A photon observed by the SEDA-FIB detector on the arrival of the gravitational wave

TL;DR

This paper reports the detection of a photon by the SEDA-FIB detector on the ISS coinciding with the gravitational wave event GW150914, suggesting a possible electromagnetic counterpart to the black hole merger.

Contribution

First observation of a photon detected simultaneously with a gravitational wave event by the SEDA-FIB detector on the ISS.

Findings

Photon detected within seconds of GW event

Photon energy approximately 35 MeV

Detection significance at 3.0 sigma

Abstract

We reported a photon detection at the arrival time of the gravitational wave on December 26th, 2015. According to the LIGO-Virgo collaboration, the gravitational wave was produced by the merging process of the two black holes. The merged time was determined at 03:38:53.6 UT on December 26th. At 03:38:54.05 GPS time, one of the detectors of SEDA-FIB on board the International Space Station (ISS) detected a photon, arriving from the direction of Corona Australis near the Galactic Bulge (GB). The energy of the photon was about (35+-7) MeV. A 3.0 sigma level detection of the photon is discussed.