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J.S. Bloom (Caltech), Caltech-NRAO-CARA GRB Collaboration
A great deal of progress has been made in the past few years toward the determination of the nature of the progenitors of cosmological gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). Though by no means definitive, the evidence points to massive stars (or "collapsars"), rather than merging neutron stars, as the culprits. I will discuss this evidence, focusing on both the late-time supernova signatures in GRB afterglows and recent results from a large HST and Keck survey. In addition, I will present work from the commissioning of JCAM, a new dual-band optical CCD imager for the Palomar 200-inch telescope designed to rapidly observe GRB afterglow.
The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: jsb@astro.caltech.edu