| 1. |
- Abdo, A. A., et al.
(författare)
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BRIGHT ACTIVE GALACTIC NUCLEI SOURCE LIST FROM THE FIRST THREE MONTHS OF THE FERMI LARGE AREA TELESCOPE ALL-SKY SURVEY
- 2009
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 700:1, s. 597-622
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The first three months of sky-survey operation with the Large Area Telescope (LAT) onboard the Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope reveal 132 bright sources at |b| > 10 degrees with test statistic greater than 100 ( corresponding to about 10 sigma). Two methods, based on the CGRaBS, CRATES, and BZCat catalogs, indicate high-confidence associations of 106 of these sources with known active galactic nuclei (AGNs). This sample is referred to as the LAT Bright AGN Sample (LBAS). It contains two radio galaxies, namely, Centaurus A and NGC 1275, and 104 blazars consisting of 58 flat spectrum radio quasars (FSRQs), 42 BL Lac objects, and 4 blazars with unknown classification. Four new blazars were discovered on the basis of the LAT detections. Remarkably, the LBAS includes 10 high-energy-peaked BL Lacs (HBLs), sources which were previously difficult to detect in the GeV range. Another 10 lower-confidence associations are found. Only 33 of the sources, plus two at |b| < 10 degrees, were previously detected with Energetic Gamma-Ray Experiment Telescope( EGRET), probably due to variability. The analysis of the gamma-ray properties of the LBAS sources reveals that the average GeV spectra of BL Lac objects are significantly harder than the spectra of FSRQs. No significant correlation between radio and peak gamma-ray fluxes is observed. Blazar log N-log S distributions and luminosity functions are constructed to investigate the evolution of the different blazar classes, with positive evolution indicated for FSRQs but none for BL Lacs. The contribution of LAT blazars to the total extragalactic gamma-ray intensity is estimated.
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| 2. |
- Abdo, A. A., et al.
(författare)
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FERMI/LARGE AREA TELESCOPE DISCOVERY OF GAMMA-RAY EMISSION FROM A RELATIVISTIC JET IN THE NARROW-LINE QUASAR PMN J0948+0022
- 2009
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 699:2, s. 976-984
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report the discovery by the Large Area Telescope (LAT) onboard the Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope of high-energy. gamma-ray emission from the peculiar quasar PMN J0948+0022 (z = 0.5846). The optical spectrum of this object exhibits rather narrow H beta (FWHM(H beta) similar to 1500 km s(-1)), weak forbidden lines, and is therefore classified as a narrow-line type I quasar. This class of objects is thought to have relatively small black hole mass and to accrete at a high Eddington ratio. The radio loudness and variability of the compact radio core indicate the presence of a relativistic jet. Quasi-simultaneous radio/optical/X-ray and gamma-ray observations are presented. Both radio and gamma-ray emissions (observed over five months) are strongly variable. The simultaneous optical and X-ray data from Swift show a blue continuum attributed to the accretion disk and a hard X-ray spectrum attributed to the jet. The resulting broadband spectral energy distribution (SED) and, in particular, the gamma-ray spectrum measured by Fermi are similar to those of more powerful Flat-Spectrum Radio Quasars (FSRQs). A comparison of the radio and gamma-ray characteristics of PMN J0948+0022 with the other blazars detected by LAT shows that this source has a relatively low radio and gamma-ray power with respect to other FSRQs. The physical parameters obtained from modeling the SED also fall at the low power end of the FSRQ parameter region discussed in Celotti & Ghisellini. We suggest that the similarity of the SED of PMN J0948+0022 to that of more massive and more powerful quasars can be understood in a scenario in which the SED properties depend on the Eddington ratio rather than on the absolute power.
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| 3. |
- Abdo, A. A., et al.
(författare)
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Multiwavelength Monitoring of the Enigmatic Narrow-Line Seyfert 1 PMN J0948+0022 in 2009 March-July
- 2009
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 707:1, s. 727-737
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Following the recent discovery of γ rays from the radio-loud narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxy PMN J0948+0022 (z = 0.5846), we started a multiwavelength campaign from radio to γ rays, which was carried out between the end of 2009 March and the beginning of July. The source displayed activity at all the observed wavelengths: a general decreasing trend from optical to γ-ray frequencies was followed by an increase of radio emission after less than two months from the peak of the γ-ray emission. The largest flux change, about a factor of about 4, occurred in the X-ray band. The smallest was at ultraviolet and near-infrared frequencies, where the rate of the detected photons dropped by a factor 1.6-1.9. At optical wavelengths, where the sampling rate was the highest, it was possible to observe day scale variability, with flux variations up to a factor of about 3. The behavior of PMN J0948+0022 observed in this campaign and the calculated power carried out by its jet in the form of protons, electrons, radiation, and magnetic field are quite similar to that of blazars, specifically of flat-spectrum radio quasars. These results confirm the idea that radio-loud narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxies host relativistic jets with power similar to that of average blazars.
