The association of GRB 060218 with a supernova and the evolution of the shock wave.

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Bibliographic Details
Title:	The association of GRB 060218 with a supernova and the evolution of the shock wave.
Authors:	Campana, S., Mangano, V., Blustin, A. J., Brown, P., Burrows, D. N., Chincarini, G., Cummings, J. R., Cusumano, G., Valle, M. Della, Malesani, D., Mészáros, P., Nousek, J. A., Page, M., Sakamoto, T., Waxman, E., Zhang, B., Dai, Z. G., Gehrels, N., Immler, S., Marshall, F. E.
Source:	Nature. 8/31/2006, Vol. 442 Issue 7106, p1008-1010. 3p. 3 Graphs.
Subjects:	Shock waves, Supernovae, X-ray bursts, Supernovae as distance indicators
Abstract:	Although the link between long γ-ray bursts (GRBs) and supernovae has been established, hitherto there have been no observations of the beginning of a supernova explosion and its intimate link to a GRB. In particular, we do not know how the jet that defines a γ-ray burst emerges from the star's surface, nor how a GRB progenitor explodes. Here we report observations of the relatively nearby GRB 060218 (ref. 5) and its connection to supernova SN 2006aj (ref. 6). In addition to the classical non-thermal emission, GRB 060218 shows a thermal component in its X-ray spectrum, which cools and shifts into the optical/ultraviolet band as time passes. We interpret these features as arising from the break-out of a shock wave driven by a mildly relativistic shell into the dense wind surrounding the progenitor. We have caught a supernova in the act of exploding, directly observing the shock break-out, which indicates that the GRB progenitor was a Wolf–Rayet star. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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Database:	Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection

Description
Abstract:	Although the link between long γ-ray bursts (GRBs) and supernovae has been established, hitherto there have been no observations of the beginning of a supernova explosion and its intimate link to a GRB. In particular, we do not know how the jet that defines a γ-ray burst emerges from the star's surface, nor how a GRB progenitor explodes. Here we report observations of the relatively nearby GRB 060218 (ref. 5) and its connection to supernova SN 2006aj (ref. 6). In addition to the classical non-thermal emission, GRB 060218 shows a thermal component in its X-ray spectrum, which cools and shifts into the optical/ultraviolet band as time passes. We interpret these features as arising from the break-out of a shock wave driven by a mildly relativistic shell into the dense wind surrounding the progenitor. We have caught a supernova in the act of exploding, directly observing the shock break-out, which indicates that the GRB progenitor was a Wolf–Rayet star. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
ISSN:	00280836
DOI:	10.1038/nature04892