The University of Wyoming GRB Afterglow Follow-Up Program

Details The University of Wyoming GRB Afterglow Follow-Up Program The University of Wyoming GRB Afterglow Follow-Up Program

Sep 2004

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2004aipc..727..745s&link_type=abstract

GAMMA-RAY BURSTS: 30 YEARS OF DISCOVERY: Gamma-Ray Burst Symposium. AIP Conference Proceedings, Volume 727, pp. 745-748 (2004).

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

Gamma-Ray Sources, Gamma-Ray Bursts, Observatories And Site Testing, Astronomical And Space-Research Instrumentation

Scientific paper

As the Swift era approaches, the University of Wyoming in Laramie has been preparing its two observatories for a robust GRB afterglow follow-up program. The 2.3-m Wyoming Infrared Observatory (WIRO) - first of its kind in collecting power and mid-infrared optimization - is located on Jelm Mt. (2944-m elevation) in a semi-arid atmosphere, 40 km southwest of Laramie. On dry, cold winter nights, our estimates show that WIRO's sensitivity in the K-band is comparable to that of a 4-m telescope at Mauna Kea observatory in Hawaii. Three instruments are currently in use at the observatory: WIRO-Prime, WIRO-Spec, and the Goddard IR camera. WIRO-Prime is a 20482 prime-focus camera with a 20 arcmin diameter FOV (f/2.1). Its sensitivity for a 300-s exposure will reach as faint as 24th (23rd) magnitude in V (R). WIRO-Spec is an integral field, holographic spectrometer which utilizes Volume-Phase-Holographic gratings with a 20482 detector. A bundle of 293 fiber optical cables (1 fiber ~ 1 arcsec) connects the Cassegrain platform to the stationary spectrometer, optimizing the image by reduction from f/27 to f/9. At 20th magnitude, a 700-s exposure yields a S/N ratio of ~ 10 at a resolution of ~ 1 Angstrom, sufficient for resolving the MgII doublet [279.8 nm] in GRB host galaxies to determine a 0.4 < z < 2.5 for an operational wavelength range of ~ 400-1000 nm (WIRO-Prime and WIRO-Spec). The Goddard IR Camera is a 2562 InSb camera (FOV ~ 108 arcsec) mounted at Cassegrain and operated at 15K. Available filters for GRB observations include R, I, J, H, and K'. WIRO slew timescale (~ 120 s) is comparable to that of Swift. Red Buttes Observatory (RBO) is located 19 km south of Laramie in a dark site and houses a 0.6-m f/8 Cassegrain DFM reflector. RBO's Apogee AP8p 10242 camera (18 arcmin FOV, sufficiently large for BAT localizations) is available for use with filters U, B, V, R and I. We are in the final stages of implementing fully automated response to Swift BAT alerts at RBO, and expect an average acquisition timescale to random sky positions of ~ 25 s. Thus, rapid GRB detections by RBO can be forwarded to WIRO even while Swift's pointed instruments are performing first integrations.

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