A search for pulsations from the compact object of GRB 060218

N. Mirabal, E. V. Gotthelf

Published 2009-07-10, updated 2010-01-07Version 3

A fraction of massive stars are expected to collapse into compact objects (accreting black holes or rapidly rotating neutron stars) that successfully produce gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). We examine the possibility of directly observing these gamma-ray burst compact objects (GCOs) using post-explosion observations of past and future GRB sites. In particular, we present a search for early pulsations from the nearby (z=0.0335) gamma-ray burst GRB 060218, which exhibited features possibly consistent with a rapidly spinning neutron star as its underlying GCO. We also consider alternative techniques that could potentially achieve a detection of GCOs either in the Local Volume or near the plane of our own Galaxy.