Kavli Affiliate: Michael Fausnaugh
| First 5 Authors: Rahul Jayaraman, Rahul Jayaraman, , ,
| Summary:
Optical observations of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) contemporaneous with their
prompt high-energy emission are rare, but they can provide insights into the
physical processes underlying these explosive events. The Transiting Exoplanet
Survey Satellite’s (TESS) large field of view and continuous observation
capabilities make it uniquely positioned to detect and characterize prompt
optical flashes from GRBs. In this work, we fit phenomenological models to the
gamma-ray through optical spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of 24 bursts
with arcsecond-level localizations that fell within the TESS field of view
between 2018 July and 2024 December. In four cases, the extrapolation of the
high-energy SED agrees with the observed optical flux to within 1-$sigma$. In
one case, there is a significant excess of optical flux relative to the
extrapolation. In two cases, upper limits from TESS did not constrain the
optical portion of the SED. In the remaining 17 cases, the optical flux is
overpredicted by the extrapolation from high energies. This discrepancy could
be explained by dust extinction in the host galaxy.
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