This is a fully processed K-band image of the region around the gamma
ray burst GRB 980329. This image is a 90 minute exposure with the
Keck 10 meter telescope on 02 April (UT 7:00). The object labeled GRB
980329 Host Galaxy, is within 0.5 arcseconds of the radio coordinates
of the radio transient announced by Taylor et al. in GCN Note 40. It
is also coincident with the R band counterpart announced by Djorgovski
et al. in GCN
Note 41.
An additional 90 minutes of data were obtained on 03 April (UT) with only
a small variation seen in the object's intensity. The final K band
magnitudes from the two nights are: 20.7+-0.2 mag on 02Apr98; and
20.9+-0.2 mag on 03Apr98. Note that seeing conditions were substantially
worse on the second night, and much of the variation in magnitude could
be due to aperture corrections. Later observations, however, have shown
that the source has completely faded below the best detection limits (~23 mag).
No host galaxy has yet been detected.
During the first 20 minutes of the 02Apr98 exposures, the seeing was
between 0.5 and 0.6 arcseconds, and the host object is unresolved at
this resolution.
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