| 61. |
- Abdo, A. A., et al.
(författare)
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The Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope Discovers the Pulsar in the Young Galactic Supernova Remnant CTA 1
- 2008
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Ingår i: Science. - : American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). - 0036-8075 .- 1095-9203. ; 322:5905, s. 1218-1221
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Energetic young pulsars and expanding blast waves [ supernova remnants (SNRs)] are the most visible remains after massive stars, ending their lives, explode in core-collapse supernovae. The Fermi Gamma- Ray Space Telescope has unveiled a radio quiet pulsar located near the center of the compact synchrotron nebula inside the supernova remnant CTA 1. The pulsar, discovered through its gamma- ray pulsations, has a period of 316.86 milliseconds and a period derivative of 3.614 x 10(-13) seconds per second. Its characteristic age of 10(4) years is comparable to that estimated for the SNR. We speculate that most unidentified Galactic gamma- ray sources associated with star- forming regions and SNRs are such young pulsars.
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| 62. |
- Abdo, A. A., et al.
(författare)
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The first fermi large area telescope catalog of gamma-ray pulsars
- 2010
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series. - : American Astronomical Society. - 0067-0049 .- 1538-4365. ; 187:2, s. 460-494
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The dramatic increase in the number of known gamma-ray pulsars since the launch of the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope (formerly GLAST) offers the first opportunity to study a sizable population of these high-energy objects. This catalog summarizes 46 high-confidence pulsed detections using the first six months of data taken by the Large Area Telescope (LAT), Fermi's main instrument. Sixteen previously unknown pulsars were discovered by searching for pulsed signals at the positions of bright gamma-ray sources seen with the LAT, or at the positions of objects suspected to be neutron stars based on observations at other wavelengths. The dimmest observed flux among these gamma-ray-selected pulsars is 6.0 x 10(-8) ph cm(-2) s(-1) (for E > 100 MeV). Pulsed gamma-ray emission was discovered from 24 known pulsars by using ephemerides (timing solutions) derived from monitoring radio pulsars. Eight of these new gamma-ray pulsars are millisecond pulsars. The dimmest observed flux among the radio-selected pulsars is 1.4 x 10(-8) ph cm(-2) s(-1) (for E > 100 MeV). The remaining six gamma-ray pulsars were known since the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory mission, or before. The limiting flux for pulse detection is non-uniform over the sky owing to different background levels, especially near the Galactic plane. The pulsed energy spectra can be described by a power law with an exponential cutoff, with cutoff energies in the range similar to 1-5 GeV. The rotational energy-loss rate ((E) over dot) of these neutron stars spans five decades, from similar to 3 x 10(33) erg s(-1) to 5 x 10(38) erg s(-1), and the apparent efficiencies for conversion to gammaray emission range from similar to 0.1% to similar to unity, although distance uncertainties complicate efficiency estimates. The pulse shapes show substantial diversity, but roughly 75% of the gamma-ray pulse profiles have two peaks, separated by greater than or similar to 0.2 of rotational phase. For most of the pulsars, gamma-ray emission appears to come mainly from the outer magnetosphere, while polar-cap emission remains plausible for a remaining few. Spatial associations imply that many of these pulsars power pulsar wind nebulae. Finally, these discoveries suggest that gamma-ray-selected young pulsars are born at a rate comparable to that of their radio-selected cousins and that the birthrate of all young gamma-ray-detected pulsars is a substantial fraction of the expected Galactic supernova rate.
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| 63. |
- Abdo, A. A., et al.
(författare)
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The on-orbit calibration of the Fermi Large Area Telescope
- 2009
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Ingår i: Astroparticle physics. - : Elsevier BV. - 0927-6505 .- 1873-2852. ; 32:3-4, s. 193-219
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Large Area Telescope (LAT) on-board the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope began its on-orbit operations on June 23, 2008. Calibrations, defined in a generic sense, correspond to synchronization of trigger signals, optimization of delays for latching data, determination of detector thresholds, gains and responses, evaluation of the perimeter of the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA), measurements of live time, of absolute time, and internal and spacecraft boresight alignments. Here we describe on-orbit calibration results obtained using known astrophysical sources, galactic cosmic rays, and charge injection into the front-end electronics of each detector. Instrument response functions will be described in a separate publication. This paper demonstrates the stability of calibrations and describes minor changes observed since launch. These results have been used to calibrate the LAT datasets to be publicly released in August 2009.
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| 64. |
- Abdo, A. A., et al.
