ISM of GRB Host Galaxies. I.

doi:10.1086/510239

The Interstellar Medium of Gamma-Ray Burst Host Galaxies. I. Echelle Spectra of Swift GRB Afterglows

J. X. Prochaska et al 2007 ApJS 168 231-267 doi: 10.1086/510239

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J. X. Prochaska¹, H.-W. Chen², J. S. Bloom³, M. Dessauges-Zavadsky⁴, J. M. O'Meara⁵, R. J. Foley³, R. Bernstein⁶, S. Burles⁷, A. K. Dupree^8,9, E. Falco⁸ and I. B. Thompson^9,10
¹ UCO/Lick Observatory, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA
² Department of Astronomy, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
³ Department of Astronomy, University of California, Berkeley, CA
⁴ Observatoire de Genève, Sauverny, Switzerland
⁵ Department of Physics, Penn State Worthington Scranton, Dunmore, PA
⁶ Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
⁷ MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA
⁸ Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, MA
⁹ This paper includes data gathered with the 6.5 m Magellan Telescopes located at Las Campanas Observatory
¹⁰ Observatories of the Carnegie Institution of Washington, Pasadena, CA
E-mail: xavier@ucolick.org and hchen@oddjob.uchicago.edu

ABSTRACT. We present optical echelle spectra of four gamma-ray burst (GRB) afterglows (GRB 050730, GRB 050820, GRB 051111, and GRB 060418) discovered during the first 1.5 yr of operation of the Swift satellite and localized by either the Swift telescope or follow-up ground-based imaging. We analyze the spectra to derive accurate column density measurements for the transitions arising in the interstellar medium (ISM) of the GRB host galaxies. These measurements can be used to constrain the physical properties of the ISM, including the metallicity, dust-to-gas ratio, ionization state, and chemical abundances of the gas. We also present measurements of the strong Mg II systems in the GRB afterglow spectra. With the publication of this paper, we provide the first data release of echelle afterglow spectra by the GRAASP collaboration to the general community.

Subject headings: galaxies: ISM; gamma rays: bursts

Print publication: Issue 2 (2007 February)
Received 2006 May 23, accepted for publication 2006 October 9

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The Interstellar Medium of Gamma-Ray Burst Host Galaxies. I. Echelle Spectra of Swift GRB Afterglows

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