Characterizing the γ\gamma-ray Emission from FR0 Radio Galaxies

FR0 galaxies constitute the most abundant jet population in the local Universe. With their compact jet structure, they are broadband photon emitters and have been proposed as multi-messenger sources. Recently, these sources have been detected for the first time in $\gamma$ rays. Using a revised FR0 catalog, we confirm that the FR0 population as a whole are $\gamma$-ray emitters, and we also identify two significant sources. For the first time, we find a correlation between the 5 GHz core radio luminosity and $\gamma$-ray luminosity in the 1 - 800 GeV band, having a 4.5$\sigma$ statistical significance. This is clear evidence that the jet emission mechanism is similar in nature for FR0s and the well-studied canonical FR (FRI and FRII) radio galaxies. Furthermore, we perform broadband SED modeling for the significantly detected sources as well as the subthreshold source population using a one-zone SSC model. Within the maximum jet power budget, our modeling shows that the detected gamma rays from the jet can be explained as inverse Compton photons. To explain the multi-wavelength observations for these galaxies, the modeling results stipulate a low bulk Lorentz factor and a jet composition far from equipartition, with the particle energy density dominating over the magnetic field energy density.Comment: 24 pages, 9 figures, 2 tables. Submitted to the Astrophysical Journa

The All-sky Medium Energy Gamma-ray Observatory eXplorer (AMEGO-X) Mission Concept

The All-sky Medium Energy Gamma-ray Observatory eXplorer (AMEGO-X) is designed to identify and characterize gamma rays from extreme explosions and accelerators. The main science themes include: supermassive black holes and their connections to neutrinos and cosmic rays; binary neutron star mergers and the relativistic jets they produce; cosmic ray particle acceleration sources including Galactic supernovae; and continuous monitoring of other astrophysical events and sources over the full sky in this important energy range. AMEGO-X will probe the medium energy gamma-ray band using a single instrument with sensitivity up to an order of magnitude greater than previous telescopes in the energy range 100 keV to 1 GeV that can be only realized in space. During its three-year baseline mission, AMEGO-X will observe nearly the entire sky every two orbits, building up a sensitive all-sky map of gamma-ray sources and emission. AMEGO-X was submitted in the recent 2021 NASA MIDEX Announcement of Opportunity.Comment: 23 pages, 16 figures, Published Journal of Astronomical Telescopes, Instruments, and System

Fermi-LAT Observations of γ-Ray Emission toward the Outer Halo of M31

The Andromeda galaxy is the closest spiral galaxy to us and has been the subject of numerous studies. It harbors a massive dark matter halo, which may span up to ~600 kpc across and comprises ~90% of the galaxy's total mass. This halo size translates into a large diameter of 42° on the sky, for an M31-Milky Way (MW) distance of 785 kpc, but its presumably low surface brightness makes it challenging to detect with γ-ray telescopes. Using 7.6 yr of Fermi Large Area Telescope (Fermi-LAT) observations, we make a detailed study of the γ-ray emission between 1-100 GeV toward M31's outer halo, with a total field radius of 60° centered at M31, and perform an in-depth analysis of the systematic uncertainties related to the observations. We use the cosmic-ray propagation code GALPROP to construct specialized interstellar emission models to characterize the foreground γ-ray emission from the MW, including a self-consistent determination of the isotropic component. We find evidence for an extended excess that appears to be distinct from the conventional MW foreground, having a total radial extension upward of ~120-200 kpc from the center of M31. We discuss plausible interpretations of the excess emission, but emphasize that uncertainties in the MW foreground-and in particular, modeling of the H i-related components-have not been fully explored and may impact the results

Sub-GeV Gamma Rays from Nearby Seyfert Galaxies and Implications for Coronal Neutrino Emission

