News: FINAL PROGRAM ON-LINE HERE!!

Gamma-Ray Bursts (GRBs) are the most extreme and powerful emissions of electromagnetic radiation in the Universe. Since their discovery in the late '60s, they constitute one of the most fascinating and mysterious phenomena for modern science, with strong implications for several fields of astrophysics and fundamental physics. This special session will focus on the key-role of GRBs for cosmology and multi-messenger astrophysics. Indeed, the huge luminosity, the redshift distribution extending at least up to z~10 and the association with the explosive death of very massive stars make long GRBs (i.e., those lasting up to a few minutes) potentially extremely powerful cosmological probes (geometry and expansion rate of space-time, "dark energy", early Universe). At the same time, short GRBs (lasting no more than ~1-2s) are the most prominent electromagnetic signature of gravitational-wave sources like NS-NS and NS-BH merging events, and both long/short GRBs are expected to be associated with neutrino emission.

Part of the session will also be dedicated to the exploration of the THESEUS (Transient High-Energy Sky and Early Universe SUrveyor) space mission capabilities in the field of Cosmology and multi-messenger astrophysics with GRBs. THESEUS (https://www.isdc.unige.ch/theseus/) is one of the three Cosmic Vision M5 mission candidates recently selected by ESA to undergo an assessment phase study in view of a launch opportunity in 2032. The current assessment phase will be concluded in 2021, with most of the core activities planned for 2019-2020. The broad scientific context of the EWASS will provide us a uniquely well-timed opportunity to: (i) strengthen the involvement of the community in the project, and (ii) boost the synergies being planned between THESEUS and other large facilities that will be operating around 2030 and play a crucial role in the context of GRBs and Cosmology in different energy domains (e.g. LSST, ELT, TMT, Athena, Einstein Telescope, LISA, Km3NET). Most of the science representatives from these facilities will be present at the EWASS, providing the best suited ground to discuss any required action to be undertaken during the THESEUS assessment phase before 2020.

Programme

• Cosmology with GRBs I: early Universe
• Cosmology with GRBs II: cosmological parameters and dark energy
• GRBs and multi-messenger astrophysics I: short GRBs and GW
• GRBs and multi-messenger astrophysics II: neutrinos, cosmic rays and VHE emission from short/long GRBs
• The THESEUS mission: scientific objectives, status, instruments and mission profile
• Present and next generation ground and space facilities for GRBs and multi-messenger astrophysics

Invited speakers

L. Amati, M. Branchesi, A. Castro-Tirado, L. Christensen, R. Ciolfi, B. Cordier, P. D'avanzo, M. Della Valle, T. Di Girolamo, F. Ferrini, F. Fiore, F. Frontera, F. Fuschino, G. Ghirlanda, D. Goetz, G. Greco, M. Guainazzi, D. Guetta, A. Levan, S. Mereghetti, R. Mochkovitch, P. O'Brien, M. Punturo, J. Selsing, G. Stratta, N. Tanvir, S. Vergani

Scientific organisers

Lorenzo Amati (INAF - OAS Bologna, Italy) Enrico Bozzo (University of Geneva, Switzerland) Andreja Gomboc (University of Nova Gorica,Slovenia) Diego Gotz (CEA-IRFU, France) Mimoza Hafizi (University of Tirana, Albania) Paul O'Brien (University of Leicester, UK) Giulia Stratta (INAF - OAS Bologna, INFN Firenze, Italy)

Contact

Lorenzo Amati: lorenzo.amati @ inaf.it
Enrico Bozzo: enrico.bozzo @ unige.ch