109 research outputs found
Testing the gravitational theory with short-period stars around our Galactic Center
Motion of short-period stars orbiting the supermassive black hole in our
Galactic Center has been monitored for more than 20 years. These observations
are currently offering a new way to test the gravitational theory in an
unexplored regime: in a strong gravitational field, around a supermassive black
hole. In this proceeding, we present three results: (i) a constraint on a
hypothetical fifth force obtained by using 19 years of observations of the two
best measured short-period stars S0-2 and S0-38 ; (ii) an upper limit on the
secular advance of the argument of the periastron for the star S0-2 ; (iii) a
sensitivity analysis showing that the relativistic redshift of S0-2 will be
measured after its closest approach to the black hole in 2018.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, proceedings of the 52nd Rencontres de Moriond,
Gravitation Sessio
MUSE AO spectroscopy confirms five dual AGNs and two strongly lensed QSOs at sub-arcsec separation
The novel Gaia Multi Peak (GMP) technique has proven to be able to
successfully select dual and lensed AGN candidates at sub-arcsec separations.
Both populations are important because dual AGNs represent one of the central,
still largely untested, predictions of lamdaCDM cosmology, and compact lensed
quasars allow to probe the central regions of the lensing galaxies. In this
work, we present high spatial resolution spectroscopy of twelve GMP-selected
systems. We use the the adaptive-optics assisted integral-field spectrograph
MUSE at VLT to resolve each system and study the nature of each component. All
the targets reveal the presence of two components confirming the GMP selection.
We classify five targets as dual AGNs, two as lensed systems, and five as a
chance alignment of a star and and AGN. Having separations between 0.30" and
0.86", these dual and lensed systems are, to date, among the most compact ever
discovered at z >0.3. This is the largest sample of distant dual AGNs with
sub-arcsec separations ever presented in a single paper.Comment: 11 pages, 9 figure
GMP-selected dual and lensed AGNs: selection function and classification based on near-IR colors and resolved spectra from VLT/ERIS, KECK/OSIRIS, and LBT/LUCI
The Gaia-Multi-Peak (GMP) technique can be used to identify large numbers of
dual or lensed AGN candidates at sub-arcsec separation, allowing us to study
both multiple SMBHs in the same galaxy and rare, compact lensed systems. The
observed samples can be used to test the predictions of the models of SMBH
merging once 1) the selection function of the GMP technique is known, and 2)
each system has been classified as dual AGN, lensed AGN, or AGN/star alignment.
Here we show that the GMP selection is very efficient for separations above
0.15'' when the secondary (fainter) object has magnitude G<20.5. We present the
spectroscopic classification of five GMP candidates using VLT/ERIS and
Keck/OSIRIS, and compare them with the classifications obtained from: a) the
near-IR colors of 7 systems obtained with LBT/LUCI, and b) the analysis of the
total, spatially-unresolved spectra. We conclude that colors and integrated
spectra can already provide reliable classifications of many systems. Finally,
we summarize the confirmed dual AGNs at z>0.5 selected by the GMP technique,
and compare this sample with other such systems from the literature, concluding
that GMP can provide a large number of confirmed dual AGNs at separations below
7 kpc.Comment: 14 pages,A&A, in pres
GMP-selected dual and lensed AGNs: Selection function and classification based on near-IR colors and resolved spectra from VLT/ERIS, Keck/OSIRIS, and LBT/LUCI
The Gaia Multipeak (GMP) technique can be used to identify large numbers of dual or lensed active galactic nucleus (AGN) candidates at subarcsec separation, allowing us to study both multiple supermassive black holes (SMBHs) in the same galaxy and rare, compact lensed systems. The observed samples can be used to test the predictions of the models of SMBH merging when (1) the selection function of the GMP technique is known, and (2) each system has been classified as a dual AGN, a lensed AGN, or an AGN/star alignment. Here we show that the GMP selection is very efficient for separations above 0:15′′ when the secondary (fainter) object has a magnitude G ≤ 20:5. We present the spectroscopic classification of five GMP candidates using VLT/ERIS and Keck/OSIRIS and compare them with the classifications obtained from (a) the near-IR colors of seven systems obtained with LBT/LUCI, and (b) the analysis of the total spatially unresolved spectra. We conclude that colors and integrated spectra can already provide reliable classifications of many systems. Finally, we summarize the confirmed dual AGNs at z > 0:5 selected by the GMP technique, and compare this sample with other such systems from the literature, concluding that GMP can provide a large number of confirmed dual AGNs at separations below 7 kpc
The Galactic Center with Roman
We advocate for a Galactic center (GC) field to be added to the Galactic
Bulge Time Domain Survey (GBTDS). The new field would yield high-cadence