(författare)
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THE VELA PULSAR : RESULTS FROM THE FIRST YEAR OF FERMI LAT OBSERVATIONS
- 2010
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 713:1, s. 154-165
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on analysis of timing and spectroscopy of the Vela pulsar using 11 months of observations with the Large Area Telescope (LAT) on the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope. The intrinsic brightness of Vela at GeV energies combined with the angular resolution and sensitivity of the LAT allows us to make the most detailed study to date of the energy-dependent light curves and phase-resolved spectra, using a LAT-derived timing model. The light curve consists of two peaks (P1 and P2) connected by bridge emission containing a third peak (P3). We have confirmed the strong decrease of the P1/P2 ratio with increasing energy seen with EGRET and previous Fermi LAT data, and observe that P1 disappears above 20 GeV. The increase with energy of the mean phase of the P3 component can be followed with much greater detail, showing that P3 and P2 are present up to the highest energies of pulsation. We find significant pulsed emission at phases outside the main profile, indicating that magnetospheric emission exists over 80% of the pulsar period. With increased high-energy counts the phase-averaged spectrum is seen to depart from a power law with simple exponential cutoff, and is better fit with a more gradual cutoff. The spectra in fixed-count phase bins are well fit with power laws with exponential cutoffs, revealing a strong and complex phase dependence of the cutoff energy, especially in the peaks. By combining these results with predictions of the outer magnetosphere models that map emission characteristics to phase, it will be possible to probe the particle acceleration and the structure of the pulsar magnetosphere with unprecedented detail.
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| 65. |
- Abdollahi, S., et al.
(författare)
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Fermi Large Area Telescope Fourth Source Catalog
- 2020
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series. - : American Astronomical Society. - 0067-0049 .- 1538-4365. ; 247:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present the fourth Fermi Large Area Telescope catalog (4FGL) of gamma-ray sources. Based on the first eight years of science data from the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope mission in the energy range from 50 MeV to 1 TeV, it is the deepest yet in this energy range. Relative to the 3FGL catalog, the 4FGL catalog has twice as much exposure as well as a number of analysis improvements, including an updated model for the Galactic diffuse gamma-ray emission, and two sets of light curves (one-year and two-month intervals). The 4FGL catalog includes 5064 sources above 4 sigma significance, for which we provide localization and spectral properties. Seventy-five sources are modeled explicitly as spatially extended, and overall, 358 sources are considered as identified based on angular extent, periodicity, or correlated variability observed at other wavelengths. For 1336 sources, we have not found plausible counterparts at other wavelengths. More than 3130 of the identified or associated sources are active galaxies of the blazar class, and 239 are pulsars.
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| 66. |
- Acciari, V. A., et al.
(författare)
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Discovery of very high energy gamma rays from PKS 1424+240 and multiwavelength constraints on ITS redshift
- 2010
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Ingår i: ASTROPHYSICAL JOURNAL LETTERS. - 2041-8205. ; 708:2, s. L100-L106
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report the first detection of very high energy(83) (VHE) gamma-ray emission above 140 GeV from PKS 1424+240, a BL Lac object with an unknown redshift. The photon spectrum above 140 GeV measured by VERITAS is well described by a power law with a photon index of 3.8 +/- 0.5(stat) +/- 0.3(syst) and a flux normalization at 200 GeV of (5.1 +/- 0.9(stat) +/- 0.5(syst)) x 10(-11) TeV-1 cm(-2) s(-1), where stat and syst denote the statistical and systematical uncertainties, respectively. The VHE flux is steady over the observation period between MJD 54881 and 55003 (from 2009 February 19 to June 21). Flux variability is also not observed in contemporaneous high-energy observations with the Fermi Large Area Telescope. Contemporaneous X-ray and optical data were also obtained from the Swift XRT and MDM observatory, respectively. The broadband spectral energy distribution is well described by a one-zone synchrotron self-Compton model favoring a redshift of less than 0.1. Using the photon index measured with Fermi in combination with recent extragalactic background light absorption models it can be concluded from the VERITAS data that the redshift of PKS 1424+240 is less than 0.66.
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| 67. |
- Acero, F., et al.
(författare)
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Constraints on the galactic population of TeV pulsar wind nebulae using fermi large area telescope observations
- 2013
-
Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 773:1, s. 77-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Pulsar wind nebulae (PWNe) have been established as the most populous class of TeV gamma-ray emitters. Since launch, the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) has identified five high-energy (100 MeV < E < 100 GeV) gamma-ray sources as PWNe and detected a large number of PWN candidates, all powered by young and energetic pulsars. The wealth of multi-wavelength data available and the new results provided by Fermi-LAT give us an opportunity to find new PWNe and to explore the radiative processes taking place in known ones. The TeV gamma-ray unidentified (UNID) sources are the best candidates for finding new PWNe. Using 45 months of Fermi-LAT data for energies above 10 GeV, an analysis was performed near the position of 58 TeV PWNe and UNIDs within 5. of the Galactic plane to establish new constraints on PWN properties and find new clues on the nature of UNIDs. Of the 58 sources, 30 were detected, and this work provides their gamma-ray fluxes for energies above 10 GeV. The spectral energy distributions and upper limits, in the multi-wavelength context, also provide new information on the source nature and can help distinguish between emission scenarios, i.e., between classification as a pulsar candidate or as a PWN candidate. Six new GeV PWN candidates are described in detail and compared with existing models. A population study of GeV PWN candidates as a function of the pulsar/PWN system characteristics is presented.