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| 4. |
- De Angelis, A., et al.
(författare)
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Science with e-ASTROGAM A space mission for MeV-GeV gamma-ray astrophysics
- 2018
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Ingår i: Journal of High Energy Astrophysics. - : Elsevier. - 2214-4048 .- 2214-4056. ; 19, s. 1-106
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- e-ASTROGAM ('enhanced ASTROGAM') is a breakthrough Observatory space mission, with a detector composed by a Silicon tracker, a calorimeter, and an anticoincidence system, dedicated to the study of the non-thermal Universe in the photon energy range from 0.3 MeV to 3 GeV - the lower energy limit can be pushed to energies as low as 150 keV for the tracker, and to 30 keV for calorimetric detection. The mission is based on an advanced space-proven detector technology, with unprecedented sensitivity, angular and energy resolution, combined with polarimetric capability. Thanks to its performance in the MeV-GeV domain, substantially improving its predecessors, e-ASTROGAM will open a new window on the non-thermal Universe, making pioneering observations of the most powerful Galactic and extragalactic sources, elucidating the nature of their relativistic outflows and their effects on the surroundings. With a line sensitivity in the MeV energy range one to two orders of magnitude better than previous generation instruments, e-ASTROGAM will determine the origin of key isotopes fundamental for the understanding of supernova explosion and the chemical evolution of our Galaxy. The mission will provide unique data of significant interest to a broad astronomical community, complementary to powerful observatories such as LIGO-Virgo-GEO600-KAGRA, SKA, ALMA, E-ELT, TMT, LSST, JWST, Athena, CTA, IceCube, KM3NeT, and LISA.
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| 5. |
- Hayashida, M., et al.
(författare)
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THE STRUCTURE AND EMISSION MODEL OF THE RELATIVISTIC JET IN THE QUASAR 3C 279 INFERRED FROM RADIO TO HIGH-ENERGY gamma-RAY OBSERVATIONS IN 2008-2010
- 2012
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 754:2, s. 114-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present time-resolved broadband observations of the quasar 3C 279 obtained from multi-wavelength campaigns conducted during the first two years of the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope mission. While investigating the previously reported gamma-ray/optical flare accompanied by a change in optical polarization, we found that the optical emission appears to be delayed with respect to the gamma-ray emission by about 10 days. X-ray observations reveal a pair of isolated flares separated by similar to 90 days, with only weak gamma-ray/optical counterparts. The spectral structure measured by Spitzer reveals a synchrotron component peaking in the mid-infrared band with a sharp break at the far-infrared band during the gamma-ray flare, while the peak appears in the millimeter (mm)/submillimeter (sub-mm) band in the low state. Selected spectral energy distributions are fitted with leptonic models including Comptonization of external radiation produced in a dusty torus or the broad-line region. Adopting the interpretation of the polarization swing involving propagation of the emitting region along a curved trajectory, we can explain the evolution of the broadband spectra during the gamma-ray flaring event by a shift of its location from similar to 1 pc to similar to 4 pc from the central black hole. On the other hand, if the gamma-ray flare is generated instead at sub-pc distance from the central black hole, the far-infrared break can be explained by synchrotron self-absorption. We also model the low spectral state, dominated by the mm/sub-mm peaking synchrotron component, and suggest that the corresponding inverse-Compton component explains the steady X-ray emission.
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| 6. |
- Greiner, J., et al.
(författare)
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Gamma-ray burst investigation via polarimetry and spectroscopy (GRIPS)
- 2009
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Ingår i: Experimental astronomy. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0922-6435 .- 1572-9508. ; 23:1, s. 91-120
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The primary scientific goal of the GRIPS mission is to revolutionize our understanding of the early universe using gamma-ray bursts. We propose a new generation gamma-ray observatory capable of unprecedented spectroscopy over a wide range of gamma-ray energies (200 keV-50 MeV) and of polarimetry (200-1000 keV). The gamma-ray sensitivity to nuclear absorption features enables the measurement of column densities as high as 10(28)cm (-aEuro parts per thousand 2). Secondary goals achievable by this mission include direct measurements of all types of supernova interiors through gamma-rays from radioactive decays, nuclear astrophysics with massive stars and novae, and studies of particle acceleration near compact stars, interstellar shocks, and clusters of galaxies.
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