| 1. |
- Abdo, A. A., et al.
(författare)
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FERMI Large Area Telescope and multi-wavelength observations of the flaring activity of PKS 1510-089 between 2008 september and 2009 june
- 2010
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 721:2, s. 1425-1447
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on the multi-wavelength observations of PKS 1510-089 (a flat spectrum radio quasar (FSRQ) at z = 0.361) during its high activity period between 2008 September and 2009 June. During this 11 month period, the source was characterized by a complex variability at optical, UV, and gamma-ray bands, on timescales down to 6-12 hr. The brightest gamma-ray isotropic luminosity, recorded on 2009 March 26, was similar or equal to 2 x 1048 erg s-1. The spectrum in the Fermi Large Area Telescope energy range shows a mild curvature described well by a log-parabolic law, and can be understood as due to the Klein-Nishina effect. The. -ray flux has a complex correlation with the other wavelengths. There is no correlation at all with the X-ray band, a weak correlation with the UV, and a significant correlation with the optical flux. The. -ray flux seems to lead the optical one by about 13 days. From the UV photometry, we estimated a black hole mass of similar or equal to 5.4 x 10(8)M(circle dot) and an accretion rate of similar or equal to 0.5M(circle dot) yr(-1). Although the power in the thermal and non-thermal outputs is smaller compared to the very luminous and distant FSRQs, PKS 1510-089 exhibits a quite large Compton dominance and a prominent big blue bump (BBB) as observed in the most powerful gamma-ray quasars. The BBB was still prominent during the historical maximum optical state in 2009 May, but the optical/ UV spectral index was softer than in the quiescent state. This seems to indicate that the BBB was not completely dominated by the synchrotron emission during the highest optical state. We model the broadband spectrum assuming a leptonic scenario in which the inverse Compton emission is dominated by the scattering of soft photons produced externally to the jet. The resulting model-dependent jet energetic content is compatible with a scenario in which the jet is powered by the accretion disk, with a total efficiency within the Kerr black hole limit.
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| 2. |
- Aleksic, J., et al.
(författare)
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PG 1553+113 : FIVE YEARS OF OBSERVATIONS WITH MAGIC
- 2012
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 748:1, s. 46-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present the results of five years (2005-2009) of MAGIC observations of the BL Lac object PG 1553+113 at very high energies (VHEs; E > 100 GeV). Power-law fits of the individual years are compatible with a steady mean photon index Gamma = 4.27 +/- 0.14. In the last three years of data, the flux level above 150 GeV shows a clear variability (probability of constant flux < 0.001%). The flux variations are modest, lying in the range from 4% to 11% of the Crab Nebula flux. Simultaneous optical data also show only modest variability that seems to be correlated with VHE gamma-ray variability. We also performed a temporal analysis of (all available) simultaneous Fermi/Large Area Telescope data of PG 1553+113 above 1 GeV, which reveals hints of variability in the 2008-2009 sample. Finally, we present a combination of the mean spectrum measured at VHEs with archival data available for other wavelengths. The mean spectral energy distribution can be modeled with a one-zone synchrotron self-Compton model, which gives the main physical parameters governing the VHE emission in the blazar jet.
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| 3. |
- Aleksic, J., et al.
(författare)
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Discovery of VHE gamma-rays from the blazar 1ES 1215+303 with the MAGIC telescopes and simultaneous multi-wavelength observations
- 2012
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Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 544, s. A142-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. We present the discovery of very high energy (VHE, E > 100 GeV) gamma-ray emission from the BL Lac object 1ES 1215+303 by the MAGIC telescopes and simultaneous multi-wavelength data in a broad energy range from radio to gamma-rays. Aims. We study the VHE gamma-ray emission from 1ES 1215+303 and its relation to the emissions in other wavelengths. Methods. Triggered by an optical outburst, MAGIC observed the source in 2011 January-February for 20.3 h. The target was monitored in the optical R-band by the KVA telescope that also performed optical polarization measurements. We triggered target of opportunity observations with the Swift satellite and obtained simultaneous and quasi-simultaneous data from the Fermi Large Area Telescope and from the Metsahovi radio telescope. We also present the analysis of older MAGIC data taken in 2010. Results. The MAGIC observations of 1ES 1215+303 carried out in 2011 January-February resulted in the first detection of the source at VHE with a statistical significance of 9.4 sigma. Simultaneously, the source was observed in a high optical and X-ray state. In 2010 the source was observed in a lower state in optical, X-ray, and VHE, while the GeV gamma-ray flux and the radio flux were comparable in 2010 and 2011. The spectral energy distribution obtained with the 2011 data can be modeled with a simple one zone SSC model, but it requires extreme values for the Doppler factor or the electron energy distribution.
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| 4. |
- Ackermann, M., et al.
