monitoring of PG 1553+113 reveal variable polarization and a large EVPA swing, supporting jet models with related but non-co-spatial X-ray and optical emission regions.
Spectral fringes in a few GRB observations indicate possible femtolensing by primordial black holes, providing upper limits on their fractional abundance as dark matter.
Baselines of 8-11 ms light travel time for two CE detectors provide a reasonable compromise for BBH sky localization, with third detectors eliminating multimodality for most or all events.
The paper proposes a high-redshift (z>2) origin for GRB 061201 by combining afterglow constraints with deep JWST near-infrared imaging of a faint candidate host.
Follow-up observations reclassify 7 of 10 candidate ultra extreme high-energy-peaked BL Lacs as AGNs, with only 2 possibly compatible with MeV-peaked SEDs.
Swift GRB catalog shows dipole and quadrupole signals consistent with isotropy once the instrument exposure map is included in Monte Carlo null tests.
AGN (jetted and non-jetted) are viable high-energy neutrino sources, with TXS 0506+056 and NGC 1068 as the only statistically significant associations so far, while gamma-ray blazars contribute only a small fraction of the diffuse flux.
A review of early optical GRB features including prompt emission, reverse shocks, and afterglow onset, highlighting robotic telescopes' role in constraining jet Lorentz factors and magnetization.
GRB 250424A afterglow shows simultaneous shallow decay in X-ray and optical bands modeled as continuous energy injection (q≈0.34) into a forward shock in constant-density medium, with E_K,iso ≈5.5×10^52 erg and no clear supernova component.
Review of UV spectroscopy applications to hot evolved stars, emphasizing HST contributions and the need for continued observations ahead of HWO.
citing papers explorer
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Spectropolarimetric detection of baryonic mass loading in a transient relativistic jet: application to the black hole X-ray binary Swift J1727.8$-$1613
Transient Faraday-complex spectropolarimetric structure detected during radio flaring of Swift J1727 implies internal Faraday rotation from electron-proton jet plasma with rotating mass ~10^21 g, a small fraction of accreted mass.
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Spatially resolved optical and mid-infrared spectroscopy of SDSS1335+0728: implications for the origin of the Ansky event
Spatially resolved spectroscopy shows SDSS1335+0728 has a three-zone ionisation structure, optically thin dust, and sustained low-level nuclear activity for at least 1500 years, implying the Ansky event is a faint transient in an already accreting low-mass SMBH.
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HALO II: Constraining Hubble constant $H_{0}$ through continuum delay fitting of Fairall 9
Using simultaneous modeling of continuum lag-spectrum and broadband SED of Fairall 9 with the H0RIZON-AGN model, the authors obtain H0 = 72.4_{-3.7}^{+3.4} km s^{-1} Mpc^{-1}.
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Improving low-latency multi-messenger follow-up of neutron star-black hole mergers with mode-by-mode filtering
Mode-by-mode filtering of higher-order modes enables low-latency marginalization over mode information in NSBH gravitational-wave signals, tightening constraints on distance, inclination, and secondary mass.
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Simulation-Based Prediction of Black Hole Fe K$\alpha$ Line Profiles
Fe Kα lines from accreting black holes are produced mostly outside 10 gravitational radii due to radial ionization gradients, allowing broad profiles without high spin.
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Multi-wavelength Constraints on the Transient EP250905a
EP250905a is best explained as a mildly off-axis structured-jet afterglow at z=2.714, possibly weakly magnified by a foreground galaxy at z=0.374.
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Discovery of EP J175257.3-351923 as a Candidate Black Hole Low-Mass X-ray Binary
Discovery and multiwavelength follow-up of EP J175257.3-351923, classified as a candidate black hole LMXB based on its 250-day FRED outburst, persistent hard state, truncated disk spectrum with ~217 keV cutoff, and flux ratios.
