1,435 research outputs found
Ten years of INTEGRAL observations of the hard X-ray emission from SGR 1900+14
We exploited the high sensitivity of the INTEGRAL IBIS/ISGRI instrument to
study the persistent hard X-ray emission of the soft gamma-ray repeater SGR
1900+14, based on ~11.6 Ms of archival data. The 22-150 keV INTEGRAL spectrum
can be well fit by a power law with photon index 1.9 +/- 0.3 and flux F_x =
(1.11 +/- 0.17)E-11 erg/cm^2/s (20-100 keV). A comparison with the 20-100 keV
flux measured in 1997 with BeppoSAX, and possibly associated with SGR 1900+14,
shows a luminosity decrease by a factor of ~5. The slope of the power law above
20 keV is consistent within the uncertainties with that of SGR 1806-20, the
other persistent soft gamma-ray repeater for which a hard X-ray emission
extending up to 150 keV has been reported.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics. 4 page
The spectacular X-ray echo of a magnetar burst
The Anomalous X-ray Pulsar (AXP) 1E 1547.0-5408 reactivated in 2009 January
with the emission of dozens of short bursts. Follow-up observations with
Swift/XRT and XMM-Newton showed the presence of multiple expanding rings around
the position of the AXP. These rings are due to scattering, by different layers
of interstellar dust, of a very high fluence burst emitted by 1E 1547.0-5408 on
2009 January 22. Thanks to the exceptional brightness of the X-ray rings, we
could carry out a detailed study of their spatial and spectral time evolution
until 2009 February 4. This analysis gives the possibility to estimate the
distance of 1E 1547.0-5408. We also derived constraints on the properties of
the dust and of the burst responsible for this rare phenomenon.Comment: Proceedings of the conference X-Ray Astronomy 2009, Present Status,
multiwavelength approach and future perspectives, September 7 - 11, 2009,
Bologna, Ital
Three new X-ray emitting sdO stars discovered with Chandra
X-ray observations of sdO stars are a useful tool to investigate their
properties, but so far only two sdO stars were detected at X-rays. We observed
a complete flux-limited sample of 19 sdO stars with the Chandra HRC-I camera to
measure the count rate of the detected sources or to set a tight upper limit on
it for the undetected sources. We obtained a robust detection of BD+37 1977 and
Feige 34 and a marginal detection of BD+28 4211. The estimated luminosity of
BD+37 1977 is above 10^31 erg/s, which is high enough to suggest the possible
presence of an accreting compact companion. This possibility is unlikely for
all the other targets (both detected and undetected), since in their case L_X <
10^30 erg/s. On the other hand, for all 19 targets the estimated value of L_X
(or its upper limit) implies an X-ray/bolometric flux ratio that agrees with
log(L_X/L_bol) = -6.7 +/- 0.5, which is the range of values typical of
main-sequence and giant O stars. Therefore, for Feige 34 and BD+28 4211 the
observed X-ray flux is most probably due to intrinsic emission. The same is
possibile for the 16 undetected stars.Comment: 6 pages. Accepted for publication by Astronomy and Astrophysic
A long-period, violently-variable X-ray source in a young SNR
Observations with the Newton X-ray Multimirror Mission (XMM) show a strong
periodic modulation at 6.67+/-0.03 hours of the X-ray source at the centre of
the 2,000-year-old supernova remnant RCW 103. No fast pulsations are visible.
If genetically tied to the supernova remnant, the source could either be an
X-ray binary, comprising a compact object and a low-mass star in an eccentric
orbit, or an isolated neutron star. In the latter case, its age-period
combination would point to a peculiar magnetar, dramatically slowed-down,
possibly by a supernova debris disc. Both scenarios require non-standard
assumptions on the formation and evolution of compact objects in supernova
explosions.Comment: Accepted for publication in Science. Published online via Science
Express on 2006, July 6. 17 pages, 7 figure
Exploring the role of X-ray reprocessing and irradiation in the anomalous bright optical outbursts of A0538-66
In 1981, the Be/X-ray binary (Be/XRB) A0538-66 showed outbursts characterized
by high peak luminosities in the X-ray and optical bands. The optical outbursts
were qualitatively explained as X-ray reprocessing in a gas cloud surrounding
the binary system. Since then, further important information about A0538-66
have been obtained, and sophisticated photoionization codes have been developed
to calculate the radiation emerging from a gas nebula illuminated by a central
X-ray source. In the light of the new information and tools available, we
studied again the enhanced optical emission displayed by A0538-66 to understand
the mechanisms responsible for these unique events among the class of Be/XRBs.
We performed about 10^5 simulations of a gas envelope photoionized by an X-ray
source. We assumed for the shape of the gas cloud either a sphere or a
circumstellar disc observed edge-on. We studied the effects of varying the main
properties of the envelope and the influence of different input X-ray spectra
on the optical/UV emission emerging from the photoionized cloud. We compared
the computed spectra with the IUE spectrum and photometric UBV measurements
obtained during the outburst of 29 April 1981. We also explored the role played
by the X-ray heating of the surface of the donor star irradiated by the X-ray
emission of the neutron star (NS). We found that reprocessing in a spherical
cloud with a shallow radial density distribution can reproduce the optical/UV
emission. To our knowledge, this configuration has never been observed either
in A0538-66 during other epochs or in other Be/XRBs. We found, contrary to the
case of most other Be/XRBs, that the optical/UV radiation produced by the X-ray
heating of the surface of the donor star irradiated by the NS is
non-negligible, due to the particular orbital parameters of this system that
bring the NS very close to its companion.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics. Abstract
abridged to meet arXiv requirement
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