A Repeating Fast Radio Burst Source in a Low-luminosity Dwarf Galaxy

Abstract We present the localization and host galaxy of FRB 20190208A, a repeating source of fast radio bursts (FRBs) discovered using CHIME/FRB. As part of the Pinpointing REpeating ChIme Sources with EVN dishes repeater localization program on the European VLBI Network (EVN), we monitored FRB 20190208A for 65.6 hr at ∼1.4 GHz and detected a single burst, which led to its very long baseline interferometry localization with 260 mas uncertainty (2 σ ). Follow-up optical observations with the MMT Observatory ( i ≳ 25.7 mag (AB)) found no visible host at the FRB position. Subsequent deeper observations with the Gran Telescopio Canarias, however, revealed an extremely faint galaxy ( r = 27.32 ± 0.16 mag), very likely (99.95%) associated with FRB 20190208A. Given the dispersion measure of the FRB (∼580 pc cm −3 ), even the most conservative redshift estimate ( <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" overflow="scroll"> <mml:msub> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>z</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>max</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> </mml:msub> <mml:mo>∼</mml:mo> <mml:mn>0.83</mml:mn> </mml:math> ) implies that this is the lowest-luminosity FRB host to date (≲10 8 L ⊙ ), even less luminous than the dwarf host of FRB 20121102A. We investigate how localization precision and the depth of optical imaging affect host association and discuss the implications of such a low-luminosity dwarf galaxy. Unlike the other repeaters with low-luminosity hosts, FRB 20190208A has a modest Faraday rotation measure of a few tens of rad m −2 , and EVN plus Very Large Array observations reveal no associated compact persistent radio source. We also monitored FRB 20190208A for 40.4 hr over 2 yr as part of the Extragalactic Coherent Light from Astrophysical Transients repeating FRB monitoring campaign on the Nançay Radio Telescope and detected one burst. Our results demonstrate that, in some cases, the robust association of an FRB with a host galaxy will require both high localization precision and deep optical follow-up.

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Publication Details

Journal
The Astrophysical Journal Letters
Published
2024-11-29
DOI
https://doi.org/10.3847/2041-8213/ad8ce1
Citations
16
Primary Topic
Gamma-ray bursts and supernovae
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
5.30

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article

A Repeating Fast Radio Burst Source in a Low-luminosity Dwarf Galaxy

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A Repeating Fast Radio Burst Source in a Low-luminosity Dwarf Galaxy

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article en
16 citations

Abstract

Abstract We present the localization and host galaxy of FRB 20190208A, a repeating source of fast radio bursts (FRBs) discovered using CHIME/FRB. As part of the Pinpointing REpeating ChIme Sources with EVN dishes repeater localization program on the European VLBI Network (EVN), we monitored FRB 20190208A for 65.6 hr at ∼1.4 GHz and detected a single burst, which led to its very long baseline interferometry localization with 260 mas uncertainty (2 σ ). Follow-up optical observations with the MMT Observatory ( i ≳ 25.7 mag (AB)) found no visible host at the FRB position. Subsequent deeper observations with the Gran Telescopio Canarias, however, revealed an extremely faint galaxy ( r = 27.32 ± 0.16 mag), very likely (99.95%) associated with FRB 20190208A. Given the dispersion measure of the FRB (∼580 pc cm −3 ), even the most conservative redshift estimate ( <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" overflow="scroll"> <mml:msub> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>z</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>max</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> </mml:msub> <mml:mo>∼</mml:mo> <mml:mn>0.83</mml:mn> </mml:math> ) implies that this is the lowest-luminosity FRB host to date (≲10 8 L ⊙ ), even less luminous than the dwarf host of FRB 20121102A. We investigate how localization precision and the depth of optical imaging affect host association and discuss the implications of such a low-luminosity dwarf galaxy. Unlike the other repeaters with low-luminosity hosts, FRB 20190208A has a modest Faraday rotation measure of a few tens of rad m −2 , and EVN plus Very Large Array observations reveal no associated compact persistent radio source. We also monitored FRB 20190208A for 40.4 hr over 2 yr as part of the Extragalactic Coherent Light from Astrophysical Transients repeating FRB monitoring campaign on the Nançay Radio Telescope and detected one burst. Our results demonstrate that, in some cases, the robust association of an FRB with a host galaxy will require both high localization precision and deep optical follow-up.

The Astrophysical Journal LettersVol. 977(1)
National Science Foundation, Smithsonian Institution, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Research Corporation for Science Advancement, Northwestern University, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, McGill University, University of Manchester, European Commission, National Natural Science Foundation of China, Universiteit van Amsterdam, Canada Excellence Research Chairs, Government of Canada, Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek, Vetenskapsrådet, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, Uniwersytet Mikolaja Kopernika w Toruniu, Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, McGill Space Institute, Observatoire de Paris, Université de Recherche Paris Sciences et Lettres, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Fonds de recherche du Québec – Nature et technologies, Dirección General de Asuntos del Personal Académico, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Agencia Estatal de Investigación, Precursory Research for Embryonic Science and Technology
Openalex Percentile: Top 4%
Gamma-ray bursts and supernovae
5.30
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