TITLE:   GCN GRB OBSERVATION REPORT
NUMBER:  3061
SUBJECT: GRB 050223: optical observations
DATE:    05/02/23 18:54:22 GMT
FROM:    Javier Gorosabel at LAEFF-INTA, Madrid  <jgu@laeff.esa.es>

J. Gorosabel (IAA-CSIC, Granada),
S. Eguchi (Stelab, Nagoya Univ.),
A. de Ugarte Postigo (IAA-CSIC),
Ph. Yock (Univ. of Auckland) and
A.J. Castro-Tirado (IAA-CSIC), report:

"Following the detection by SWIFT of GRB
050223 (Mitani et al. GCN Circ. 3055)
we imaged the error box with the 0.6 m
telescope at Mt. John Univ. Observatory.
We obtained a 300s image with the MOA
camera (+wide R-band filter) under poor
seeing conditions (4") starting on
23.55 Feb UT (i.e. 10.05 hr after the event).

A finding chart can be found at:

http://www.iaa.es/~deugarte/GRBs/050223/T1143-grb050223-red-2.gif

Comparison of the R-band image with
the DSS-2 revealed neither counterpart
within the 5" radius X-ray afterglow position
given by  XMM-Newton (Gonzalez-Riestra et 
al. GCN Circ. 3060) nor variable source to 
about R = 20.5 within the 4' radius SWIFT/BAT
error box."

This message can be cited.