558 research outputs found
Plasma Magnetosphere Formation Around Oscillating Magnetized Neutron Stars
The notion of death line of rotating pulsars is applied to model of
oscillating neutron stars. It is shown that the magnetosphere of typical
non-rotating oscillating stars may not contain secondary plasma to support the
generation of radio emission in the region of open field lines of plasma
magnetosphere.Comment: Accepted for publication in Astrophysics & Space Scienc
The study of neutron star magnetospheres with LOFT
This is a White Paper in support of the mission concept of the Large
Observatory for X-ray Timing (LOFT), proposed as a medium-sized ESA mission. We
discuss the potential of LOFT for the study of magnetospheres of isolated
neutron stars. For a summary, we refer to the paper.Comment: White Paper in Support of the Mission Concept of the Large
Observatory for X-ray Timin
An Eccentric Circumbinary Accretion Disk and the Detection of Binary Massive Black Holes
We present a two-dimensional grid-based hydrodynamic simulation of a thin,
viscous, locally-isothermal corotating disk orbiting an equal-mass Newtonian
binary point mass on a fixed circular orbit. We study the structure of the disk
after multiple viscous times. The binary maintains a central hole in the
viscously-relaxed disk with radius equal to about twice the binary semimajor
axis. Disk surface density within the hole is reduced by orders of magnitude
relative to the density in the disk bulk. The inner truncation of the disk
resembles the clearing of a gap in a protoplanetary disk. An initially circular
disk becomes elliptical and then eccentric. Disturbances in the disk contain a
component that is stationary in the rotating frame in which the binary is at
rest; this component is a two-armed spiral density wave. We measure the
distribution of the binary torque in the disk and find that the strongest
positive torque is exerted inside the central low-density hole. We make
connection with the linear theory of disk forcing at outer Lindblad resonances
(OLRs) and find that the measured torque density distribution is consistent
with forcing at the 3:2 (m=2) OLR, well within the central hole. We also
measure the time dependence of the rate at which gas accretes across the hole
and find quasi-periodic structure. We discuss implications for variability and
detection of active galactic nuclei containing a binary massive black hole.Comment: 10 pages; replaced to match ApJ version; includes new physical
interpretation of torque density (Sec. 4.1); large mpeg animation is
available at http://www.tapir.caltech.edu/~milos/circBinaryEccDisk.mp
The nature of pulsar radio emission
High-quality averaged radio profiles of some pulsars exhibit double, highly
symmetric features both in emission and absorption. It is shown that both types
of features are produced by a split-fan beam of extraordinary-mode curvature
radiation (CR) that is emitted/absorbed by radially-extended streams of
magnetospheric plasma. With no emissivity in the plane of the stream, such a
beam produces bifurcated emission components (BFCs) when our line of sight
passes through the plane. A distinct example of double component created in
that way is present in averaged profile of the 5 ms pulsar J1012+5307. We show
that the component can indeed be very well fitted by the textbook formula for
the non-coherent beam of curvature radiation in the polarisation state that is
orthogonal to the plane of electron trajectory. The observed width of the BFC
decreases with increasing frequency at the rate that confirms the curvature
origin. Likewise, the double absorption features (double notches) are produced
by the same beam of the extraordinary-mode CR, when it is eclipsed by thin
plasma streams. The intrinsic property of CR to create bifurcated fan beams
explains the double features in terms of very natural geometry and implies the
curvature origin of pulsar radio emission. (abbreviated)Comment: 16 pages, 18 figures, accepted by MNRAS after minor revisio
The near-infrared detection of PSR B0540-69 and its nebula
The ~1700 year old PSR B0540-69 in the LMC is considered the twin of the Crab
pulsar because of its similar spin parameters, magnetic field, and energetics.
