| 1. |
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| 2. |
- Algaba, Juan-Carlos, et al.
(författare)
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Broadband Multi-wavelength Properties of M87 during the 2017 Event Horizon Telescope Campaign
- 2021
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal Letters. - : American Astronomical Society. - 2041-8213 .- 2041-8205. ; 911:1
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- In 2017, the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) Collaboration succeeded in capturing the first direct image of the center of the M87 galaxy. The asymmetric ring morphology and size are consistent with theoretical expectations for a weakly accreting supermassive black hole of mass ∼6.5 × 109 M o˙. The EHTC also partnered with several international facilities in space and on the ground, to arrange an extensive, quasi-simultaneous multi-wavelength campaign. This Letter presents the results and analysis of this campaign, as well as the multi-wavelength data as a legacy data repository. We captured M87 in a historically low state, and the core flux dominates over HST-1 at high energies, making it possible to combine core flux constraints with the more spatially precise very long baseline interferometry data. We present the most complete simultaneous multi-wavelength spectrum of the active nucleus to date, and discuss the complexity and caveats of combining data from different spatial scales into one broadband spectrum. We apply two heuristic, isotropic leptonic single-zone models to provide insight into the basic source properties, but conclude that a structured jet is necessary to explain M87's spectrum. We can exclude that the simultaneous γ-ray emission is produced via inverse Compton emission in the same region producing the EHT mm-band emission, and further conclude that the γ-rays can only be produced in the inner jets (inward of HST-1) if there are strongly particle-dominated regions. Direct synchrotron emission from accelerated protons and secondaries cannot yet be excluded.
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| 3. |
- Petroff, E., et al.
(författare)
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A polarized fast radio burst at low Galactic latitude
- 2017
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Ingår i: Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. - : Oxford Academic. - 0035-8711 .- 1365-2966. ; 469:4, s. 4465-4482
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on the discovery of a new fast radio burst (FRB), FRB 150215, with the Parkes radio telescope on 2015 February 15. The burst was detected in real time with a dispersion measure (DM) of 1105.6 +/- 0.8 pc cm(-3), a pulse duration of 2.8(-0.5)(+1.2) ms, and a measured peak flux density assuming that the burst was at beam centre of 0.7(-0.1)(+0.2) Jy. The FRB originated at a Galactic longitude and latitude of 24.66 degrees, 5.28 degrees and 25 degrees away from the Galactic Center. The burst was found to be 43 +/- 5 per cent linearly polarized with a rotation measure (RM) in the range -9 < RM < 12 rad m(-2) (95 per cent confidence level), consistent with zero. The burst was followed up with 11 telescopes to search for radio, optical, X-ray, gamma-ray and neutrino emission. Neither transient nor variable emission was found to be associated with the burst and no repeat pulses have been observed in 17.25 h of observing. The sightline to the burst is close to the Galactic plane and the observed physical properties of FRB 150215 demonstrate the existence of sight lines of anomalously low RM for a given electron column density. The Galactic RM foreground may approach a null value due to magnetic field reversals along the line of sight, a decreased total electron column density from the Milky Way, or some combination of these effects. A lower Galactic DM contribution might explain why this burst was detectable whereas previous searches at low latitude have had lower detection rates than those out of the plane.
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| 4. |
- Adams, C. B., et al.
(författare)
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Observation of the Gamma-Ray Binary HESS J0632+057 with the HESS, MAGIC, and VERITAS Telescopes
- 2021
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - : Institute of Physics Publishing (IOPP). - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 923:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The results of gamma-ray observations of the binary system HESS J0632 + 057 collected during 450 hr over 15 yr, between 2004 and 2019, are presented. Data taken with the atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes H.E.S.S., MAGIC, and VERITAS at energies above 350 GeV were used together with observations at X-ray energies obtained with Swift-XRT, Chandra, XMM-Newton, NuSTAR, and Suzaku. Some of these observations were accompanied by measurements of the H alpha emission line. A significant detection of the modulation of the very high-energy gamma-ray fluxes with a period of 316.7 +/- 4.4 days is reported, consistent with the period of 317.3 +/- 0.7 days obtained with a refined analysis of X-ray data. The analysis of data from four orbital cycles with dense observational coverage reveals short-timescale variability, with flux-decay timescales of less than 20 days at very high energies. Flux variations observed over a timescale of several years indicate orbit-to-orbit variability. The analysis confirms the previously reported correlation of X-ray and gamma-ray emission from the system at very high significance, but cannot find any correlation of optical H alpha parameters with fluxes at X-ray or gamma-ray energies in simultaneous observations. The key finding is that the emission of HESS J0632 + 057 in the X-ray and gamma-ray energy bands is highly variable on different timescales. The ratio of gamma-ray to X-ray flux shows the equality or even dominance of the gamma-ray energy range. This wealth of new data is interpreted taking into account the insufficient knowledge of the ephemeris of the system, and discussed in the context of results reported on other gamma-ray binary systems.