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Probing a new subclass of llGRB-SN transients: Insights from EP250304a and its associated supernova
EP250304a/SN 2025fhm is presented as a member of an emerging subclass of shocked cocoon-dominated low-luminosity GRB-SNe based on spectral, photometric, and light-curve modeling comparisons to prior events.
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SN 2023rve: A Type II Supernova with No Nebular Oxygen
SN 2023rve exhibits absent [O I] nebular lines with inferred 14-18 solar mass progenitor, 0.27e51 erg explosion energy, and 0.0064 solar mass nickel, possibly indicating partial fallback.
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Optical observations of candidate host galaxies of eight fast X-ray transients
Optical imaging and BAGPIPES SED fitting of eight FXTs yields candidate hosts consistent with WD-IMBH TDEs or BNS mergers for most events, with one reclassified as a Galactic flare and evidence for diverse origins.
-
EP260321a/SN 2026gzf: The Faintest Shock Breakout Associated with a Broad-Lined Supernova
EP260321a is identified as the faintest shock breakout X-ray transient associated with broad-lined Ic supernova SN 2026gzf, interpreted as originating from a mildly relativistic weak outflow choked inside the progenitor star.
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Tracking down the broadband polarimetric properties of PG 1553+113
New IXPE X-ray polarimetry and optical monitoring of PG 1553+113 reveal variable polarization and a large EVPA swing, supporting jet models with related but non-co-spatial X-ray and optical emission regions.
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Primordial Black Hole signatures from femtolensing and spectral fringe of Gamma Ray Bursts
Spectral fringes in a few GRB observations indicate possible femtolensing by primordial black holes, providing upper limits on their fractional abundance as dark matter.
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Not too close! Evaluating the impact of the baseline on the localization of binary black holes by next-generation gravitational-wave detectors
Baselines of 8-11 ms light travel time for two CE detectors provide a reasonable compromise for BBH sky localization, with third detectors eliminating multimodality for most or all events.
-
A possible high-redshift origin for the short GRB 061201: implications of a compact binary merger beyond cosmic noon
The paper proposes a high-redshift (z>2) origin for GRB 061201 by combining afterglow constraints with deep JWST near-infrared imaging of a faint candidate host.
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Hunting for extreme high-energy-peaked BL Lacs: Rare to find and difficult to classify
Follow-up observations reclassify 7 of 10 candidate ultra extreme high-energy-peaked BL Lacs as AGNs, with only 2 possibly compatible with MeV-peaked SEDs.
-
Probing dipole and quadrupole anisotropy in Gamma-ray bursts from Swift dataset
Swift GRB catalog shows dipole and quadrupole signals consistent with isotropy once the instrument exposure map is included in Monte Carlo null tests.
-
Active Galactic Nuclei as high-energy neutrino sources
AGN (jetted and non-jetted) are viable high-energy neutrino sources, with TXS 0506+056 and NGC 1068 as the only statistically significant associations so far, while gamma-ray blazars contribute only a small fraction of the diffuse flux.
-
Early Optical Follow-up of Gamma-Ray Bursts: The Critical Role of Robotic Telescopes
A review of early optical GRB features including prompt emission, reverse shocks, and afterglow onset, highlighting robotic telescopes' role in constraining jet Lorentz factors and magnetization.
-
GRB 250424A: A Case Study of Energy Injection with Multiwavelength Observations
GRB 250424A afterglow shows simultaneous shallow decay in X-ray and optical bands modeled as continuous energy injection (q≈0.34) into a forward shock in constant-density medium, with E_K,iso ≈5.5×10^52 erg and no clear supernova component.
-
Studying hot evolved stars with ultraviolet spectroscopy
Review of UV spectroscopy applications to hot evolved stars, emphasizing HST contributions and the need for continued observations ahead of HWO.
- The emergence of X-ray emission lines during relativistic radio-jet formation in the changing-look active galactic nucleus 1ES 1927+654
- The first IXPE view of the eclipsing ADC source 4U 1822-37