SVOM GRB 250314A at z ≃ 7.3: An exploding star in the era of re-ionization

Cordier, B.; Wei, J. Y.; Tanvir, N. R.; Vergani, S. D.; Malesani, D. B.; Fynbo, J. P. U.; de Ugarte Postigo, A.; Saccardi, A.; Daigne, F.; Atteia, J.-L.; Godet, O.; Götz, D.; Qiu, Y. L.; Schanne, S.; Xin, L. P.; Zhang, B.; Zhang, S. N.; Nayana, A. J.; Piro, L.; Fausey, H.; Schneider, B.; Levan, A. J.; Thakur, A. L.; Zhu, Z. P.; Corcoran, G.; Rakotondrainibe, N. A.; D'Elia, V.; Turpin, D.; Agüí Fernández, J. F.; Aloy, M. A.; An, J.; Bai, M.; Basa, S.; Bernardini, M. G.; Bochenek, A.; Brivio, R.; Brunet, M.; Bruni, G.; Cenko, S. B.; Cheng, Q.; Chrimes, A.; Christensen, L.; Claret, A.; Coleiro, A.; Cotter, L.; Crepaldi, S.; Deng, J. S.; Dimple; Dong, Y. W.; Dornic, D.; Evans, P. A.; Eyles-Ferris, R. A. J.; Ferro, M.; Galbany, L.; Garnichey, M.; Gianfagna, G.; Gompertz, B. P.; Goto, H.; Habeeb, N.; Han, P. Y.; Han, X. H.; Hartmann, D. H.; Heintz, K. E.; Hu, J. Y.; Huang, M. H.; Izzo, L.; Jakobsson, P.; Kennea, J. A.; Lachaud, C.; Laskar, T.; Li, D.; Li, H. L.; Li, R. Z.; Liu, X.; Liu, Y.; Lombardi, G.; Louvin, H.; Maggi, P.; Maiolino, T.; Mao, Q. Y.; Martin-Carrillo, A.; Mercier, K.; O'Brien, P.; Palmerio, J. T.; Petitjean, P.; Pieterse, D. L. A.; Piron, F.; Pugliese, G.; Rayson, B. C.; Reynolds, T.; Robinet, F.; Rossi, A.; Salvaterra, R.; Thöne, C. C.; Topçu, B.; Wang, C. W.; Wang, J.; Wang, Y.; Wu, C.; Xiong, S. L. et al.
Bibliographical reference

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Advertised on:
12
2025
Number of authors
106
IAC number of authors
1
Citations
4
Refereed citations
0
Description
Most long gamma-ray bursts (LGRBs) originate from a rare type of massive stellar explosion. Their afterglows, while rapidly fading, can initially be extremely luminous at optical and near-infrared wavelengths, making them detectable at large cosmological distances. Here we report the detection and observations of GRB 250314A by the SVOM satellite and the subsequent follow-up campaign that led to the discovery of the near-infrared afterglow and spectroscopic measurements of its redshift z ≃ 7.3. This burst occurred when the Universe was only about 5% of its current age. We discuss the signature of these rare events within the context of the SVOM operating model and the ways to optimise their identification with adapted ground follow-up observation strategies.