The decay of optical emission from the Gamma-Ray Burst GRB 970228

Abstract

We present the R_c band light curve of the optical transient (OT) associated with GRB970228, based on re-evaluation of existing photometry. Data obtained until April 1997 suggested a slowing down of the decay of the optical brightness. However, the HST observations in September 1997 show that the light curve of the point source is well represented by a single power law, with a ``dip'', about a week after the burst occured. The exponent of the power law decay is $\alpha$ = --1.10 $\pm$ 0.04. As the point source weakened it also became redder.

5 pages, latex, to appear in Gamma-Ray Bursts, 4-th Huntsville Symposium, eds Meegan, Preece, Koshut

References in corpus (3)

• Shocked by GRB 970228: the afterglow of a cosmological fireball
• The optical counterpart to gamma-ray burst GRB970228 observed using the Hubble Space Telescope
• Gamma-ray Burst Models: General Requirements and Predictions

Cited by in corpus (41)

• Gamma-Ray Bursts and the Fireball Model
• Gamma-ray bursts from internal shocks in a relativistic wind: temporal and spectral properties
• The afterglow, the redshift, and the extreme energetics of the gamma-ray burst 990123
• Viewing Angle and Environment Effects in GRB: Sources of Afterglow Diversity
• Refreshed Shocks and Afterglow Longevity in GRB
• The Progenitors of Short Gamma-Ray Bursts
• Multi-Wavelength Afterglows in Gamma-Ray Bursts: Refreshed Shock and Jet Effects
• The optical counterpart to gamma-ray burst GRB970228 observed using the Hubble Space Telescope
• Evidence for a supernova in reanalyzed optical and near-infrared images of GRB970228
• A Comparison of the Afterglows of Short- and Long-Duration Gamma-Ray Bursts
• The detailed optical light curve of GRB 030329
• Absorption in Gamma Ray Burst afterglows
• Observations of GRB 990123 by the Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory
• A Search for Optical Afterglow from GRB970828
• On the optical and X-ray afterglows of gamma ray bursts
• The redshift and the ordinary host galaxy of GRB 970228
• The Fading Optical Counterpart of GRB~970228, Six Months and One Year Later
• Optical follow-up of GRB 970508
• Evidence for Diverse Optical Emission from Gamma-Ray Burst Sources
• Gamma-ray bursts: optical afterglows in the deep Newtonian phase
• Dust Echos from Gamma Ray Bursts
• The State of the Circumstellar Medium Surrounding Gamma-Ray Burst Sources and its Effect on the Afterglow Appearance
• The Rapid Decay of the Optical Emission from GRB 980326 and its Possible Implications
• AMRVAC and Relativistic Hydrodynamic simulations for GRB afterglow phases
• Observations of GRB 970228 and GRB 970508, and the Neutron-Star Merger Model
• The 1.4 GHz light curve of GRB 970508
• Electron Acceleration and Synchrotron Radiation in Decelerating Plasmoids
• Power Law Decays in the Optical Counterparts of GRB 970228 and GRB970508
• A Detailed Study on the Equal Arrival Time Surface Effect in Gamma-Ray Burst Afterglows
• Decay properties of the X-ray afterglows of Gamma-ray bursts
• Gamma-ray bursts: afterglows from cylindrical jets
• The Expected Rate of Gamma-Ray Burst Afterglows In Supernova Searches
• A Photometric Investigation of the GRB970228 Afterglow and the Associated Nebulosity
• Radio and Optical Follow-up Observations and Improved IPN Position of GRB 970111
• The Implications of Direct Red-Shift Measurement of $\gamma$-ray Bursts
• Gamma-ray burst afterglows : luminosity clustering at infrared wavelengths?
• No Radio Afterglow from the Gamma-Ray Burst of February 28, 1997
• Cosmic gamma-ray bursts: the most energetic phenomenon in the Universe
• A next generation Ultra-Fast Flash Observatory (UFFO-100) for IR/optical observations of the rise phase of gamma-ray bursts
• Physical Parameters Of The Relativistic Shock Waves In GRBs: The Case Of 30 GRBs
• The optical light curve of GRB 970228 refined