English (United Kingdom)

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/featured_content/oa?rat=en

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/highlighted_journal/

Global: Zendy Plus annual

Presents the access of premium content as premium feature

Premium Content

Presents the keyphrase highlighting as premium feature

Keyphrase Highlighting

Presents the summarisation as premium feature

Summarisation

Insights

Presents the pdf analysis as premium feature

PDF Analysis

Presents the zaia usage as premium feature

ZAIA

Global: Zendy Tools annual

Global: Zendy Free Plan

Global: Zendy Tools monthly

Global: Zendy Plus monthly

GRB 080607 has provided the first strong observational signatures ofmolecular absorption bands toward any galaxy hosting a gamma-ray burst. Despitethe identification of dozens of features as belonging to various atomic andmolecular (H_2 and CO) carriers, many more absorption features remainedunidentified. Here we report on a search among these features for absorptionfrom vibrationally-excited H_2, a species that was predicted to be produced bythe UV flash of a GRB impinging on a molecular cloud. Following a detailedcomparison between our spectroscopy and static, as well as dynamic, models ofH_2* absorption, we conclude that a column density of 10^{17.5+-0.2} cm^{-2} ofH_2* was produced along the line of sight toward GRB 080607. Depending on theassumed amount of dust extinction between the molecular cloud and the GRB, themodel distance between the two is found to be in the range 230--940 pc. Such arange is consistent with a conservative lower limit of 100 pc estimated fromthe presence of Mg I in the same data. These distances show that substantialmolecular material is found within hundreds of pc from GRB 080607, part of thedistribution of clouds within the GRB host galaxy.

The Discovery of Vibrationally-Excited H_2 in the Molecular Cloud near GRB 080607