Discovery of a Very Bright, Nearby Gravitational Microlensing Event

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dc.contributor.authorGaudi, B. Scott
dc.contributor.authorPatterson, Joseph
dc.contributor.authorSpiegel, David S.
dc.contributor.authorKrajci, Thomas
dc.contributor.authorKoff, R.
dc.contributor.authorPojmański, G.
dc.contributor.authorDong, Subo
dc.contributor.authorGould, Andrew
dc.contributor.authorPrieto, Jose L.
dc.contributor.authorBlake, Cullen H.
dc.contributor.authorRoming, Peter W. A.
dc.contributor.authorBennett, David P.
dc.contributor.authorBloom, Joshua S.
dc.contributor.authorBoyd, David
dc.contributor.authorEyler, Michael E.
dc.contributor.authorPonthière, Pierre de
dc.contributor.authorMirabal, N.
dc.contributor.authorMorgan, Christopher W.
dc.contributor.authorRemillard, Ronald R.
dc.contributor.authorVanmunster, T.
dc.contributor.authorWagner, R. Mark
dc.contributor.authorWatson, Linda C.
dc.date.accessioned2020-09-04T18:15:38Z
dc.date.available2020-09-04T18:15:38Z
dc.date.issued2008-01-10
dc.description.abstractWe report the serendipitous detection of a very bright, very nearby microlensing event. In late 2006 October, an otherwise unremarkable A0 star at a distance of ~1 kpc (GSC 3656–1328) brightened achromatically by a factor of nearly 40 over the span of several days and then decayed in an apparently symmetrical way. We present a light curve of the event based on optical photometry from the Center for Backyard Astrophysics and the All Sky Automated Survey, as well as near-infrared photometry from the Peters Automated Infrared Imaging Telescope. This light curve is well fit by a generic microlensing model. We also report optical spectra and Swift X-ray and UV observations that are consistent with the microlensing interpretation. We discuss and reject alternative explanations for this variability. The lens star is probably a low-mass star or brown dwarf, with a relatively high proper motion of >= 20 mas yr⁻¹, and may be visible using precise optical/infrared imaging taken several years from now. A modest, all-sky survey telescope could detect ~10 such events per year, which would enable searches for very low mass planetary companions to relatively nearby stars.en_US
dc.description.sponsorshipWe thank Weidong Li for assistance with the Swift UVOT data, Eric Ford for help with MCMC, Kris Stanek for reminding us about Paczynski (1995), Martin Dominik, Pascal Fouqu´e, and Stefan Dieters for enlightening discussions, and Arto Oksanen, Becky Enoch, Dave Messier, Arne Henden, and Tut Campbell for contributions of data. We would like to thank the referee, J.P. Beaulieu, for a helpful report. The Peters Automated Infrared Imaging Telescope (PAIRITEL) is operated by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory (SAO) and was made possible by a grant from the Harvard University Milton Fund, the camera loan from the University of Virginia, and the continued support of the SAO and UC Berkeley. The PAIRITEL project is further supported by NASA/Swift Guest Investigator Grant No.NNG06GH50G. We thank M. Skrutskie for his continued support of the PAIRITEL project. We acknowledge the use of public data from the Swift data archive. A. G. and S. D. were supported by NSF grant AST 042758. C. B. would like to acknowledge support from the Harvard Origins of Life Initiative.en_US
dc.description.urihttps://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1086/529482en_US
dc.format.extent11 pagesen_US
dc.genrejournal articles preprintsen_US
dc.identifierdoi:10.13016/m2mzsf-spwr
dc.identifier.citationB. Scott Gaudi et al, Discovery of a Very Bright, Nearby Gravitational Microlensing Event, ApJ 677 1268 (2008), https://doi.org/10.1086/529482en_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.1086/529482
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11603/19595
dc.language.isoen_USen_US
dc.publisherIOPen_US
dc.relation.isAvailableAtThe University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC)
dc.relation.ispartofUMBC Physics Department Collection
dc.relation.ispartofUMBC Joint Center for Earth Systems Technology (JCET)
dc.relation.ispartofUMBC Center for Space Sciences and Technology (CSST) / Center for Research and Exploration in Space Sciences & Technology II (CRSST II)
dc.rightsThis item is likely protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. Unless on a Creative Commons license, for uses protected by Copyright Law, contact the copyright holder or the author.
dc.rights© 2008. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved
dc.titleDiscovery of a Very Bright, Nearby Gravitational Microlensing Eventen_US
dc.typeTexten_US

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