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| 5. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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Gamma-ray blazar spectra with HESS II mono analysis : The case of PKS2155-304 and PG1553+113
- 2017
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 600
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. The addition of a 28 m Cherenkov telescope (CT5) to the H.E.S.S. array extended the experiment's sensitivity to lower energies. The lowest energy threshold is obtained using monoscopic analysis of data taken with CT5, providing access to gamma-ray energies below 100 GeV for small zenith angle observations. Such an extension of the instrument's energy range is particularly beneficial for studies of active galactic nuclei with soft spectra, as expected for those at a redshift >= 0.5. The high-frequency peaked BL Lac objects PKS 2155-304 (z = 0.116) and PG 1553 + 113 (0.43 < z < 0.58) are among the brightest objects in the gamma-ray sky, both showing clear signatures of gamma-ray absorption at E > 100 GeV interpreted as being due to interactions with the extragalactic background light (EBL). Aims. The aims of this work are twofold: to demonstrate the monoscopic analysis of CT5 data with a low energy threshold, and to obtain accurate measurements of the spectral energy distributions (SED) of PKS 2155-304 and PG 1553 + 113 near their SED peaks at energies approximate to 100 GeV. Methods. Multiple observational campaigns of PKS 2155 304 and PG 1553 + 113 were conducted during 2013 and 2014 using the full H.E.S.S. II instrument (CT1-5). A monoscopic analysis of the data taken with the new CT5 telescope was developed along with an investigation into the systematic uncertainties on the spectral parameters which are derived from this analysis. Results. Using the data from CT5, the energy spectra of PKS 2155 304 and PG 1553 + 113 were reconstructed down to conservative threshold energies of 80 GeV for PKS 2155 304, which transits near zenith, and 110 GeV for the more northern PG 1553 + 113. The measured spectra, well fitted in both cases by a log-parabola spectral model ( with a 5.0 similar to statistical preference for non-zero curvature for PKS 2155 304 and 4.5 sigma for PG 1553+113), were found consistent with spectra derived from contemporaneous Fermi-LAT data, indicating a sharp break in the observed spectra of both sources at E approximate to 100 GeV. When corrected for EBL absorption, the intrinsic H.E.S.S. II mono and Fermi-LAT spectrum of PKS 2155 304 was found to show significant curvature. For PG 1553+113, however, no significant detection of curvature in the intrinsic spectrum could be found within statistical and systematic uncertainties.
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| 6. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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Deeper HESS observations of Vela Junior (RX J0852.0-4622) : Morphology studies and resolved spectroscopy
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 612
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aims. We study gamma-ray emission from the shell-type supernova remnant (SNR) RXJ0852.0-4622 to better characterize its spectral properties and its distribution over the SNR. Methods. The analysis of an extended High Energy Spectroscopic System (H.E.S.S.) data set at very high energies (E > 100 GeV) permits detailed studies, as well as spatially resolved spectroscopy, of the morphology and spectrum of the whole RXJ0852.0-4622 region. The H.E.S.S. data are combined with archival data from other wavebands and interpreted in the framework of leptonic and hadronic models. The joint Fermi-LAT-H.E.S.S. spectrum allows the direct determination of the spectral characteristics of the parent particle population in leptonic and hadronic scenarios using only GeV-TeV data. Results. An updated analysis of the H.E.S.S. data shows that the spectrum of the entire SNR connects smoothly to the high-energy spectrum measured by Fermi-LAT. The increased data set makes it possible to demonstrate that the H.E.S.S. spectrum deviates significantly from a power law and is well described by both a curved power law and a power law with an exponential cutoff at an energy of E-cut = (6.7 +/- 1.2(stat) +/- 1.2(syst)) TeV. The joint Fermi-LAT-H.E.S.S. spectrum allows the unambiguous identification of the spectral shape as a power law with an exponential cutoff. No significant evidence is found for a variation of the spectral parameters across the SNR, suggesting similar conditions of particle acceleration across the remnant. A simple modeling using one particle population to model the SNR emission demonstrates that both leptonic and hadronic emission scenarios remain plausible. It is also shown that at least a part of the shell emission is likely due to the presence of a pulsar wind nebula around PSR J0855-4644.
