Symposium S11
4 – 5 July 2016
Gamma-ray bursts: recent theoretical models and observations
News:
Conference proceedings will be published in a special issue of Galaxies: http://www.mdpi.com/journal/galaxies/special_issues/gamma_ray_bursts
Aims and scope
Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), are cosmic flashes of gamma-rays, and are some
of the most energetic events ever detected, with luminosities exceeding 1050
erg/sec. GRBs are thus powerful beacons of the early Universe, and extreme
physical laboratories. They are intrinsically linked to the lifecycle of stars and
galaxies, therefore GRBs can provide complementary insights into galactic
and stellar evolution. Multi-wavelength observations of these enigmatic events
allow us to go deeper into their underlying physics, but 40 years after their
discovery their origin remains elusive.
A great amount of theoretical work has been invested in order to understand
what is the central engine and the emission mechanism of GRBs. It has been
proposed that GRBs fall into two subcategories, short- and long-duration.
However, recently accumulated data suggests that the distinction based on
burst duration may not be as strong as originally thought, and all GRBs may
be energized by the same type of central engine. Signatures of the central
engine may be revealed with GRB observations, in particular in the X-rays,
where a treasure load of data from the BAT and XRT instruments aboard the
Swift satellite are available from the last 10 years.
Most recently, the question of the central engine has been put aside, while
research focuses on the emitting region, the emission mechanisms and the
effort to understand all the characteristics of the light curves and the spectra
of the bursts. While this has significantly increased our understanding of
GRBs, new features and phenomena are still being discovered, such as ultralong
duration GRBs, of which one was recently linked to a super-luminous
supernova. Furthermore, GRBs are proving to be useful probes of cosmic star
formation history and cosmology, and much research is being performed to
fully exploit their advantages.
This is an exciting time in the GRB field. The already sizeable GRB
community in Europe and worldwide has grown rapidly in the last decade.
Various space missions and ground observations are providing a wealth of
new data from GeV to radio energies. These are complemented by recent
theoretical and numerical advancements in our understanding of the physical
mechanisms behind GRBs. In the modern era of multi messenger astronomy,
the study of GRBs is likely to intensify as we try to piece together information
from the full electromagnetic spectrum, gravitational waves and neutrinos.
This 2-day Symposium aims to keep the astrophysical community abreast of
the latest developments in this far-reaching field by bringing together
observers, numerical modellers, and theorist from several fields who will
explore:
Programme
- The nature of the GRB central engine
- The diversity of GRBs: prompt emission and afterglow
- Short GRBs and multi messenger observations
- Future prospects for observations and numerical simulations
- Relationship between GRBs and supernovae
- Host galaxies of GRBs and the use of GRBs as probes of the ISM of high redshift
galaxies
Invited speakers
- L. Rezzolla Institute of Theoretical Physics, Frankfurt
- O. Bromberg Hebrew University of Jerusalem
- D. Perley Dark Cosmology Centre, NBI, University of Copenhagen
- Z. Cano University of Iceland
Scientific organisers
I. Contopoulos (RCAAM, Academy of Athens, Greece, co-chair)
S. R. Oates (IAA-CSIC, Spain, co-chair)
D. Giannios (Purdue University, USA)
A. Levan (Uni of Warwick, UK)
M. De Pasquale (MSSL-UCL, UK)
A. Castro-Tirado (IAA-CSIC, Spain)
P. Schady (MPE, Germany)
M. Symeonidis (MSSL-UCL, UK)
A. Nathanail (ITP, Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany)
Contact
I. Contopoulos: icontop @ Academyofathens.gr S. R. Oates: sro @ iaa.es
Updated on Thu May 26 10:59:20 CEST 2016
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