Swift Observations of Gamma-Ray Bursts and Supernovae

摘要

Swift is a NASA MIDEX mission with primary objective to study GRBs and use them to study the Universe. The mission was launched on 20 November 2004 and is detecting ~100 gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) each year. For almost every burst there is a prompt (within ~90 s) spacecraft repointing to give X-ray and UV/optical observations of the afterglow. Swift has already collected an impressive database including prompt emission to higher sensitivities than BATSE, uniform monitoring of afterglows, and rapid follow-up by other observatories notified through the GCN. In addition to providing extensive information on the traditional long GRBs, Swift has provided the first precise localizations of short GRBs, and has also demonstrated that supernova GRBs may comprise a yet third subset in a Venn diagram of isotropic energy versus intrinsic burst duration. The energies of these SN/GRBs are comensurate with short GRBs, while their durations are significantly longer. The acquisition of more short GRBS and of SN/GRBs over the coming years of the Swift mission will further enhance and delineate the statistical relationships among the different GRB types.