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| 7. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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HESS and MAGIC observations of a sudden cessation of a very-high-energy gamma-ray flare in PKS 1510-089 in May 2016
- 2021
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 648
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The flat spectrum radio quasar (FSRQ) PKS 1510-089 is known for its complex multiwavelength behaviour and it is one of only a few FSRQs detected in very-high-energy (VHE, E>100 GeV) gamma rays. The VHE gamma -ray observations with H.E.S.S. and MAGIC in late May and early June 2016 resulted in the detection of an unprecedented flare, which revealed, for the first time, VHE gamma -ray intranight variability for this source. While a common variability timescale of 1.5 h has been found, there is a significant deviation near the end of the flare, with a timescale of similar to 20 min marking the cessation of the event. The peak flux is nearly two orders of magnitude above the low-level emission. For the first time, a curvature was detected in the VHE gamma -ray spectrum of PKS 1510-089, which can be fully explained by the absorption on the part of the extragalactic background light. Optical R-band observations with ATOM revealed a counterpart of the gamma -ray flare, even though the detailed flux evolution differs from the VHE gamma -ray light curve. Interestingly, a steep flux decrease was observed at the same time as the cessation of the VHE gamma -ray flare. In the high-energy (HE, E> 100 MeV) gamma -ray band, only a moderate flux increase was observed with Fermi-LAT, while the HE gamma -ray spectrum significantly hardens up to a photon index of 1.6. A search for broad-line region (BLR) absorption features in the gamma -ray spectrum indicates that the emission region is located outside of the BLR. Radio very-long-baseline interferometry observations reveal a fast-moving knot interacting with a standing jet feature around the time of the flare. As the standing feature is located similar to 50 pc from the black hole, the emission region of the flare may have been located at a significant distance from the black hole. If this is indeed a true correlation, the VHE gamma rays must have been produced far down in the jet, where turbulent plasma crosses a standing shock.
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| 8. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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Systematic search for very-high-energy gamma-ray emission from bow shocks of runaway stars
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 612
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. Runaway stars form bow shocks by ploughing through the interstellar medium at supersonic speeds and are promising sources of non-thermal emission of photons. One of these objects has been found to emit non-thermal radiation in the radio band. This triggered the development of theoretical models predicting non-thermal photons from radio up to very-high-energy (VHE, E >= 0.1 TeV) gamma rays. Subsequently, one bow shock was also detected in X-ray observations. However, the data did not allow discrimination between a hot thermal and a non-thermal origin. Further observations of different candidates at X-ray energies showed no evidence for emission at the position of the bow shocks either. A systematic search in the Fermi-LAT energy regime resulted in flux upper limits for 27 candidates listed in the E-BOSS catalogue. Aims. Here we perform the first systematic search for VHE gamma-ray emission from bow shocks of runaway stars. Methods. Using all available archival H.E.S.S. data we search for very-high-energy gamma-ray emission at the positions of bow shock candidates listed in the second E-BOSS catalogue release. Out of the 73 bow shock candidates in this catalogue, 32 have been observed with H.E.S.S. Results. None of the observed 32 bow shock candidates in this population study show significant emission in the H.E.S.S. energy range. Therefore, flux upper limits are calculated in five energy bins and the fraction of the kinetic wind power that is converted into VHE gamma rays is constrained. Conclusions. Emission from stellar bow shocks is not detected in the energy range between 0.14 and 18 TeV. The resulting upper limits constrain the level of VHE gamma-ray emission from these objects down to 0.1-1% of the kinetic wind energy.
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| 9. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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The HESS Galactic plane survey
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 612
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present the results of the most comprehensive survey of the Galactic plane in very high-energy (VHE) gamma-rays, including a public release of Galactic sky maps, a catalog of VHE sources, and the discovery of 16 new sources of VHE gamma-rays. The High Energy Spectroscopic System (H.E.S.S.) Galactic plane survey (HGPS) was a decade-long observation program carried out by the H.E.S.S. I array of Cherenkov telescopes in Namibia from 2004 to 2013. The observations amount to nearly 2700 h of quality-selected data, covering the Galactic plane at longitudes from l = 250 degrees to 65 degrees and latitudes vertical bar b vertical bar <= 3 degrees. In addition to the unprecedented spatial coverage, the HGPS also features a relatively high angular resolution (0.08 degrees approximate to 5 arcmin mean point spread function 68% containment radius), sensitivity (less than or similar to 1.5% Crab flux for point-like sources), and energy range (0.2-100 TeV). We constructed a catalog of VHE gamma-ray sources from the HGPS data set with a systematic procedure for both source detection and characterization of morphology and spectrum. We present this likelihood-based method in detail, including the introduction of a model component to account for unresolved, large-scale emission along the Galactic plane. In total, the resulting HGPS catalog contains 78 VHE sources, of which 14 are not reanalyzed here, for example, due to their complex morphology, namely shell-like sources and the Galactic center region. Where possible, we provide a firm identification of the VHE source or plausible associations with sources in other astronomical catalogs. We also studied the characteristics of the VHE sources with source parameter distributions. 16 new sources were previously unknown or unpublished, and we individually discuss their identifications or possible associations. We firmly identified 31 sources as pulsar wind nebulae (PWNe), supernova remnants (SNRs), composite SNRs, or gamma-ray binaries. Among the 47 sources not yet identified, most of them (36) have possible associations with cataloged objects, notably PWNe and energetic pulsars that could power VHE PWNe.