Its optical spectrum is fit by a power-law, ascribed to synchrotron radiation,
like for the young Crab and Vela pulsars. nIR observations, never performed for
PSR B0540-69, are crucial to determine whether the optical power-law spectrum
extends to longer wavelengths or a new break occurs, like it happens for both
the Crab and Vela pulsars in the mIR, hinting at an even more complex particle
energy and density distribution in the pulsar magnetosphere. We observed PSR
B0540-69 in the J, H, and Ks bands with the VLT to detect it, for the first
time, in the nIR and characterise its optical-to-nIR spectrum. To disentangle
the pulsar emission from that of its pulsar wind nebula (PWN), we obtained
high-spatial resolution adaptive optics images with NACO. We could clearly
identify PSR B0540-69 in our J, H, and Ks-band images and measure its flux
(J=20.14, H=19.33, Ks=18.55, with an overall error of +/- 0.1 magnitudes in
each band). The joint fit to the available optical and nIR photometry with a
power-law spectrum gives a spectral index alpha=0.70 +/-0.04. The comparison
between our NACO images and HST optical ones does not reveal any apparent
difference in the PWN morphology as a function of wavelength. The PWN
optical-to-nIR spectrum is also fit by a single power-law, with spectral index
alpha=0.56+/- 0.03, slightly flatter than the pulsar's. Using NACO at the VLT,
we obtained the first detection of PSR B0540-69 and its PWN in the nIR. Due to
the small angular scale of the PWN (~4") only the spatial resolution of the
JWST will make it possible to extend the study of the pulsar and PWN spectrum
towards the mid-IR.Comment: 11 pages, 10 figures, Accepted for publication on Astronomy and
Astrophysic
HST/WFPC2 observations of the LMC pulsar PSR B0540-69
The study of the younger, and brighter, pulsars is important to understand
the optical emission properties of isolated neutron stars. PSRB0540-69, the
second brightest (V~22) optical pulsar, is obviously a very interesting target
for these investigations. The aim of this work is threefold: constraining the
pulsar proper motion and its velocity on the plane of the sky through optical
astrometry, obtaining a more precise characterisation of the pulsar optical
spectral energy distribution (SED) through a consistent set of multi-band,
high-resolution, imaging photometry observations, measuring the pulsar optical
phase-averaged linear polarisation, for which only a preliminary and uncertain
measurement was obtained so far from ground-based observations. We performed
high-resolution observations of PSRB0540-69 with the WFPC2 aboard the HST, in
both direct imaging and polarimetry modes. From multi-epoch astrometry we set a
3sigma upper limit of 1 mas/yr on the pulsar proper motion, implying a
transverse velocity <250 km/s at the 50 kpc LMC distance. Moreover, we
determined the pulsar absolute position with an unprecedented accuracy of 70
mas. From multi-band photometry we characterised the pulsar power-law spectrum
and we derived the most accurate measurement of the spectral index
(0.70+/-0.07) which indicates a spectral turnover between the optical and X-ray
bands. Finally, from polarimetry we obtained a new measurement of the pulsar
phase-averaged polarisation degree (16+/-4%),consistent with magnetosphere
models depending on the actual intrinsic polarisation degree and depolarisation
factor, and we found that the polarisation vector (22+/-12deg position angle)
is possibly aligned with the semi-major axis of the pulsar-wind nebula and with
the apparent proper motion direction of its bright emission knot.Comment: 14 pages, 12 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy &
Astrophysic
H.E.S.S. observations of gamma-ray bursts in 2003-2007
Very-high-energy (VHE; >~100 GeV) gamma-rays are expected from gamma-ray
bursts (GRBs) in some scenarios. Exploring this photon energy regime is
necessary for understanding the energetics and properties of GRBs. GRBs have
been one of the prime targets for the H.E.S.S. experiment, which makes use of
four Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes (IACTs) to detect VHE gamma-rays.
