A new type of long gamma--ray burst

Abstract

We consider gamma--ray bursts produced by the merger of a massive white dwarf with a neutron star. We show that these are likely to produce long--duration GRBs, in some cases definitely without an accompanying supernova, as observed recently. This class of burst would have a strong correlation with star formation, and occur close to the host galaxy. However rare members of the class need not be near star--forming regions, and could have any type of host galaxy. Thus a long--duration burst far from any star--forming region would also be a signature of this class. Estimates based on the existence of a known progenitor suggest that our proposed class may be an important contributor to the observed GRB rate.

MNRAS, in press

References in corpus (1)

• The Supernova -- Gamma-Ray Burst Connection

Cited by in corpus (10)

• Discerning the physical origins of cosmological Gamma-ray bursts based on multiple observational criteria: the cases of z=6.7 GRB 080913, z=8.3 GRB 090423, and some short/hard GRBs
• Making a Short Gamma-Ray Burst from a Long one: Implications for the Nature of GRB 060614
• A Comprehensive Analysis of Swift/XRT Data: III. Jet Break Candidates in X-ray and Optical Afterglow Lightcurves
• Different progenitors of short hard gamma-ray bursts
• Swift observations of GRB 060614: an anomalous burst with a well behaved afterglow
• Spatially resolved properties of the GRB 060505 host: implications for the nature of the progenitor
• The host galaxy of GRB031203: a new spectroscopic study
• The Host Galaxy of GRB 060505: Host ISM Properties
• Probability for chance coincidence of a gamma-ray burst with a galaxy on the sky
• Gamma--ray Burst Models