# Distributed Architectures and Constellations for \(\gamma\)-ray Burst Science
###### Abstract  
The gravitational wave/\(\gamma\)-ray burst GW/GRB170817 event marked the beginning of the era of multi-messenger astrophysics, in which new observations of Gravitational Waves (GW) are combined with traditional electromagnetic observations from the very same astrophysical source. In the next few years, Advanced LIGO/VIRGO and KAGRA in Japan and LIGO-India will reach their nominal/ultimate sensitivity. In the electromagnetic domain, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory and the Cherenkov Telescope Array (CTA) will come online in the next few years, and they will revolutionize the investigation of transient and variable cosmic sources in the optical and TeV bands. The operation of an efficient X-ray/\(\gamma\)-ray all-sky monitor with good localisation capabilities will play a pivotal role in providing the high-energy counterparts of the GW interferometers and Rubin Observatory, bringing multi-messenger astrophysics to maturity. To reach the required precision in localisation and timeliness for an unpredictable physical event in time and space requires a sensor distribution covering the whole sky. We discuss the potential of large-scale, small-platform-distributed architectures and constellations to build a sensitive X-ray/\(\gamma\)-ray all-sky monitor and the programmatic implications of this, including the set-up of an efficient assembly line for both hardware development and data analysis. We also discuss the potential of a constellation of small platforms operating at other wavelengths (UV/IR) that are capable of repointing quickly to follow-up high-energy transients.  
\(\gamma\)-ray burst; multi-messenger astrophysics; nano-satellites +
Footnote †: journal: Physics Letters A  
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Footnote 1: email: {1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11  
the accretion disk, and the region where relativistic jets are launched. On the other hand, gravitational waves (GWs), encoding the rapid/relativistic motion of compact objects, allow us to look directly into the innermost regions of these systems, providing precise information on space-time dynamics, and therefore the mass, spin, interior properties and inclination of the systems, as well as accurate distances. Electromagnetic measurements can hardly provide accuracies comparable to GW observations on these quantities, which are key to testing general relativity, the physics of compact objects and the build-up of the most efficient accelerators in the Universe. However, the information carried by GWs can be greatly amplified by identifying the context in which the event occurs. Electromagnetic observations can provide this context, as the GW/GRB170817 event strikingly demonstrated.  
Multi-messenger astrophysics can include many more sources and astrophysical context, in addition to compact binary mergers, with their associated GRBs and kilonovae, such as supernovae, binary white dwarfs, coalescence of supermassive black holes, tidal disruption events in the vicinity of supermassive black holes and many others. In this paper, we limit ourselves to a discussion on compact binary coalescences (CBCs). The paper is organized as follows: we first discuss the main scientific goals of the multi-messenger approach to CBCs; we then summarize where we stand today; and, finally, discuss the role of distributed architectures in CBCs multi-messenger research during the present decade and the 2030s.