GCN Circular 42362

E. Ambrosi  (INAF-IASFPA) , J.A. Kennea (PSU), D.N. Burrows (PSU), S.
Lanava (PSU), A.P. Beardmore (U. Leicester), J.P. Osborne (U.
Leicester), M. Capalbi (INAF-OAR), M. Perri (SSDC & INAF-OAR) and P.A.
Evans report on behalf of the Swift-XRT team:

We have analysed 7.5 ks of XRT data for GRB 251018A, from 63 s to 50.2
ks after the   trigger. The data comprise 259 s in Windowed Timing (WT)
mode (the first 9 s were taken while Swift was slewing) with the
remainder in Photon Counting (PC) mode. 

The light curve can be modelled with a power-law decay with a decay
index of alpha=1.122 (+0.031, -0.029).

A spectrum formed from the WT mode data can be fitted with an absorbed
power-law with a photon spectral index	of 1.68 (+0.15, -0.14). The
best-fitting absorption column is  1.4 (+0.6, -0.5) x 10^21 cm^-2,
consistent with the Galactic value of 9.4 x 10^20 cm^-2 (Willingale et
al. 2013). The PC mode spectrum has a photon index of 1.81 (+0.25,
-0.23) and a best-fitting absorption column of 2.1 (+1.1, -0.9) x 10^21
cm^-2. The counts to observed (unabsorbed) 0.3-10 keV flux conversion
factor deduced from this spectrum  is 4.0 x 10^-11 (5.2 x 10^-11) erg
cm^-2 count^-1. 

A summary of the PC-mode spectrum is thus:
Total column:	     2.1 (+1.1, -0.9) x 10^21 cm^-2
Galactic foreground: 9.4 x 10^20 cm^-2
Excess significance: 2.0 sigma
Photon index:	     1.81 (+0.25, -0.23)

If the light curve continues to decay with a power-law decay index of
1.122, the count rate at T+24 hours will be 6.4 x 10^-3 count s^-1,
corresponding to an observed (unabsorbed) 0.3-10 keV flux of 2.6 x
10^-13 (3.3 x 10^-13) erg cm^-2 s^-1.

The results of the XRT-team automatic analysis are available at
https://www.swift.ac.uk/xrt_products/01405083.

This circular is an official product of the Swift-XRT team.