Gamma Ray Bursts: new rulers to measure the Universe

Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics

Scientific paper

Rate now

  [ 0.00 ] – not rated yet Voters 0   Comments 0

Details

11 pages, 4 color figures, ApJ Letters (vol. 613) in press

Scientific paper

10.1086/424915

The best measure of the Universe should be done using a standard "ruler" at any redshift. Type Ia Supernovae (SN Ia) probe the universe up to z$\sim$1.5, while the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) primary anisotropies concern basically $z\sim$1000. Apparently, Gamma--Ray Bursts (GRBs) are all but standard candles. However, their emission is collimated and the collimation--corrected energy correlates tightly with the frequency at which most of the radiation of the prompt is emitted, as found by Ghirlanda et al. (2004). Through this correlation we can infer the burst energy accurately enough to probe the intermediate redshift ($z<10$) Universe. Using the best known 15 GRBs we find very encouraging results that emphasize the cosmological GRB role. A combined fit with SN Ia yields $\Omega_{\rm M}=0.37\pm0.10$ and $\Omega_{\Lambda}=0.87\pm 0.23$. Assuming in addition a flat Universe, the parameters are constrained to be $\Omega_{\rm M}=0.29\pm0.04$ and $\Omega_{\Lambda}=0.71\pm 0.05$. GRBs accomplish the role of "missing link" between SN Ia and CMB primary anisotropies. They can provide a new insight on the cosmic effects of dark energy, complementary to the one supplied by CMB secondary anisotropies through the Integrated Sachs Wolfe effect. The unexpected Standard Candle cosmological role of GRBs motivates the most optimistic hopes for what can be obtained when the GRB-dedicated satellite, Swift, will be launched.

No associations

LandOfFree

Say what you really think

Search LandOfFree.com for scientists and scientific papers. Rate them and share your experience with other people.

Rating

Gamma Ray Bursts: new rulers to measure the Universe does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.

If you have personal experience with Gamma Ray Bursts: new rulers to measure the Universe, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Gamma Ray Bursts: new rulers to measure the Universe will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

     

Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-83605

  Search
All data on this website is collected from public sources. Our data reflects the most accurate information available at the time of publication.