The Starburst Mission

The StarBurst Multimessenger Pioneer is a highly sensitive, wide-field gamma-ray monitor designed to detect the prompt emission of short gamma-ray bursts (SGRBs), a key electromagnetic (EM) signature of neutron star (NS) mergers. StarBurst aims to capitalize on the new era of multimessenger astronomy by utilizing advances in gamma-ray detectors made over the last decade. StarBurst consists of 12 CsI(TI) large-area scintillator detectors, employing new, low-mass, and low-voltage Silicon photomultipliers (SiPM) to cover an energy range from 30 keV to 2 MeV. With an effective area over 500% that of the Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor (GBM) and full coverage of the unocculted sky (8 Sr), StarBurst will make highly sensitive observations of EM counterparts to NS mergers and be a key partner to the gravitational wave network in discovering NS mergers. Designed as a SmallSat, StarBurst is intended to be deployed to Low Earth Orbit as a secondary payload for a nominal 1-year mission, coinciding with the 5th LIGO/Virgo/Kagra observing (O5) run. We will present an overview of the StarBurst science objectives and highlight potential synergies with new and existing missions, including COSI, expected to be operational during the O5 run.