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| 10. |
- Abdallah, H., et al.
(författare)
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Search for gamma-Ray Line Signals from Dark Matter Annihilations in the Inner Galactic Halo from 10 Years of Observations with HESS
- 2018
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Ingår i: Physical Review Letters. - : American Physical Society. - 0031-9007 .- 1079-7114. ; 120:20
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Spectral lines are among the most powerful signatures for dark matter (DM) annihilation searches in very-high-energy gamma rays. The central region of the Milky Way halo is one of the most promising targets given its large amount of DM and proximity to Earth. We report on a search for a monoenergetic spectral line from self-annihilations of DM particles in the energy range from 300 GeV to 70 TeV using a two-dimensional maximum likelihood method taking advantage of both the spectral and spatial features of the signal versus background. The analysis makes use of Galactic center observations accumulated over ten years (2004-2014) with the H.E.S.S. array of ground-based Cherenkov telescopes. No significant gamma-ray excess above the background is found. We derive upper limits on the annihilation cross section (sigma v) for monoenergetic DM lines at the level of 4 x 10(-28) cm(3) s(-1) at 1 TeV, assuming an Einasto DM profile for the Milky Way halo. For a DM mass of 1 TeV, they improve over the previous ones by a factor of 6. The present constraints are the strongest obtained so far for DM particles in the mass range 300 GeV-70 TeV. Ground-based gamma-ray observations have reached sufficient sensitivity to explore relevant velocity-averaged cross sections for DM annihilation into two gamma-ray photons at the level expected from the thermal relic density for TeV DM particles.
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| 11. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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A search for new supernova remnant shells in the Galactic plane with HESS
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 612
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A search for new supernova remnants (SNRs) has been conducted using TeV gamma-ray data from the H.E.S.S. Galactic plane survey. As an identification criterion, shell morphologies that are characteristic for known resolved TeV SNRs have been used. Three new SNR candidates were identified in the H.E.S.S. data set with this method. Extensive multiwavelength searches for counterparts were conducted. A radio SNR candidate has been identified to be a counterpart to HESS J1534-571. The TeV source is therefore classified as a SNR. For the other two sources, HESS J1614-518 and HESS J1912 + 101, no identifying counterparts have been found, thus they remain SNR candidates for the time being. TeV-emitting SNRs are key objects in the context of identifying the accelerators of Galactic cosmic rays. The TeV emission of the relativistic particles in the new sources is examined in view of possible leptonic and hadronic emission scenarios, taking the current multiwavelength knowledge into account.
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| 12. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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Characterising the VHE diffuse emission in the central 200 parsecs of our Galaxy with HESS
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 612
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The diffuse very high-energy (VHE; > 100 GeV) gamma-ray emission observed in the central 200 pc of the Milky Way by H.E.S.S. was found to follow dense matter distribution in the central molecular zone (CMZ) up to a longitudinal distance of about 130 pc to the Galactic centre (GC), where the flux rapidly decreases. This was initially interpreted as the result of a burst-like injection of energetic particles 104 yr ago, but a recent more sensitive H.E.S.S. analysis revealed that the cosmic-ray (CR) density profile drops with the distance to the centre, making data compatible with a steady cosmic PeVatron at the GC. In this paper, we extend this analysis to obtain, for the first time, a detailed characterisation of the correlation with matter and to search for additional features and individual gamma-ray sources in the inner 200 pc. Taking advantage of 250 h of H.E.S.S. data and improved analysis techniques, we perform a detailed morphology study of the diffuse VHE emission observed from the GC ridge and reconstruct its total spectrum. To test the various contributions to the total gamma-ray emission, we used an iterative 2D maximum-likelihood approach that allows us to build a phenomenological model of the emission by summing a number of different spatial components. We show that the emission correlated with dense matter covers the full CMZ and that its flux is about half the total diffuse emission flux. We also detect some emission at higher latitude that is likely produced by hadronic collisions of CRs in less dense regions of the GC interstellar medium. We detect an additional emission component centred on the GC and extending over about 15 pc that is consistent with the existence of a strong CR density gradient and confirms the presence of a CR accelerator at the very centre of our Galaxy. We show that the spectrum of full ridge diffuse emission is compatible with that previously derived from the central regions, suggesting that a single population of particles fills the entire CMZ. Finally, we report the discovery of a VHE gamma-ray source near the GC radio arc and argue that it is produced by the pulsar wind nebula candidate G0.13-0.11.
