Gamow Explorer

The Gamow Explorer is a NASA gamma-ray burst (GRB) space observatory plan, proposed as a MIDEX mission for a 2028 launch, with the aim of providing alerts for very-high-redshift GRBs, from a distance that redshifts them to X-ray. Included is an infrared telescope looking for a dropout indicating the Gunn-Peterson trough, a sign of a source with a redshift of z=6 or more. Such transients are rare, and this quick, on-board confirmation would establish the value of immediate follow-up observation with major research telescopes. Instruments:

• LEXT "Lobster Eye X-ray Telescope" (to detect transients).
• PIRT "Photo-z Infrared Telescope" (to evaluate their redshift).

The plan is that the PIRT will search for and observe other types of transients when not following up on X-ray transients.