Improved Limits on Gamma-Ray Burst Repetition from BATSE
Abstract
We tighten previous upper limits on gamma-ray burst repetition by analyzing the angular power spectrum of the BATSE 3B catalog of 1122 bursts. At 95% confidence, we find that no more than 2% of all observed bursts can be labeled as repeaters, even if no sources are observed to repeat more than once. If a fraction f of all observed bursts can be labeled as repeaters that are observed to burst ν times each, then all models with (ν - 1)f >= 0.05 are ruled out at 99% confidence, as compared to the best previous 99% limit (ν - 1)f >= 0.27. At 95% confidence, our new limit is (ν - 1)f >= 0.02. Thus, even a cluster of six events from a single source would have caused excess power above that present in the 3B catalog. We conclude that the current BATSE data are consistent with no repetition of classical gamma-ray bursts and that any repeater model is severely constrained by the near-perfect isotropy of their angular distribution.
- Publication:
-
The Astrophysical Journal
- Pub Date:
- August 1996
- DOI:
- 10.1086/177549
- arXiv:
- arXiv:astro-ph/9511079
- Bibcode:
- 1996ApJ...466..757T
- Keywords:
-
- GAMMA RAYS: BURSTS;
- METHODS: STATISTICAL;
- Astrophysics
- E-Print:
- 18 pages, with 2 figures included. Postscript. Submitted to ApJL. Latest version at http://astro.berkeley.edu/~max/repeaters.html (faster from the US), from http://www.mpa-garching.mpg.de/~max/repeaters.html (faster from Europe) or from max@mppmu.mpg.de