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| 13. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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First limits on the very-high energy gamma-ray afterglow emission of a fast radio burst HESS observations of FRB 150418
- 2017
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : The European Southern Observatory (ESO). - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 597
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aims. Following the detection of the fast radio burst FRB150418 by the SUPERB project at the Parkes radio telescope, we aim to search for very-high energy gamma-ray afterglow emission. Methods. Follow-up observations in the very-high energy gamma-ray domain were obtained with the H.E.S.S. imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescope system within 14.5 h of the radio burst. Results. The obtained 1.4 h of gamma-ray observations are presented and discussed. At the 99% C.L. we obtained an integral upper limit on the gamma-ray flux of Phi(gamma)(E > 350 GeV) < 1.33 x 10(-8) m(-2) s(-1). Differential flux upper limits as function of the photon energy were derived and used to constrain the intrinsic high-energy afterglow emission of FRB 150418. Conclusions. No hints for high-energy afterglow emission of FRB 150418 were found. Taking absorption on the extragalactic background light into account and assuming a distance of z = 0 : 492 based on radio and optical counterpart studies and consistent with the FRB dispersion, we constrain the gamma-ray luminosity at 1 TeV to L < 5 : 1 x 10(47) erg/s at 99% C.L.
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| 14. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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Population study of Galactic supernova remnants at very high gamma-ray energies with HESS
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 612
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Shell-type supernova remnants (SNRs) are considered prime candidates for the acceleration of Galactic cosmic rays (CRs) up to the knee of the CR spectrum at E approximate to 3 x 10(15) eV. Our MilkyWay galaxy hosts more than 350 SNRs discovered at radio wavelengths and at high energies, of which 220 fall into the H.E.S.S. Galactic Plane Survey (HGPS) region. Of those, only 50 SNRs are coincident with a H.E.S.S source and in 8 cases the very high-energy (VHE) emission is firmly identified as an SNR. The H.E.S.S. GPS provides us with a legacy for SNR population study in VHE gamma-rays and we use this rich data set to extract VHE flux upper limits from all undetected SNRs. Overall, the derived flux upper limits are not in contradiction with the canonical CR paradigm. Assuming this paradigm holds true, we can constrain typical ambient density values around shell-type SNRs to n <= 7 cm(-3) and electron-to-proton energy fractions above 10 TeV to epsilon(ep) <= 5 x 10(-3). Furthermore, comparisons of VHE with radio luminosities in non-interacting SNRs reveal a behaviour that is in agreement with the theory of magnetic field amplification at shell-type SNRs.
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| 15. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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HESS discovery of very high energy gamma-ray emission from PKS 0625-354
- 2018
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Ingår i: Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. - : Oxford University Press. - 0035-8711 .- 1365-2966. ; 476:3, s. 4187-4198
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- PKS 0625-354 (z = 0.055) was observed with the four High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) telescopes in 2012 during 5.5 h. The source was detected above an energy threshold of 200 GeV at a significance level of 6.1 sigma. No significant variability is found in these observations. The source is well described with a power-law spectrum with photon index Gamma = 2.84 +/- 0.50(stat) +/- 0.10(syst) and normalization (at E-0 = 1.0 TeV) N-0(E-0)=(0.58 +/- 0.22(stat) +/- 0.12(syst)) x 10(-12) TeV-1 cm(-2) s(-1). Multiwavelength data collected with Fermi-LAT, Swift-XRT, Swift-UVOT, ATOM and WISE are also analysed. Significant variability is observed only in the Fermi-LAT gamma-ray and Swift-XRT X-ray energy bands. Having a good multiwavelength coverage from radio to very high energy, we performed a broad-band modelling from two types of emission scenarios. The results from a one zone lepto-hadronic and a multizone leptonic models are compared and discussed. On the grounds of energetics, our analysis favours a leptonic multizone model. Models associated to the X-ray variability constraint support previous results, suggesting a BL Lac nature of PKS 0625-354 with, however, a large-scale jet structure typical of a radio galaxy.
