[vsnet-grb-info 6644] GRB 080915a, SMARTS optical/IR observations

[GCN Circulars]

TITLE:   GCN CIRCULAR
NUMBER:  8248
SUBJECT: GRB 080915a, SMARTS optical/IR observations 
DATE:    08/09/16 19:57:08 GMT
FROM:    Bethany Cobb at Yale U  <cobb at astro.yale.edu>

B. E. Cobb (UC Berkeley), reports:

Using the ANDICAM instrument on the SMARTS 1.3m telescope at CTIO, we
obtained optical/IR imaging of the error region of GRB 080915a
(GCN 8227, Oates et al.) with a mid-exposure time of
2008-09-15 01:54 UT (~1.9 hrs post-burst).  We then re-observed
the field at 2008-09-16 6:12 UT (~30.2 hrs post-burst).  Total summed 
exposure times for each observation amounted to 36 minutes in I
and 30 minutes in J.

A comparison of our two epochs of imaging reveals no variable source
at the position of the X-ray afterglow reported by Evans et al. (GCN 
8231).  Our limiting magnitudes are I>21.9 and J>20.1.
(Optical photometry is calibrated against Landolt standard stars
and IR photometry is calibrated against 2MASS stars in the field.)