Dedicated observations of 32 GRB positions were made in the years 2003-2007 and
a search for VHE gamma-ray counterparts of these GRBs was made. Depending on
the visibility and observing conditions, the observations mostly start minutes
to hours after the burst and typically last two hours. Results from
observations of 22 GRB positions are presented and evidence of a VHE signal was
found neither in observations of any individual GRBs, nor from stacking data
from subsets of GRBs with higher expected VHE flux according to a
model-independent ranking scheme. Upper limits for the VHE gamma-ray flux from
the GRB positions were derived. For those GRBs with measured redshifts,
differential upper limits at the energy threshold after correcting for
absorption due to extra-galactic background light are also presented.Comment: 9 pages, 4 tables, 3 figure
Discovery of VHE gamma-rays from the high-frequency-peaked BL Lac object RGB J0152+017
Aims: The BL Lac object RGB J0152+017 (z=0.080) was predicted to be a very
high-energy (VHE; > 100 GeV) gamma-ray source, due to its high X-ray and radio
fluxes. Our aim is to understand the radiative processes by investigating the
observed emission and its production mechanism using the High Energy
Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) experiment. Methods: We report recent
observations of the BL Lac source RGB J0152+017 made in late October and
November 2007 with the H.E.S.S. array consisting of four imaging atmospheric
Cherenkov telescopes. Contemporaneous observations were made in X-rays by the
Swift and RXTE satellites, in the optical band with the ATOM telescope, and in
the radio band with the Nancay Radio Telescope. Results: A signal of 173
gamma-ray photons corresponding to a statistical significance of 6.6 sigma was
found in the data. The energy spectrum of the source can be described by a
powerlaw with a spectral index of 2.95+/-0.36stat+/-0.20syst. The integral flux
above 300 GeV corresponds to ~2% of the flux of the Crab nebula. The source
spectral energy distribution (SED) can be described using a two-component
non-thermal synchrotron self-Compton (SSC) leptonic model, except in the
optical band, which is dominated by a thermal host galaxy component. The
parameters that are found are very close to those found in similar SSC studies
in TeV blazars. Conclusions: RGB J0152+017 is discovered as a source of VHE
gamma-rays by H.E.S.S. The location of its synchrotron peak, as derived from
the SED in Swift data, allows clearly classification it as a
high-frequency-peaked BL Lac (HBL).Comment: Accepted for publication in A&A Letters (5 pages, 4 figures
Detailed spectral and morphological analysis of the shell type SNR RCW 86
Aims: We aim for an understanding of the morphological and spectral
properties of the supernova remnant RCW~86 and for insights into the production
mechanism leading to the RCW~86 very high-energy gamma-ray emission. Methods:
We analyzed High Energy Spectroscopic System data that had increased
sensitivity compared to the observations presented in the RCW~86 H.E.S.S.
discovery publication. Studies of the morphological correlation between the
0.5-1~keV X-ray band, the 2-5~keV X-ray band, radio, and gamma-ray emissions
have been performed as well as broadband modeling of the spectral energy
distribution with two different emission models. Results:We present the first
conclusive evidence that the TeV gamma-ray emission region is shell-like based
on our morphological studies. The comparison with 2-5~keV X-ray data reveals a
correlation with the 0.4-50~TeV gamma-ray emission.The spectrum of RCW~86 is
best described by a power law with an exponential cutoff at TeV and a spectral index of ~. A static
leptonic one-zone model adequately describes the measured spectral energy
distribution of RCW~86, with the resultant total kinetic energy of the
electrons above 1 GeV being equivalent to 0.1\% of the initial kinetic
energy of a Type I a supernova explosion. When using a hadronic model, a
magnetic field of ~100G is needed to represent the measured data.
Although this is comparable to formerly published estimates, a standard
E spectrum for the proton distribution cannot describe the gamma-ray
data. Instead, a spectral index of ~1.7 would be required, which
implies that ~erg has been transferred into
high-energy protons with the effective density cm^-3. This
is about 10\% of the kinetic energy of a typical Type Ia supernova under the
assumption of a density of 1~cm^-3.Comment: accepted for publication by A&
The exceptionally powerful TeV gamma-ray emitters in the Large Magellanic Cloud
The Large Magellanic Cloud, a satellite galaxy of the Milky Way, has been
observed with the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) above an energy of
100 billion electron volts for a deep exposure of 210 hours. Three sources of
different types were detected: the pulsar wind nebula of the most energetic
pulsar known N 157B, the radio-loud supernova remnant N 132D and the largest
non-thermal X-ray shell - the superbubble 30 Dor C. The unique object SN 1987A
is, surprisingly, not detected, which constrains the theoretical framework of
particle acceleration in very young supernova remnants. These detections reveal
the most energetic tip of a gamma-ray source population in an external galaxy,
and provide via 30 Dor C the unambiguous detection of gamma-ray emission from a
superbubble.Comment: Published in Science Magazine (Jan. 23, 2015). This ArXiv version has
the supplementary online material incorporated as an appendix to the main
pape
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