  The gamma-ray burst (GRB) 010222 is the brightest GRB detected to date by the
BeppoSAX satellite. Prompt identification of the associated optical transient
(OT) allowed for spectroscopy with the Tillinghast 1.5m telescope at F. L.
Whipple Observatory while the source was still relatively bright (R ~ 18.6
mag), within five hours of the burst. The OT shows a blue continuum with many
superimposed absorption features corresponding to metal lines at z = 1.477,
1.157, and possibly also at 0.928. The redshift of GRB 010222 is therefore
unambiguously placed at z >= 1.477. The high number of Mg II absorbers and
especially the large equivalent widths of the Mg II, Mg I, and Fe II absorption
lines in the z = 1.477 system further argue either for a very small impact
parameter or that the z = 1.477 system is the GRB host galaxy itself. The
spectral index of the OT is relatively steep, beta = 0.89 +/- 0.03, and this
cannot be caused by dust with a standard Galactic extinction law in the z =
1.477 absorption system. This spectroscopic identification of the redshift of
GRB 010222 shows that prompt and well-coordinated followup of bright GRBs can
be successful even with telescopes of modest aperture.