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| 16. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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HESS J1741-302 : a hidden accelerator in the Galactic plane
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 612
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The H.E.S.S. Collaboration has discovered a new very high energy (VHE, E > 0.1 TeV) gamma-ray source, HESS J1741-302, located in the Galactic plane. Despite several attempts to constrain its nature, no plausible counterpart has been found so far at X-ray and MeV/GeV gamma-ray energies, and the source remains unidentified. An analysis of 145-h of observations of HESS J1741-302 at VHEs has revealed a steady and relatively weak TeV source (similar to 1% of the Crab Nebula flux), with a spectral index of Gamma = 2.3 +/- 0.2(stat) +/- 0.2(sys), extending to energies up to 10 TeV without any clear signature of a cut-off. In a hadronic scenario, such a spectrum implies an object with particle acceleration up to energies of several hundred TeV. Contrary to most H.E.S.S. unidentified sources, the angular size of HESS J1741-302 is compatible with the H.E.S.S. point spread function at VHEs, with an extension constrained to be below 0.068 degrees at a 99% confidence level. The gamma-ray emission detected by H.E.S.S. can be explained both within a hadronic scenario, due to collisions of protons with energies of hundreds of TeV with dense molecular clouds, and in a leptonic scenario, as a relic pulsar wind nebula, possibly powered by the middle-aged (20 kyr) pulsar PSR B1737-30. A binary scenario, related to the compact radio source 1LC 358.266+0.038 found to be spatially coincident with the best fit position of HESS J1741-302, is also envisaged.
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| 17. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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The gamma-ray spectrum of the core of Centaurus A as observed with HESS and Fermi-LAT
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 619
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Centaurus A (Cen A) is the nearest radio galaxy discovered as a very-high-energy (VHE; 100 GeV-100 TeV) gamma-ray source by the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.). It is a faint VHE gamma-ray emitter, though its VHE flux exceeds both the extrapolation from early Fermi-LAT observations as well as expectations from a (misaligned) single-zone synchrotron-self Compton (SSC) description. The latter satisfactorily reproduces the emission from Cen A at lower energies up to a few GeV. New observations with H.E.S.S., comparable in exposure time to those previously reported, were performed and eight years of Fermi-LAT data were accumulated to clarify the spectral characteristics of the gamma-ray emission from the core of Cen A. The results allow us for the first time to achieve the goal of constructing a representative, contemporaneous gamma-ray core spectrum of Cen A over almost five orders of magnitude in energy. Advanced analysis methods, including the template fitting method, allow detection in the VHE range of the core with a statistical significance of 12 sigma on the basis of 213 hours of total exposure time. The spectrum in the energy range of 250 GeV-6 TeV is compatible with a power-law function with a photon index Gamma = 2.52 +/- 0.13(stat) +/- 0.20(sys). An updated Fermi-LAT analysis provides evidence for spectral hardening by Delta Gamma similar or equal to 0.4 +/- 0.1 at gamma-ray energies above 2.8(-0.6)(+1.0) GeV at a level of 4.0 sigma. The fact that the spectrum hardens at GeV energies and extends into the VHE regime disfavour a single-zone SSC interpretation for the overall spectral energy distribution (SED) of the core and is suggestive of a new gamma-ray emitting component connecting the high-energy emission above the break energy to the one observed at VHE energies. The absence of significant variability at both GeV and TeV energies does not yet allow disentanglement of the physical nature of this component, though a jet-related origin is possible and a simple two-zone SED model fit is provided to this end.
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| 18. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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The population of TeV pulsar wind nebulae in the HESS Galactic Plane Survey
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 612
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The nine-year H.E.S.S. Galactic Plane Survey (HGPS) has yielded the most uniform observation scan of the inner Milky Way in the TeV gamma-ray band to date. The sky maps and source catalogue of the HGPS allow for a systematic study of the population of TeV pulsar wind nebulae found throughout the last decade. To investigate the nature and evolution of pulsar wind nebulae, for the first time we also present several upper limits for regions around pulsars without a detected TeV wind nebula. Our data exhibit a correlation of TeV surface brightness with pulsar spindown power (E) over dot. This seems to be caused both by an increase of extension with decreasing (E) over dot, and hence with time, compatible with a power law R-PWN((E) over dot) similar to(E) over dot(0.65 +/- 0.20), and by a mild decrease of TeV gamma-ray luminosity with decreasing (E) over dot, compatible with L-1 (10 TeV) similar to (E) over dot(0.59 +/- 0.21). We also find that the off sets of pulsars with respect to the wind nebula centre with ages around 10 kyr are frequently larger than can be plausibly explained by pulsar proper motion and could be due to an asymmetric environment. In the present data, it seems that a large pulsar off set is correlated with a high apparent TeV efficiency L1- 10 TeV / (E) over dot. In addition to 14 HGPS sources considered firmly identified pulsar wind nebulae and 5 additional pulsar wind nebulae taken from literature, we find 10 HGPS sources that are likely TeV pulsar wind nebula candidates. Using a model that subsumes the present common understanding of the very high-energy radiative evolution of pulsar wind nebulae, we find that the trends and variations of the TeV observables and limits can be reproduced to a good level, drawing a consistent picture of present-day TeV data and theory.
