[vsnet-grb-info 6552] SGR 0501+4516: Detection of possible optical counterpart

[GCN Circulars]

TITLE:   GCN CIRCULAR
NUMBER:  8160
SUBJECT: SGR 0501+4516: Detection of possible optical counterpart
DATE:    08/08/29 11:49:38 GMT
FROM:    Alberto Castro-Tirado at Inst.de Astro. de Andalucia  <ajct at iaa.es>

T. Fatkhullin (SAO-RAS Nizhnij Arkhyz), A. de Ugarte Postigo (ESO 
Santiago), A. J. Castro-Tirado, J. Gorosabel and M. Jelínek (IAA-CSIC 
Granada), V. Sokolov (SAO-RAS), S. Guziy (Nikolaev State Univ.), A. 
Pozanenko (IKI-RAS Moscow), E. Sonbas (Cukurova Univ.) and D. 
Pérez-Ramírez (U. Leicester), on behalf of a larger collaboration, report:

"Continuing with our monitoring campaign of the field of the SGR 
0501+4516 (Holland et al. GCNC 8112, Barthelmy et al. GCNC 8113) we have 
used the 6.0m BTA telescope (equipped with SCORPIO) at the Special 
Astrophysical Observatory (SAO, Russia). A combination of exposures 
adding a total of 1530s in the I-band obtained at a mean epoch of August 
25.18468 UT shows a low S/N source consistent with the NIR object 
reported by Tanvir and Varrycatt (GCN 8126), with a magnitude of I = 
23.3 ± 0.4. Taking into account the nIR magnitude reported by Rea et al. 
at about the same epoch (GCNC 8159), we derive an apparent color index 
(I-Ks) = 4.1 ± 0.6, uncorrected for Galactic extinction in the line of 
sight to the source. Further observations are planned."

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