Schedule Aug 03, 2012
Fermi in the ALIGO Era
Eleonora Troja (NASA/GSFC)

Authors: E. Troja (NASA/GSFC), J. E. McEnery (NASA/GSFC), V. Pelassa (NASA/MSFC), and V. Connaughton (NASA/MSFC) on behalf of the Fermi-LAT and Fermi-GBM Collaborations

The popular notion that short gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are originated by the merger of two compact objects makes them one of the most promising tools to aid in the direct detection of gravitational waves (GWs). A joint GRB/GW detection will constitute revolutionary science, with the electromagnetic and GW signals offering independent and complementary views of the merger source. In this new era of multi-messenger astronomy, the Gamma-ray Burst Monitor (GBM) onboard Fermi will play a key role.

Thanks to its wide field of view and broadband energy coverage, Fermi-GBM is currently the most prolific detector of short GRBs (~45 events per year). The GBM provides a precise time-stamp and an approximate localization (5-10 degrees) of each burst to feed GW and neutrino counterpart searches. We summarize the current status of Fermi-GBM observations of short GRBs and discuss the potential of future Fermi observations in the era of Advanced LIGO.

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