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| 19. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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Detection of variable VHE gamma-ray emission from the extra-galactic gamma-ray binary LMC P3
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 610
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. Recently, the high-energy (HE, 0.1-100 GeV) gamma-ray emission from the object LMC P3 in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) has been discovered to be modulated with a 10.3-day period, making it the first extra-galactic gamma-ray binary. Aims. This work aims at the detection of very-high-energy (VHE, >100 GeV) gamma-ray emission and the search for modulation of the VHE signal with the orbital period of the binary system. Methods. LMC P3 has been observed with the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.); the acceptance-corrected exposure time is 100 h. The data set has been folded with the known orbital period of the system in order to test for variability of the emission. Results. VHE gamma-ray emission is detected with a statistical significance of 6.4 sigma. The data clearly show variability which is phase-locked to the orbital period of the system. Periodicity cannot be deduced from the H.E.S.S. data set alone. The orbit-averaged luminosity in the 1-10 TeV energy range is (1.4 +/- 0.2) x 10(35) erg s(-1). A luminosity of (5 +/- 1) x 10(35) erg s(-1) is reached during 20% of the orbit. HE and VHE gamma-ray emissions are anti-correlated. LMC P3 is the most luminous gamma-ray binary known so far.
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| 20. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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HESS observations of RX J1713.7-3946 with improved angular and spectral resolution : Evidence for gamma-ray emission extending beyond the X-ray emitting shell
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 612
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Supernova remnants exhibit shock fronts (shells) that can accelerate charged particles up to very high energies. In the past decade, measurements of a handful of shell-type supernova remnants in very high-energy gamma rays have provided unique insights into the acceleration process. Among those objects, RX J1713.7-3946 (also known as G347.3-0.5) has the largest surface brightness, allowing us in the past to perform the most comprehensive study of morphology and spatially resolved spectra of any such very high-energy gamma-ray source. Here we present extensive new H.E.S.S. measurements of RX J1713.7-3946, almost doubling the observation time compared to our previous publication. Combined with new improved analysis tools, the previous sensitivity is more than doubled. The H.E.S.S. angular resolution of 0.048 degrees (0.036 degrees above 2 TeV) is unprecedented in gamma-ray astronomy and probes physical scales of 0.8 (0.6) parsec at the remnant's location. The new H. E. S. S. image of RX J1713.7-3946 allows us to reveal clear morphological di ff erences between X-rays and gamma rays. In particular, for the outer edge of the brightest shell region, we find the first ever indication for particles in the process of leaving the acceleration shock region. By studying the broadband energy spectrum, we furthermore extract properties of the parent particle populations, providing new input to the discussion of the leptonic or hadronic nature of the gamma-ray emission mechanism.
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| 21. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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The supernova remnant W49B as seen with HESS and Fermi-LAT
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 612
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The supernova remnant (SNR) W49B originated from a core-collapse supernova that occurred between one and four thousand years ago, and subsequently evolved into a mixed-morphology remnant, which is interacting with molecular clouds (MC). Gamma-ray observations of SNR-MC associations are a powerful tool to constrain the origin of Galactic cosmic rays, as they can probe the acceleration of hadrons through their interaction with the surrounding medium and subsequent emission of non-thermal photons. We report the detection of a gamma-ray source coincident with W49B at very high energies (VHE; E > 100 GeV) with the H.E.S.S. Cherenkov telescopes together with a study of the source with five years of Fermi-LAT high-energy gamma-ray (0.06-300 GeV) data. The smoothly connected, combined source spectrum, measured from 60 MeV to multi-TeV energies, shows two significant spectral breaks at 304 +/- 20 MeV and 8.4(-2.5)(+2.5) GeV; the latter is constrained by the joint fit from the two instruments. The detected spectral features are similar to those observed in several other SNR-MC associations and are found to be indicative of gamma-ray emission produced through neutral-pion decay.
