Abstract
Following the faint gamma-ray burst, GRB 170817A, coincident with a gravitational wave-detected binary neutron star merger at d ∼ 40 Mpc, we consider the constraints on a local population of faint short duration GRBs (defined here broadly as T 90 < 4 s). We review proposed low-redshift short-GRBs and consider statistical limits on a d ≲ 200 Mpc population using Swift/Burst Alert Telescope (BAT), Fermi/Gamma-ray Burst Monitor (GBM), and Compton Gamma-Ray Observatory (CGRO) Burst and Transient Source Experiment (BATSE) GRBs. Swift/BAT short-GRBs give an upper limit for the all-sky rate of < 4 y − 1 at d < 200 Mpc, corresponding to < 5% of SGRBs. Cross-correlation of selected CGRO/BATSE and Fermi/GBM GRBs with d < 100 Mpc galaxy positions returns a weaker constraint of ≲ 12 y − 1 . A separate search for correlations due to SGR giant flares in nearby ( d < 11 Mpc) galaxies finds an upper limit of < 3 y − 1 . Our analysis suggests that GRB 170817A-like events are likely to be rare in existing SGRB catalogues. The best candidate for an analogue remains GRB 050906, where the Swift/BAT location was consistent with the galaxy IC 0327 at d ≈ 132 Mpc. If binary neutron star merger rates are at the high end of current estimates, then our results imply that at most a few percent will be accompanied by detectable gamma-ray flashes in the forthcoming LIGO/Virgo science runs.
Highlights
Gamma-ray bursts are classified as either long or short duration
By correlating a sample of 400 Burst and Transient Source Experiment (BATSE) SGRBs for which location errors were less than 10 degrees, with a sample of local galaxies, Tanvir et al [20] were able to place a limit for the rate of short-duration gamma-ray bursts within d ∼ 110 Mpc of ∼25% of BATSE bursts
Popov and Stern [67] argued that the rate of giant flares (GF) observed in the Milky Way system would lead to the expectation that 15–25 soft-gamma-ray repeaters (SGRs) GFs from four galaxies (M82, NGC 253, NGC 4945, and M83) should have been detected during the life of the BATSE instrument
Summary
Gamma-ray bursts are classified as either long or short duration. The distinction is most clearly indicated by the time taken to receive 90% of the total gamma-ray fluence, the T90 of the burst. The compact binary merger scenario is supported by the broad population of SGRB host galaxies, both with and without recent star formation [10], and the wide range of offsets between burst location and host [11,12]. At d ≈ 40 Mpc, GRB 170817A was much closer and intrinsically less luminous than any previous SGRB with a securely-measured distance This discovery has revived interest in the rate of SGRBs (and events that are phenomenologically similar) in the local universe (d ∼ 200 Mpc), which has particular bearing on the expected fraction of gravitational wave detections that will be accompanied by detectable gamma-ray flashes (e.g., [19]). We revisit this question, first discussing a range of potential low-luminosity SGRB-like events, considering the observational constraints on such populations based on the samples of bursts seen by Swift, CGRO/BATSE, Fermi/GBM, and the Inter-Planetary Network
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