Swift follow-up of IceCube triggers, and implications for the Advanced-LIGO era

TL;DR

This study details Swift's follow-up observations of IceCube neutrino triggers, highlighting the challenges in identifying counterparts and discussing future multi-messenger astronomy strategies, especially for gravitational wave events.

Contribution

It presents a systematic follow-up approach for IceCube triggers with Swift and discusses implications for future multi-messenger astronomy in the advanced gravitational wave era.

Findings

No confirmed X-ray counterparts were detected.

Follow-up within 5 hours was effective in coverage.

Results inform future multi-messenger observation strategies.

Abstract

Between 2011 March and 2014 August Swift responded to 20 triggers from the IceCube neutrino observatory, observing the IceCube 50% confidence error circle in X-rays, typically within 5 hours of the trigger. No confirmed counterpart has been detected. We describe the Swift follow up strategy and data analysis and present the results of the campaign. We discuss the challenges of distinguishing the X-ray counterpart to a neutrino trigger from serendipitous uncatalogued X-ray sources in the error circle, and consider the implications of our results for future strategies for multi-messenger astronomy, with particular reference to the follow up of gravitational wave triggers from the advanced-era detectors.