The soft X-ray blast in the apparently sub-luminous GRB 031203

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dc.creatorWatson, D.
dc.creatorVaughan, S. A.
dc.creatorWillingale, R.
dc.creatorHjorth, J.
dc.creatorFoley, S.
dc.creatorFynbo, J. P. U.
dc.creatorJakobsson, P.
dc.creatorLevan, A.
dc.creatorO'Brien, P. T.
dc.creatorOsborne, J. P.
dc.creatorPedersen, K.
dc.creatorReeves, J. N.
dc.creatorTedds, J. A.
dc.creatorWatson, M. G.
dc.date2005-09-15
dc.date.accessioned2026-07-07T06:26:11Z
dc.date.available2026-07-07T06:26:11Z
dc.descriptionGRB031203 was a very low apparent luminosity gamma-ray burst (GRB). It was also the first GRB with a dust-scattered X-ray halo. The observation of the halo allowed us to infer the presence of a large soft X-ray fluence in the total burst output. It has, however, also been claimed that GRB031203 was intrinsically sub-energetic, representative of a class of spectrally hard, low-energy bursts quite different from other GRBs. Reanalysis of the available data confirms our original finding that GRB031203 had a very large soft X-ray component, the time of which can be constrained to within a few minutes after the burst, implying that while GRB031203 did indeed have a very low apparent luminosity, it was also very soft. Notions propagated in the literature regarding the uncertainties in the determination of the soft X-ray fluence from the halo data and on the available constraints from the hard X-ray data are addressed: the properties of the scattering dust along the line of sight (grain sizes, precise location and the geometry) are determined directly from the high quality X-ray data so that there is little uncertainty about the scatterer; constraints on the X-ray lightcurve from the Integral spacecraft at the time of the soft X-ray blast are not complete because of a slew in the spacecraft pointing shortly after the burst. Claims that GRB031203 was intrinsically under-energetic and that it represents a deviation from the luminosity-peak energy relation do not appear to be substantiated by the data, regardless of whether the soft X-ray component is declared part of the prompt emission or the afterglow. We conclude that the difference between the soft and hard X-ray spectra from XMM-Newton and Integral indicate that a second soft pulse probably occurred in this burst as has been observed in other GRBs, notably GRB050502B.
dc.description4 pages, 2 figures, emulateapj Accepted for publication in ApJ, scheduled 10 January 2006 issue
dc.identifierhttps://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0509477
dc.identifierhttp://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0509477
dc.identifierAstrophys.J. 636 (2006) 967-970
dc.identifierdoi:10.1086/498089
dc.identifier.urihttp://salesiana.dossiersoluciones.com/handle/123456789/97033
dc.subjectAstrophysics
dc.titleThe soft X-ray blast in the apparently sub-luminous GRB 031203
dc.typetext

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