The Fireball Shock Model of Gamma Ray Bursts

Abstract

Gamma-ray bursts are thought to be the outcome of a cataclysmic event leading to a relativistically expanding fireball, in which particles are accelerated at shocks and produce nonthermal radiation. We discuss the theoretical predictions of the fireball shock model and its general agreement with observations. Some of the recent work deals with the collimation of the outflow and its implications for the energe tics, the production of prompt bright flashes at wavelenghts much longer than gamma-rays, the time structure of the afterglow, its dependence on the central engine or progenitor system behavior, and the role of the environment on the evolution of the afterglow.