UNC-Chapel Hill's GRB Follow-Up Programs

查佩尔山的丹尼尔·赖卡特博士将扩大他的研究，包括对Sift卫星发现的伽马射线暴（GRB）源进行光学跟踪。 查佩尔山目前正在建造和组织小型（半米级）机器人望远镜和大型人工控制望远镜，这些望远镜将允许快速观测伽马射线暴余辉，持续数周或数月，以提供良好的采样光变曲线。 Reichart博士还领导了伽马射线暴后续网络（FUN GRB）合作，这是一个大型望远镜合作，他帮助组织了Swift时代的准备工作。 该奖项还将资助一项建模工作，重点是伽玛射线暴物理学，环境，以及灰尘消光和气体吸收在这些环境中的作用。学生将参与使用PROMPT机器人望远镜在Cerro Tololo国际天文台的观测。 由于GRB只需要PROMPT的一小部分时间，剩余的大部分时间将致力于实现教学和研究目标，在其他十二个北卡罗来纳州机构，包括十个本科院校？包括历史上的非裔美国人和美国原住民机构莫尔黑德天文馆和科学中心正在为这些望远镜开发广泛的K-12计划。 也将有一个PROMPT夏季奖学金计划，使学生到圣查佩尔山进行为期12周的研究经验。

Dr. Daniel Reichart of UNC Chapel Hill will expand his research involving optical follow-up of gamma-ray burst (GRB) sources discovered by the Sift satellite. UNC Chapel Hill is currently building and organizing both small (half-meter-class) robotic telescopes and large human-controlled telescopes that will allow rapid observations of GRB afterglows, continuing for weeks or months to provide a well-sampled light curve. Dr. Reichart also leads the Follow-Up Network for Gamma-Ray Bursts (FUN GRB) Collaboration, a large telescope collaboration that he helped organized in preparation for the Swift era. The award will also fund a modeling effort which focuses on GRB physics, environments, and the roles of dust extinction and gas absorption in these environments.Students will be involved in observations using the PROMPT robotic telescope at Cerro Tololo International Observatory. Since GRBs require only a fraction of PROMPT's time, much of the remaining time will be devoted to fulfilling teaching and research objectives at twelve other North Carolina institutions, including ten undergraduate institutions ? which include historically African-American and Native-American institutions ? and Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, which is developing broad-reaching K-12 programs for these telescopes. There will also be a PROMPT Summer Fellowship Program to bring students to UNC Chapel Hill for a 12 week research experience.