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A Radio Counterpart to a Neutron Star Merger
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Gravitational waves have been detected from a binary neutron star merger event, GW170817. The detection of electromagnetic radiation from the same source has shown that the merger occurred in the outskirts of the galaxy NGC 4993, at a distance of 40 megaparsecs from Earth. We report the detection of a counterpart radio source that appears 16 days after the event, allowing us to diagnose the energetics and environment of the merger. The observed radio emission can be explained by either a collimated ultra-relativistic jet viewed off-axis, or a cocoon of mildly relativistic ejecta. Within 100 days of the merger, the radio light curves will distinguish between these models and very long baseline interferometry will have the capability to directly measure the angular velocity and geometry of the debris.
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Forward citations
Cited by 2 Pith papers
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The Very Late Time Afterglow of GW170817 Favors a Wobbling Jet
A ring-shaped wobbling jet explains the shallow late-time afterglow decay of GW170817 better than a collimated jet at 4.8 sigma significance, implying a ~27 degree wobble angle.
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Effects of magnetically driven shocks on nucleosynthesis and kilonovae from neutron star mergers
Magnetically driven shocks from neutron star merger remnants can reheat ejecta to nuclear statistical equilibrium, alter r-process yields, and produce observable changes in kilonova color and light curves.
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