photometric and astrometric measurements of an unprecedented 3.3
million stars toward the GC. This would enable a wide range of science cases,
such as finding star-compact object binaries that may ultimately merge as
LISA-detectable gravitational wave sources, constraining the mass function of
stars and compact objects in different environments, detecting populations of
microlensing and transiting exoplanets, studying stellar flares and variability
in young and old stars, and monitoring accretion onto the central supermassive
black hole. In addition, high-precision proper motions and parallaxes would
open a new window into the large-scale dynamics of stellar populations at the
GC, yielding insights into the formation and evolution of galactic nuclei and
their co-evolution with the growth of the supermassive black hole. We discuss
the possible trade-offs between the notional GBTDS and the addition of a GC
field with either an optimal or minimal cadence. Ultimately, the addition of a
GC field to the GBTDS would dramatically increase the science return of Roman
and provide a legacy dataset to study the mid-plane and innermost regions of
our Galaxy.Comment: 19 pages, 3 figures. Submitted to the NASA Roman Core Community
Surveys White Paper Cal
The JWST Galactic Center Survey -- A White Paper
The inner hundred parsecs of the Milky Way hosts the nearest supermassive
black hole, largest reservoir of dense gas, greatest stellar density, hundreds
of massive main and post main sequence stars, and the highest volume density of
supernovae in the Galaxy. As the nearest environment in which it is possible to
simultaneously observe many of the extreme processes shaping the Universe, it
is one of the most well-studied regions in astrophysics. Due to its proximity,
we can study the center of our Galaxy on scales down to a few hundred AU, a
hundred times better than in similar Local Group galaxies and thousands of
times better than in the nearest active galaxies. The Galactic Center (GC) is
therefore of outstanding astrophysical interest. However, in spite of intense
observational work over the past decades, there are still fundamental things
unknown about the GC. JWST has the unique capability to provide us with the
necessary, game-changing data. In this White Paper, we advocate for a JWST
NIRCam survey that aims at solving central questions, that we have identified
as a community: i) the 3D structure and kinematics of gas and stars; ii)
ancient star formation and its relation with the overall history of the Milky
Way, as well as recent star formation and its implications for the overall
energetics of our galaxy's nucleus; and iii) the (non-)universality of star
formation and the stellar initial mass function. We advocate for a large-area,
multi-epoch, multi-wavelength NIRCam survey of the inner 100\,pc of the Galaxy
in the form of a Treasury GO JWST Large Program that is open to the community.
We describe how this survey will derive the physical and kinematic properties
of ~10,000,000 stars, how this will solve the key unknowns and provide a
valuable resource for the community with long-lasting legacy value.Comment: This White Paper will be updated when required (e.g. new authors
joining, editing of content). Most recent update: 24 Oct 202
The JWST Galactic Center Survey -- A White Paper
The inner hundred parsecs of the Milky Way hosts the nearest supermassive black hole, largest reservoir of dense gas, greatest stellar density, hundreds of massive main and post main sequence stars, and the highest volume density of supernovae in the Galaxy. As the nearest environment in which it is possible to simultaneously observe many of the extreme processes shaping the Universe, it is one of the most well-studied regions in astrophysics. Due to its proximity, we can study the center of our Galaxy on scales down to a few hundred AU, a hundred times better than in similar Local Group galaxies and thousands of times better than in the nearest active galaxies. The Galactic Center (GC) is therefore of outstanding astrophysical interest. However, in spite of intense observational work over the past decades, there are still fundamental things unknown about the GC. JWST has the unique capability to provide us with the necessary, game-changing data. In this White Paper, we advocate for a JWST NIRCam survey that aims at solving central questions, that we have identified as a community: i) the 3D structure and kinematics of gas and stars; ii) ancient star formation and its relation with the overall history of the Milky Way, as well as recent star formation and its implications for the overall energetics of our galaxy's nucleus; and iii) the (non-)universality of star formation and the stellar initial mass function. We advocate for a large-area, multi-epoch, multi-wavelength NIRCam survey of the inner 100\,pc of the Galaxy in the form of a Treasury GO JWST Large Program that is open to the community. We describe how this survey will derive the physical and kinematic properties of ~10,000,000 stars, how this will solve the key unknowns and provide a valuable resource for the community with long-lasting legacy value
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