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| 68. |
- Ackermann, M., et al.
(författare)
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Fermi-LAT search for pulsar wind nebulae around gamma-ray pulsars
- 2011
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 726:1, s. 35-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The high sensitivity of the Fermi-LAT (Large Area Telescope) offers the first opportunity to study faint and extended GeV sources such as pulsar wind nebulae (PWNe). After one year of observation the LAT detected and identified three PWNe: the Crab Nebula, Vela-X, and the PWN inside MSH 15-52. In the meantime, the list of LAT detected pulsars increased steadily. These pulsars are characterized by high energy loss rates ((E) over dot) from similar to 3 x 10(33) erg s(-1) to 5 x 10(38) erg s(-1) and are therefore likely to power a PWN. This paper summarizes the search for PWNe in the off-pulse windows of 54 LAT-detected pulsars using 16 months of survey observations. Ten sources show significant emission, seven of these likely being of magnetospheric origin. The detection of significant emission in the off-pulse interval offers new constraints on the gamma-ray emitting regions in pulsar magnetospheres. The three other sources with significant emission are the Crab Nebula, Vela-X, and a new PWN candidate associated with the LAT pulsar PSR J1023-5746, coincident with the TeV source HESS J1023-575. We further explore the association between the HESS and the Fermi source by modeling its spectral energy distribution. Flux upper limits derived for the 44 remaining sources are used to provide new constraints on famous PWNe that have been detected at keV and/or TeV energies.
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| 69. |
- Ackermann, M., et al.
(författare)
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Searches for cosmic-ray electron anisotropies with the Fermi Large Area Telescope
- 2010
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Ingår i: PHYS REV D. - 1550-7998. ; 82:9, s. 092003-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Large Area Telescope on board the Fermi satellite (Fermi LAT) detected more than 1.6 x 10(6) cosmic-ray electrons/positrons with energies above 60 GeV during its first year of operation. The arrival directions of these events were searched for anisotropies of angular scale extending from similar to 10 degrees up to 90 degrees, and of minimum energy extending from 60 GeV up to 480 GeV. Two independent techniques were used to search for anisotropies, both resulting in null results. Upper limits on the degree of the anisotropy were set that depended on the analyzed energy range and on the anisotropy's angular scale. The upper limits for a dipole anisotropy ranged from similar to 0.5% to similar to 10%.
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| 70. |
- Atwood, W. B., et al.
(författare)
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THE LARGE AREA TELESCOPE ON THE FERMI GAMMA-RAY SPACE TELESCOPE MISSION
- 2009
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 697:2, s. 1071-1102
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Large Area Telescope (Fermi/LAT, hereafter LAT), the primary instrument on the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope (Fermi) mission, is an imaging, wide field-of-view (FoV), high-energy gamma-ray telescope, covering the energy range from below 20 MeV to more than 300 GeV. The LAT was built by an international collaboration with contributions from space agencies, high-energy particle physics institutes, and universities in France, Italy, Japan, Sweden, and the United States. This paper describes the LAT, its preflight expected performance, and summarizes the key science objectives that will be addressed. On-orbit performance will be presented in detail in a subsequent paper. The LAT is a pair-conversion telescope with a precision tracker and calorimeter, each consisting of a 4 x 4 array of 16 modules, a segmented anticoincidence detector that covers the tracker array, and a programmable trigger and data acquisition system. Each tracker module has a vertical stack of 18 (x, y) tracking planes, including two layers (x and y) of single-sided silicon strip detectors and high-Z converter material (tungsten) per tray. Every calorimeter module has 96 CsI(Tl) crystals, arranged in an eight-layer hodoscopic configuration with a total depth of 8.6 radiation lengths, giving both longitudinal and transverse information about the energy deposition pattern. The calorimeter's depth and segmentation enable the high-energy reach of the LAT and contribute significantly to background rejection. The aspect ratio of the tracker (height/width) is 0.4, allowing a large FoV (2.4 sr) and ensuring that most pair-conversion showers initiated in the tracker will pass into the calorimeter for energy measurement. Data obtained with the LAT are intended to (1) permit rapid notification of high-energy gamma-ray bursts and transients and facilitate monitoring of variable sources, (2) yield an extensive catalog of several thousand high-energy sources obtained from an all-sky survey, (3) measure spectra from 20 MeV to more than 50 GeV for several hundred sources, (4) localize point sources to 0.3-2 arcmin, (5) map and obtain spectra of extended sources such as SNRs, molecular clouds, and nearby galaxies, (6) measure the diffuse isotropic gamma-ray background up to TeV energies, and (7) explore the discovery space for dark matter.
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