학술논문
Expected Gamma-Ray Burst Detection Rates and Redshift Distributions for the BlackCAT CubeSat Mission
Document Type
Working Paper
Author
Colosimo, Joseph M.; Fox, Derek B.; Falcone, Abraham D.; Palmer, David M.; Hancock, Frederic; Betts, Michael; Bevidas Jr., William A.; Buffington, Jacob C.; Burrows, David N.; Catlin, Zachary E.; Emeigh, Timothy; Forstmeier, Thomas; Nizam, Kadri M.; Reichard, Collin; Scigliani, Ana C.; Stone, Lukas R.; Thornton, Ian; Wages, Mitchell; Washington, Daniel; Zugger, Michael E.
Source
Subject
Language
Abstract
We report the results of an extensive set of simulations exploring the sensitivity of the BlackCAT CubeSat to long-duration gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). BlackCAT is a NASA APRA-funded CubeSat mission for the detection and real-time sub-arcminute localization of high-redshift ($z\gtrsim 3.5$) GRBs. Thanks to their luminous and long-lived afterglow emissions, GRBs are uniquely valuable probes of high-redshift star-forming galaxies and the intergalactic medium. In addition, each detected GRB with a known redshift serves to localize a region of high-redshift star formation in three dimensions, enabling deep follow-on searches for host galaxies and associated local and large-scale structure. We explore two distinct models for the GRB redshift distribution and luminosity function, both consistent with \textit{Swift} observations. We find that, for either model, BlackCAT is expected to detect a mean of 42 bursts per year on-orbit, with 6.7% to 10% of these at $z>3.5$. BlackCAT bursts will be localized to $r_{90} \lesssim 55^{\prime\prime}$ precision and reported to the community within seconds. Due to the mission orbit and pointing scheme, bursts will be located in the night sky and well-placed for deep multiwavelength follow-up observations. BlackCAT is on schedule to achieve launch readiness in 2025.
Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures, 3 tables; Accepted for publication in ApJ
Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures, 3 tables; Accepted for publication in ApJ