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Levan AJ, Gompertz BP, Salafia OS, Bulla M, Burns E, Hotokezaka K, Izzo L, Lamb GP, Malesani DB, Oates SR, Ravasio ME, Rouco Escorial A, Schneider B, Sarin N, Schulze S, Tanvir NR, Ackley K, Anderson G, Brammer GB, Christensen L, Dhillon VS, Evans PA, Fausnaugh M, Fong WF, Fruchter AS, Fryer C, Fynbo JPU, Gaspari N, Heintz KE, Hjorth J, Kennea JA, Kennedy MR, Laskar T, Leloudas G, Mandel I, Martin-Carrillo A, Metzger BD, Nicholl M, Nugent A, Palmerio JT, Pugliese G, Rastinejad J, Rhodes L, Rossi A, Saccardi A, Smartt SJ, Stevance HF, Tohuvavohu A, van der Horst A, Vergani SD, Watson D, Barclay T, Bhirombhakdi K, Breedt E, Breeveld AA, Brown AJ, Campana S, Chrimes AA, D'Avanzo P, D'Elia V, De Pasquale M, Dyer MJ, Galloway DK, Garbutt JA, Green MJ, Hartmann DH, Jakobsson P, Kerry P, Kouveliotou C, Langeroodi D, Le Floc'h E, Leung JK, Littlefair SP, Munday J, O'Brien P, Parsons SG, Pelisoli I, Sahman DI, Salvaterra R, Sbarufatti B, Steeghs D, Tagliaferri G, Thöne CC, de Ugarte Postigo A, Kann DA. Heavy-element production in a compact object merger observed by JWST. Nature 2024; 626:737-741. [PMID: 37879361 PMCID: PMC10881391 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06759-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2023] [Accepted: 10/17/2023] [Indexed: 10/27/2023]
Abstract
The mergers of binary compact objects such as neutron stars and black holes are of central interest to several areas of astrophysics, including as the progenitors of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs)1, sources of high-frequency gravitational waves (GWs)2 and likely production sites for heavy-element nucleosynthesis by means of rapid neutron capture (the r-process)3. Here we present observations of the exceptionally bright GRB 230307A. We show that GRB 230307A belongs to the class of long-duration GRBs associated with compact object mergers4-6 and contains a kilonova similar to AT2017gfo, associated with the GW merger GW170817 (refs. 7-12). We obtained James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) mid-infrared imaging and spectroscopy 29 and 61 days after the burst. The spectroscopy shows an emission line at 2.15 microns, which we interpret as tellurium (atomic mass A = 130) and a very red source, emitting most of its light in the mid-infrared owing to the production of lanthanides. These observations demonstrate that nucleosynthesis in GRBs can create r-process elements across a broad atomic mass range and play a central role in heavy-element nucleosynthesis across the Universe.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew J Levan
- Department of Astrophysics, Institute for Mathematics, Astrophysics and Particle Physics (IMAPP), Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK.
| | - Benjamin P Gompertz
- Institute for Gravitational Wave Astronomy, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Om Sharan Salafia
- INAF - Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera, Merate, Italy
- INFN - Sezione di Milano Bicocca, Milano, Italy
| | - Mattia Bulla
- Department of Physics and Earth Science, University of Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
- INFN - Sezione di Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy
- INAF - Osservatorio Astronomico d'Abruzzo, Teramo, Italy
| | - Eric Burns
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA, USA
| | - Kenta Hotokezaka
- Research Center for the Early Universe, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo, Japan
- Kavli IPMU (WPI), UTIAS, The University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba, Japan
| | - Luca Izzo
- DARK, Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen N, Denmark
- INAF - Osservatorio Astronomico di Capodimonte, Naples, Italy
| | - Gavin P Lamb
- Astrophysics Research Institute, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Daniele B Malesani
- Department of Astrophysics, Institute for Mathematics, Astrophysics and Particle Physics (IMAPP), Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
- Cosmic Dawn Center (DAWN), Copenhagen, Denmark
- Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Samantha R Oates
- Institute for Gravitational Wave Astronomy, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Maria Edvige Ravasio
- Department of Astrophysics, Institute for Mathematics, Astrophysics and Particle Physics (IMAPP), Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
- INAF - Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera, Merate, Italy
| | | | - Benjamin Schneider
- Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Nikhil Sarin
- Nordita, Stockholm University and KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden
- The Oskar Klein Centre, Department of Physics, Stockholm University, AlbaNova University Center, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Steve Schulze
- The Oskar Klein Centre, Department of Physics, Stockholm University, AlbaNova University Center, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Nial R Tanvir
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Kendall Ackley
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Gemma Anderson
- International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research, Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Gabriel B Brammer
- Cosmic Dawn Center (DAWN), Copenhagen, Denmark
- Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Lise Christensen
- Cosmic Dawn Center (DAWN), Copenhagen, Denmark
- Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Vikram S Dhillon
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
- Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain
| | - Phil A Evans
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Michael Fausnaugh
- Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, USA
| | - Wen-Fai Fong
- Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
| | | | - Chris Fryer
- Center for Theoretical Astrophysics, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM, USA
- Department of Astronomy, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, The University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA
- Department of Physics, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Johan P U Fynbo
- Cosmic Dawn Center (DAWN), Copenhagen, Denmark
- Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Nicola Gaspari
- Department of Astrophysics, Institute for Mathematics, Astrophysics and Particle Physics (IMAPP), Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Kasper E Heintz
- Cosmic Dawn Center (DAWN), Copenhagen, Denmark
- Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Jens Hjorth
- DARK, Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Jamie A Kennea
- Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA
| | - Mark R Kennedy
- School of Physics, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland
- Jodrell Bank Centre for Astrophysics, Department of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Tanmoy Laskar
- Department of Astrophysics, Institute for Mathematics, Astrophysics and Particle Physics (IMAPP), Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
- Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
| | - Giorgos Leloudas
- DTU Space, National Space Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Ilya Mandel
- School of Physics and Astronomy, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Gravitational Wave Discovery (OzGrav), Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
| | | | - Brian D Metzger
- Columbia Astrophysics Laboratory, Department of Physics, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
- Center for Computational Astrophysics, Flatiron Institute, New York, NY, USA
| | - Matt Nicholl
- Astrophysics Research Centre, School of Mathematics and Physics, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, UK
| | - Anya Nugent
- Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
| | - Jesse T Palmerio
- GEPI, Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL, CNRS, Meudon, France
| | - Giovanna Pugliese
- Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Jillian Rastinejad
- Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
| | - Lauren Rhodes
- Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Andrea Rossi
- INAF - Osservatorio di Astrofisica e Scienza dello Spazio, Bologna, Italy
| | - Andrea Saccardi
- GEPI, Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL, CNRS, Meudon, France
| | - Stephen J Smartt
- Astrophysics Research Centre, School of Mathematics and Physics, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, UK
- Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Heloise F Stevance
- Department of Physics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
- Department of Physics, The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Aaron Tohuvavohu
- Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | | | | | - Darach Watson
- Cosmic Dawn Center (DAWN), Copenhagen, Denmark
- Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | | | | | - Elmé Breedt
- Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Alice A Breeveld
- Mullard Space Science Laboratory, University College London, Holmbury St. Mary, UK
| | - Alexander J Brown
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | | | - Ashley A Chrimes
- Department of Astrophysics, Institute for Mathematics, Astrophysics and Particle Physics (IMAPP), Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | | | - Valerio D'Elia
- Agenzia Spaziale Italiana (ASI) Space Science Data Center (SSDC), Rome, Italy
- INAF - Osservatorio Astronomico di Roma, Rome, Italy
| | - Massimiliano De Pasquale
- Department of Mathematics, Physics, Informatics and Earth Sciences, University of Messina, Polo Papardo, Messina, Italy
| | - Martin J Dyer
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Duncan K Galloway
- School of Physics and Astronomy, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Gravitational Wave Discovery (OzGrav), Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
| | - James A Garbutt
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Matthew J Green
- School of Physics and Astronomy, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Dieter H Hartmann
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Clemson University, Clemson, SC, USA
| | - Páll Jakobsson
- Centre for Astrophysics and Cosmology, Science Institute, University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland
| | - Paul Kerry
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Chryssa Kouveliotou
- Department of Physics, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Danial Langeroodi
- DARK, Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen N, Denmark
| | - Emeric Le Floc'h
- CEA, IRFU, DAp, AIM, Université Paris-Saclay, Université Paris Cité, Sorbonne Paris Cité, CNRS, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - James K Leung
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Gravitational Wave Discovery (OzGrav), Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
- Sydney Institute for Astronomy, School of Physics, The University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- CSIRO Space and Astronomy, Epping, New South Wales, Australia
| | | | - James Munday
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- Isaac Newton Group of Telescopes, Santa Cruz de La Palma, Spain
| | - Paul O'Brien
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Steven G Parsons
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | | | - David I Sahman
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | | | | | - Danny Steeghs
- Department of Physics, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
- ARC Centre of Excellence for Gravitational Wave Discovery (OzGrav), Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
| | | | - Christina C Thöne
- Astronomical Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Ondřejov, Czechia
| | | | - David Alexander Kann
- Hessian Research Cluster ELEMENTS, Giersch Science Center (GSC), Goethe University Frankfurt, Campus Riedberg, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
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