The IXPE view of GRB 221009A

ORAL

Abstract

We present the IXPE observation of GRB~221009A which includes upper limits on the linear polarization degree of both prompt and afterglow emission in the soft X-ray energy band.GRB~221009A is an exceptionally bright gamma-ray burst (GRB) that reached Earth on 2022 October 9 after traveling through the dust of the Milky Way. The Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) pointed at GRB~221009A on October 11 observing, for the first time, the 2--8 keV X-ray polarization of a GRB afterglow. Additionally, IXPE captured halo-rings of dust-scattered photons which are echoes of the GRB prompt emission, allowing for assessment on the prompt GRB emission. In this presentation we report the results of the IXPE observation of GRB 221009A.

*The Imaging X ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) is a joint US and Italian mission. The US contribution is supported by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and led and managed by its Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC), with industry partner Ball Aerospace (contract NNM15AA18C). The Italian contribution is supported by the Italian Space Agency (Agenzia Spaziale Italiana, ASI) through contract ASI-OHBI-2017-12-I.0, agreements ASI-INAF-2017-12-H0 and ASI-INFN-2017.13-H0, and its Space Science Data Center (SSDC) with agreements ASI-INAF-2022-14-HH.0 and ASI-INFN 2021-43-HH.0, and by the Istituto Nazionale di Astrofisica (INAF) and the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN) in Italy. This research used data products provided by the IXPE Team (MSFC, SSDC, INAF, and INFN) and distributed with additional software tools by the High-Energy Astrophysics Science Archive Research Center (HEASARC), at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC).

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Publication: https://arxiv.org/abs/2301.01798

Presenters

  • Michela Negro

    • NASA-GSFC and UMBC

Authors

  • Michela Negro

    • NASA-GSFC and UMBC