820 research outputs found
Extended search for point sources of neutrinos below and above the horizon: Covering energies from TeV to EeV with IceCube
Point source searches with neutrino telescopes like IceCube are normally
restricted to one hemisphere, due to the selection of up-going events as a way
of rejecting the atmospheric muon background. In this work we show that the
down-going region above the horizon can be included in the search by
suppressing the background through energy-sensitive selection procedures. This
approach increases the reach to the EeV regime of the signal spectrum, which
was previously not accessible due to the absorption of neutrinos with energies
above a PeV inside the Earth. We present preliminary results of this analysis,
which for the first time includes up-going as well as down-going muon events in
a combined approach. We used data collected with IceCube in a configuration of
22 strings. No significant excess above the atmospheric background is observed.
While other analyses provided results for the Northern hemisphere, this new
approach extends the field of view to a large part of the Southern sky, which
was previously not covered with IceCube.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure. To be published in the proceedings of the 2nd
Heidelberg workshop "High-Energy Gamma-rays and Neutrinos from Extra-Galactic
Sources", 2009 (Journal of Modern Physics D
Prominent activity of the blazar OJ 287 in 2005. XMM-Newton and multiwavelength observations
Two guest-observer XMM-Newton pointings of the blazar OJ 287 in 2005 are introduced, along with part of the radio, mm, near-IR, and optical data obtained during a coordinated and intensive WEBT campaign, during longer-term monitoring observations performed by teams of the ENIGMA network, and during other independent observing programs (like VLBA observations). In that year OJ 287 showed an interesting variable behavior in the optical band. An optical outburst, well matched by our WEBT observations, is claimed in the period Oct.-Nov. 2005, and the XMM-Newton X-ray observations are performed in correspondence with two active optical states (an intermediate flare and such outburst). X-ray data indicates different flux levels, spectral slopes, and emission components, and VLBA radio maps are consistent with a jet precession model. This appreciable observing effort is still ongoing (a further XMM-Newton pointing is planned in 2008), joined with further parallel/multi-monitoring observing programmes devoted to this interesting object
Optical variability of the BL Lacertae object GC 0109+224. Multiband behaviour and time scales from a 7-years monitoring campaign
We present the most continuous data base of optical
observations ever published on the BL Lacertae object GC 0109+224, collected
mainly by the robotic telescope of the Perugia University Observatory in the
period November 1994-February 2002. These observations have been complemented
by data from the Torino Observatory, collected in the period July 1995-January
1999, and Mt. Maidanak Observatory (December 2000). GC 0109+224 showed rapid
optical variations and six major outbursts were observed at the beginning and
end of 1996, in fall 1998, at the beginning and at the end of 2000, and at the
beginning of 2002. Fast and large-amplitude drops characterized its flux
behaviour. The magnitude ranged from 13.3 (16.16 mJy) to 16.46 (0.8 mJy),
with a mean value of 14.9 (3.38 mJy). In the periods where we collected
multi-filter observations, we analyzed colour and spectral indexes, and the
variability patterns during some flares. The long-term behaviour seems
approximatively achromatic, but during some isolated outbursts we found
evidence of the typical loop-like hysteresis behaviour, suggesting that rapid
optical variability is dominated by non-thermal cooling of a single emitting
particle population. We performed also a statistical analysis of the data,
through the discrete correlation function (DCF), the structure function (SF),
and the Lomb-Scargle periodogram, to identify characteristic times scales, from
days to months, in the light curves, and to quantify the mode of variability.
We also include the reconstruction of the historical light curve and a
photometric calibration of comparison stars, to favour further extensive
optical monitoring of this interesting blazar.Comment: 13 pages, 11 PS figures, 1 EPS figure, 3 tables, accepted by
Astronomy and Astrophysics. Uses A&A documentclass aa.cls, and the package
graphicx.st
Radio-gamma-ray Connection and Spectral Evolution in 4C+49.22 (S4 1150+49): the Fermi, Swift and Planck View
The Large Area Telescope on board the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope detected a strong γ-ray flare on 2011 May 15 from a source identified as 4C +49.22, a flat spectrum radio quasar (FSRQ) also known as S4 1150+49. This blazar, characterized by a prominent radio–optical–X-ray jet, was in a low γ-ray activity state during the first years of Fermi observations. Simultaneous observations during the quiescent, outburst and post-flare γ-ray states were obtained by Swift, Planck and optical–IR–radio telescopes (Instituto Nacional de AstrofÃsica, Óptica y Electrónica, Catalina Sky Survey, Very Long Baseline Array [VLBA], Metsähovi). The flare is observed from microwave to X-ray bands with correlated variability and the Fermi, Swift and Planck data for this FSRQ show some features more typical of BL Lac objects, like the synchrotron peak in the optical band that outshines the thermal blue-bump emission, and the X-ray spectral softening. Multi-epoch VLBA observations show the ejection of a new component close in time with the GeV γ-ray flare. The radio-to-γ-ray spectral energy distribution is modelled and fitted successfully for the outburst and the post-flare epochs using either a single flaring blob with two emission processes (synchrotron self-Compton (SSC), and external-radiation Compton), and a two-zone model with SSC-only mechanism
Time-domain behavior of blazar OJ 287 and the binary supermassive black hole conjecture
The proper understanding of blazar variability at the various electromagnetic spectral bands is one goal of multifrequency astrophysics. In this frame a peculiar and controversial phenomenology is the periodicity, postulated for long-term radio or optical flux light curves of about a dozen of blazars. The well-known BL Lac object OJ 287 (PKS 0851+202, S3 0851+20, PG 0851+202, z = 0.306) is not only a high-variable, peculiar, extragalactic source with hints for approximatively cyclical optical outbursts, but it also represents a case of substantial intensive and extensive (long-term) multifrequency observations. This rich database allow us a deeper analysis based on a wide range of variability timescales with some recent results that are highlighted here. © Copyright owned by the author(s).Peer reviewe
Optical and infrared photometry of the blazar PKS0537-441
We present a large collection of photometric data on the Blazar PKS 0537-441
in the VRIJHK bands taken in 2004-2009. At least three flare-like episodes with
months duration, and >3 mag amplitude are apparent. The spectral energy
distribution is consistent with a power law, and no indication of a thermal
component is found. We searched for short time scale variability, and an
interesting event was identified in the J band, with a duration of ~25 minutes.Comment: 10 pages, 3 figures, in press in ApJ
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