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| 22. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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A search for very high-energy flares from the microquasars GRS 1915+105, Circinus X-1, and V4641 Sgr using contemporaneous HESS and RXTE observations
- 2018
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 612
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. Microquasars are potential gamma-ray emitters. Indications of transient episodes of gamma-ray emission were recently reported in at least two systems: Cyg X-1 and Cyg X-3. The identification of additional gamma-ray-emitting microquasars is required to better understand how gamma-ray emission can be produced in these systems. Aims. Theoretical models have predicted very high-energy (VHE) gamma-ray emission from microquasars during periods of transient outburst. Observations reported herein were undertaken with the objective of observing a broadband flaring event in the gamma-ray and X-ray bands. Methods. Contemporaneous observations of three microquasars, GRS 1915+105, Circinus X-1, and V4641 Sgr, were obtained using the High Energy Spectroscopic System (H.E.S.S.) telescope array and the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) satellite. X-ray analyses for each microquasar were performed and VHE gamma-ray upper limits from contemporaneous H.E.S.S. observations were derived. Results. No significant gamma-ray signal has been detected in any of the three systems. The integral gamma-ray photon flux at the observational epochs is constrained to be I(>560 GeV) < 7.3 x 10(-13) cm(-2) S-1, I(>560 GeV) < 1.2 x 10-(12) cm s(-1), and I(>240 GeV) < 4.5 x 10(-12) cm(-2) s(-1) for GRS 1915+105, Circinus X-1, and V4641 Sgr, respectively. Conclusions. The gamma-ray upper limits obtained using H.E.S.S. are examined in the context of previous Cherenkov telescope observations of microquasars. The effect of intrinsic absorption is modelled for each target and found to have negligible impact on the flux of escaping gamma-rays. When combined with the X-ray behaviour observed using RXTE, the derived results indicate that if detectable VHE gamma-ray emission from microquasars is commonplace, then it is likely to be highly transient.
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| 23. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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Measurement of the EBL spectral energy distribution using the VHE gamma-ray spectra of HESS blazars
- 2017
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : The European Southern Observatory (ESO). - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 606
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Very high-energy gamma rays (VHE, E greater than or similar to 100 GeV) propagating over cosmological distances can interact with the low-energy photons of the extragalactic background light (EBL) and produce electron-positron pairs. The transparency of the Universe to VHE gamma rays is then directly related to the spectral energy distribution (SED) of the EBL. The observation of features in the VHE energy spectra of extragalactic sources allows the EBL to be measured, which otherwise is very difficult. An EBL model-independent measurement of the EBL SED with the H.E.S.S. array of Cherenkov telescopes is presented. It was obtained by extracting the EBL absorption signal from the reanalysis of high-quality spectra of blazars. From H.E.S.S. data alone the EBL signature is detected at a significance of 9.5 sigma, and the intensity of the EBL obtained in different spectral bands is presented together with the associated gamma-ray horizon.
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| 24. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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Simultaneous observations of the blazar PKS 2155-304 from ultra-violet to TeV energies
- 2020
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 639, s. 1-13
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Here we report the results of the first ever contemporaneous multi-wavelength observation campaign on the BL Lac object PKS 2155-304 involving Swift, NuSTAR, Fermi-LAT, and H.E.S.S. The use of these instruments allows us to cover a broad energy range, which is important for disentangling the different radiative mechanisms. The source, observed from June 2013 to October 2013, was found in a low flux state with respect to previous observations but exhibited highly significant flux variability in the X-rays. The high-energy end of the synchrotron spectrum can be traced up to 40 keV without significant contamination by high-energy emission. A one-zone synchrotron self-Compton model was used to reproduce the broadband flux of the source for all the observations presented here but failed for previous observations made in April 2013. A lepto-hadronic solution was then explored to explain these earlier observational results.
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| 25. |
- Abdalla, H., et al.
(författare)
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TeV Emission of Galactic Plane Sources with HAWC and HESS
- 2021
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - : Institute of Physics Publishing (IOPP). - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 917:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The High Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC) observatory and the High Energy Stereoscopic System (H.E.S.S.) are two leading instruments in the ground-based very-high-energy gamma-ray domain. HAWC employs the water Cherenkov detection (WCD) technique, while H.E.S.S. is an array of Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes (IACTs). The two facilities therefore differ in multiple aspects, including their observation strategy, the size of their field of view, and their angular resolution, leading to different analysis approaches. Until now, it has been unclear if the results of observations by both types of instruments are consistent: several of the recently discovered HAWC sources have been followed up by IACTs, resulting in a confirmed detection only in a minority of cases. With this paper, we go further and try to resolve the tensions between previous results by performing a new analysis of the H.E.S.S. Galactic plane survey data, applying an analysis technique comparable between H.E.S.S. and HAWC. Events above 1 TeV are selected for both data sets, the point-spread function of H.E.S.S. is broadened to approach that of HAWC, and a similar background estimation method is used. This is the first detailed comparison of the Galactic plane observed by both instruments. H.E.S.S. can confirm the gamma-ray emission of four HAWC sources among seven previously undetected by IACTs, while the three others have measured fluxes below the sensitivity of the H.E.S.S. data set. Remaining differences in the overall gamma-ray flux can be explained by the systematic uncertainties. Therefore, we confirm a consistent view of the gamma-ray sky between WCD and IACT techniques.
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