17 research outputs found
A differential method of maximum entropy
We consider a differential method of maximum entropy that is based on the
linearity of Fourier transform and involves reconstruction of images from the
differences of the visibility function. The efficiency of the method is
demonstrated with respect to the recovery of source images with bright
components against the background of a sufficiently weak extended base. The
simulation results are given along with the maps of an extragalactic radio
source 0059+581, which were obtained using the standard and differential
methods of maximum entropy for three observation dates and show that the
principle of differential mapping allows us to increase considerably the
dynamic interval of images.Comment: Latex, 6 pages with 4 Postscript figure
A View through Faraday's Fog 2: Parsec Scale Rotation Measures in 40 AGN
Results from a survey of the parsec scale Faraday rotation measure properties
for 40 quasars, radio galaxies and BL Lac objects are presented. Core rotation
measures for quasars vary from approximately 500 to several thousand radians
per meter squared. Quasar jets have rotation measures which are typically 500
radians per meter squared or less. The cores and jets of the BL Lac objects
have rotation measures similar to those found in quasar jets. The jets of radio
galaxies exhibit a range of rotation measures from a few hundred radians per
meter squared to almost 10,000 radians per meter squared for the jet of M87.
Radio galaxy cores are generally depolarized, and only one of four radio
galaxies (3C-120) has a detectable rotation measure in the core. Several
potential identities for the foreground Faraday screen are considered and we
believe the most promising candidate for all the AGN types considered is a
screen in close proximity to the jet. This constrains the path length to
approximately 10 parsecs, and magnetic field strengths of approximately 1
microGauss can account for the observed rotation measures. For 27 out of 34
quasars and BL Lacs their optically thick cores have good agreement to a lambda
squared law. This requires the different tau = 1 surfaces to have the same
intrinsic polarization angle independent of frequency and distance from the
black hole.Comment: Accepted to the Astrophysical Journal: 71 pages, 40 figure
Frequency-dependent time-delays for strong outbursts in selected blazars from the MetsĂ€hovi and the University of Michigan Radio Astronomy Observatory monitoring databases â I
The combined data of the University of Michigan Radio Astronomy Observatory and MetsÀhovi Radio Observatory provide us with radio light curves for active galactic nuclei monitored by both observatories from 4.8 to 37 GHz covering time-intervals up to similar to 25 yr. We consider here such composite light curves for four gamma-ray blazars that have been nearly continuously monitored at both observatories: 0458-020, 0528+134, 1730-130 and 2230+114. We have decomposed the most prominent outbursts in the light curves of these four blazars into individual components using Gaussian model fitting, and estimated the epochs, amplitudes, and half-widths of these components as functions of frequency. We attempt to distinguish 'core outbursts', which show frequency-dependent time-delays and are associated with brightening of the core, from 'jet outbursts', which appear nearly synchronous at all frequencies and are accompanied by the emergence of new jet components and their subsequent evolution. The outbursts in 0528+134 and 2230+114 display fine structure and consist of individual sub-outbursts. Available 43-GHz Very Long Baseline Array images allow us to identify only one pure core outburst (in 2230+114) and one pure jet outburst (0458-020). Most of the outbursts analysed are mixed, in the sense that they display frequency-dependent time-delays (i.e. they are optically thick) and are associated with the eventual emergence of new jet components. The maxima of the jet and mixed outbursts probably correspond to epochs when newly ejected components become fully optically thin. These epochs are also marked by a significant increase in the angular velocities of the ejected components. There is evidence that the outbursts in 2230+114 repeat every 8.0 +/- 0.3 yr, with the positions of individual suboutbursts being preserved from one quasi-periodic eight-year cycle to another, even though their amplitudes vary by more than a factor of 2. Preliminary estimates of the total durations of possible activity cycles based on an analysis of total flux-density variations and all available very long baseline interferometry data are given for the remaining sources
A search for periodicity in the light curves of selected blazars
We present an analysis of multifrequency light curves of the sources 2223-052
(3C 446), 2230+114 (CTA 102), and 2251+158 (3C 454.3), which had shown evidence
of quasi-periodic activity. The analysis made use of data from the University
of Michican Radio Astronomy Observatory (USA) at 4.8, 8, and 14.5 GHz, as well
as the Metsahovi Radio Astronomy Observatory (Finland) at 22 and 37 GHz.
Application of two different methods (the discrete autocorrelation function and
the method of Jurkevich) both revealed evidence for periodicity in the flux
variations of these sources at essentially all frequencies. The periods derived
for at least two of the sources -- 2223-052 and 2251+158-- are in good
agreement with the time interval between the appearance of successive VLBI
components. The derived periods for 2251+158 (P = 12.4 yr and 2223-052 (P = 5.8
yr) coincide with the periods found earlier by other authors based on optical
light curves.Comment: 27 pages, 11 figures, accepted for publication in Astronomy Report
Frequency-dependent time delays for strong outbursts in selected blazars from the MetsĂhovi and UMRAO monitoring data bases â II
We analyse the radio light curves of the blazars 1308+326, 2223â052 and 2251+158 using University of Michigan Radio Observatory and MetsĂhovi Radio Observatory multifrequency monitoring data combined with high-resolution very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) observations in order to extract the properties of prominent outbursts. The outbursts are classified as âcoreâ and âjetâ events according to their behaviour at different frequencies and their associations with features appearing in the VLBI jet. We define the activity cycle for each blazar as the time interval between successive âcoreâ outbursts. The durations of the activity cycle derived in this way are â„14 yr for 1308+326, âŒ12 yr for 2223â052 and 12.4 ± 0.6 yr for 2251+158. We find an unusual frequency dependence for the time profiles for a major flare in 1308+326, which may provide evidence for acceleration or bending of the jet flow in the optically thick part of the emission region. Analysis of these activity cycles, combined with our earlier results, leads us to suggest that more luminous blazars possess shorter activity cycles, consistent with the accretion rates being higher in more powerful sources (relative to the Eddington rate).Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/72279/1/j.1365-2966.2007.12281.x.pd
Phaseless VLBI mapping of compact extragalactic radio sources
The problem of phaseless aperture synthesis is of current interest in
phase-unstable VLBI with a small number of elements when either the use of
closure phases is not possible (a two-element interferometer) or their quality
and number are not enough for acceptable image reconstruction by standard
adaptive calibration methods. Therefore, we discuss the problem of unique image
reconstruction only from the spectrum magnitude of a source. We suggest an
efficient method for phaseless VLBI mapping of compact extragalactic radio
sources. This method is based on the reconstruction of the spectrum magnitude
for a source on the entire UV plane from the measured visibility magnitude on a
limited set of points and the reconstruction of the sought-for image of the
source by Fienup's method from the spectrum magnitude reconstructed at the
first stage. We present the results of our mapping of the extragalactic radio
source 2200 +420 using astrometric and geodetic observations on a global VLBI
array. Particular attention is given to studying the capabilities of a
two-element interferometer in connection with the putting into operation of a
Russian-made radio interferometer based on Quasar RT-32 radio telescopes.Comment: 21 pages, 6 figure