Recent observations of high-energy neutrinos by IceCube and gamma rays by the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) and the MAGIC telescope have suggested that neutrinos are produced in gamma-ray opaque environments in the vicinity of supermassive black holes. In this work, we present 20 MeV–1 TeV spectra of three Seyfert galaxies whose nuclei are predicted to be active in neutrinos, NGC 4151, NGC 4945, and the Circinus galaxy, using 14.4 yr of Fermi LAT data. In particular, we find evidence of sub-GeV excess emission that can be attributed to gamma rays from NGC 4945, as was also seen in NGC 1068. These spectral features are consistent with predictions of the magnetically powered corona model, and we argue that NGC 4945 is among the brightest neutrino active galaxies detectable for KM3Net and Baikal-GVD. On the other hand, in contrast to other reported results, we do not detect gamma rays from NGC 4151, which constrains neutrino emission from the accretion shock model. Future neutrino detectors such as IceCube-Gen2 and MeV gamma - ray telescopes such as AMEGO-X will be crucial for discriminating among the theoretical models

Dark matter interpretation of the Fermi-LAT observation toward the Galactic Center

The center of the Milky Way is predicted to be the brightest region of gamma-rays generated by self-annihilating dark matter particles. Excess emission about the Galactic center above predictions made for standard astrophysical processes has been observed in gamma-ray data collected by the Fermi Large Area Telescope. It is well described by the square of an NFW dark matter density distribution. Although other interpretations for the excess are plausible, the possibility that it arises from annihilating dark matter is valid. In this paper, we characterize the excess emission as annihilating dark matter in the framework of an effective field theory. We consider the possibility that the annihilation process is mediated by either pseudo-scalar or vector interactions and constrain the coupling strength of these interactions by fitting to the Fermi Large Area Telescope data for energies 1-100 GeV in the 15 x 15 degree region about the Galactic center using self-consistently derived interstellar emission models and point source lists for the region. The excess persists and its spectral characteristics favor a dark matter particle with a mass in the range approximately from 50 to 190 (10 to 90) GeV and annihilation cross section approximately from 1E-26 to 4E-25 (6E-27 to 2E-25) cm^3/s for pseudo-scalar (vector) interactions. We map these intervals into the corresponding WIMP-neutron scattering cross sections and find that the allowed range lies well below current and projected direct detection constraints for pseudo-scalar interactions, but are typically ruled out for vector interactions

Improved Modeling of the Discrete Component of the Galactic Interstellar Gamma-ray Emission and Implications for the Fermi-LAT Galactic Center Excess

The aim of this work is to improve models for the gamma-ray discrete or small-scale structure related to H2 interstellar gas. Reliably identifying this contribution is important to disentangle gamma-ray point sources from interstellar gas, and to better characterize extended gamma-ray signals. Notably, the Fermi-LAT Galactic center (GC) excess, whose origin remains unclear, might be smooth or point-like. If the data contain a point-like contribution that is not adequately modeled, a smooth GC excess might be erroneously deemed to be point-like. We improve models for the H2-related gamma-ray discrete emission for a $50^\circ \times 1^\circ$ region along the Galactic plane via H2 proxies better suited to trace these features. We find that these are likely to contribute significantly to the gamma-ray Fermi-LAT data in this region, and the brightest ones are likely associated with detected Fermi-LAT sources, a compelling validation of this methodology. We discuss prospects to extend this methodology to other regions of the sky and implications for the characterization of the GC excess.Comment: Submitte

Deep Learning Models of the Discrete Component of the Galactic Interstellar Gamma-Ray Emission

A significant point-like component from the small scale (or discrete) structure in the H2 interstellar gas might be present in the Fermi-LAT data, but modeling this emission relies on observations of rare gas tracers only available in limited regions of the sky. Identifying this contribution is important to discriminate gamma-ray point sources from interstellar gas, and to better characterize extended gamma-ray sources. We design and train convolutional neural networks to predict this emission where observations of these rare tracers do not exist and discuss the impact of this component on the analysis of the Fermi-LAT data. In particular, we evaluate prospects to exploit this methodology in the characterization of the Fermi-LAT Galactic center excess through accurate modeling of point-like structures in the data to help distinguish between a point-like or smooth nature for the excess. We show that deep learning may be effectively employed to model the gamma-ray emission traced by these rare H2 proxies within statistical significance in data-rich regions, supporting prospects to employ these methods in yet unobserved regions.Comment: Submitted. Companion paper to "Improved modeling of the discrete component of the galactic interstellar gamma-ray emission and implications for the Fermi--LAT galactic center excess