ar X iv : a st ro - p h / 01 07 53 5 v 1 2 7 Ju l 2 00 1 The GRB Host Galaxies and Redshifts ⋆

Observations of GRB host galaxies and their environments in general can provide valuable clues about the nature of progenitors. Bursts are associated with faint, 〈R〉 ∼ 25 mag, galaxies at cosmological redshifts, 〈z〉 ∼ 1. The host galaxies span a range of luminosities and morphologies, and appear to be broadly typical for the normal, evolving, actively star-forming galaxy populations at comparable redshifts and magnitudes, but may have somewhat elevated SFR per unit luminosity. There are also spectroscopic hints of massive star formation, from the ratios of [Ne III] and [O II] lines. The observed, unobscured star formation rates are typically a few M⊙/yr, but a considerable fraction of the total star formation in the hosts may be obscured by dust. A census of detected optical afterglows provides a powerful new handle on the obscured fraction of star formation in the universe; the current results suggest that at most a half of the massive star formation was hidden by dust.