(författare)
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MULTI-WAVELENGTH OBSERVATIONS OF BLAZAR AO 0235+164 IN THE 2008-2009 FLARING STATE
- 2012
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 751:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The blazarAO 0235+164 (z=0.94) has been one of the most active objects observed by Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) since its launch in Summer 2008. In addition to the continuous coverage by Fermi, contemporaneous observations were carried out from the radio to gamma-ray bands between 2008 September and 2009 February. In this paper, we summarize the rich multi-wavelength data collected during the campaign (including F-GAMMA, GASP-WEBT, Kanata, OVRO, RXTE, SMARTS, Swift, and other instruments), examine the cross-correlation between the light curves measured in the different energy bands, and interpret the resulting spectral energy distributions in the context of well-known blazar emission models. We find that the gamma-ray activity is well correlated with a series of near-IR/optical flares, accompanied by an increase in the optical polarization degree. On the other hand, the X-ray light curve shows a distinct 20 day high state of unusually soft spectrum, which does not match the extrapolation of the optical/UV synchrotron spectrum. We tentatively interpret this feature as the bulk Compton emission by cold electrons contained in the jet, which requires an accretion disk corona with an effective covering factor of 19% at a distance of 100 R-g. We model the broadband spectra with a leptonic model with external radiation dominated by the infrared emission from the dusty torus.
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| 5. |
- Abdo, A. A., et al.
(författare)
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The second Fermi large area telescope catalog of gamma-ray pulsars
- 2013
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series. - : American Astronomical Society. - 0067-0049 .- 1538-4365. ; 208:2, s. 17-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This catalog summarizes 117 high-confidence ≥0.1 GeV gamma-ray pulsar detections using three years of data acquired by the Large Area Telescope (LAT) on the Fermi satellite. Half are neutron stars discovered using LAT data through periodicity searches in gamma-ray and radio data around LAT unassociated source positions. The 117 pulsars are evenly divided into three groups: millisecond pulsars, young radio-loud pulsars, and young radio-quiet pulsars. We characterize the pulse profiles and energy spectra and derive luminosities when distance information exists. Spectral analysis of the off-peak phase intervals indicates probable pulsar wind nebula emission for four pulsars, and off-peak magnetospheric emission for several young and millisecond pulsars. We compare the gamma-ray properties with those in the radio, optical, and X-ray bands. We provide flux limits for pulsars with no observed gamma-ray emission, highlighting a small number of gamma-faint, radio-loud pulsars. The large, varied gamma-ray pulsar sample constrains emission models. Fermi's selection biases complement those of radio surveys, enhancing comparisons with predicted population distributions.
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| 6. |
- Ackermann, M., et al.
(författare)
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The Second Catalog of Active Galactic Nuclei Detected by the Fermi Large Area Telescope
- 2011
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - : Institute of Physics Publishing (IOPP). - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 743:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The second catalog of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) detected by the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) in two years of scientific operation is presented. The second LAT AGN catalog (2LAC) includes 1017 γ-ray sources located at high Galactic latitudes (|b| > 10°) that are detected with a test statistic (TS) greater than 25 and associated statistically with AGNs. However, some of these are affected by analysis issues and some are associated with multiple AGNs. Consequently, we define a Clean Sample which includes 886 AGNs, comprising 395 BL Lacertae objects (BL Lac objects), 310 flat-spectrum radio quasars (FSRQs), 157 candidate blazars of unknown type (i.e., with broadband blazar characteristics but with no optical spectral measurement yet), 8 misaligned AGNs, 4 narrow-line Seyfert 1 (NLS1s), 10 AGNs of other types, and 2 starburst galaxies. Where possible, the blazars have been further classified based on their spectral energy distributions (SEDs) as archival radio, optical, and X-ray data permit. While almost all FSRQs have a synchrotron-peak frequency <1014 Hz, about half of the BL Lac objects have a synchrotron-peak frequency >1015 Hz. The 2LAC represents a significant improvement relative to the first LAT AGN catalog (1LAC), with 52% more associated sources. The full characterization of the newly detected sources will require more broadband data. Various properties, such as γ-ray fluxes and photon power-law spectral indices, redshifts, γ-ray luminosities, variability, and archival radio luminosities and their correlations are presented and discussed for the different blazar classes. The general trends observed in 1LAC are confirmed.
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| 7. |
- Abdo, A. A., et al.
(författare)
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FERMI GAMMA-RAY SPACE TELESCOPE OBSERVATIONS OF THE GAMMA-RAY OUTBURST FROM 3C454.3 IN NOVEMBER 2010
- 2011
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Ingår i: The Astrophysical Journal Letters. - 2041-8205. ; 733:2, s. L26-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The flat-spectrum radio quasar 3C454.3 underwent an extraordinary 5 day gamma-ray outburst in 2010 November when the daily flux measured with the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) at photon energies E > 100 MeV reached (66 +/- 2) x 10(-6) photons cm(-2) s(-1). This is a factor of three higher than its previous maximum flux recorded in 2009 December and greater than or similar to 5 times brighter than the Vela pulsar, which is normally the brightest source in the gamma-ray sky. The 3 hr peak flux was (85 +/- 5) x 10(-6) photons cm-2 s(-1), corresponding to an apparent isotropic luminosity of (2.1 +/- 0.2) x10(50) erg s(-1), the highest ever recorded for a blazar. In this Letter, we investigate the features of this exceptional event in the gamma-ray band of the Fermi-LAT. In contrast to previous flares of the same source observed with the Fermi-LAT, clear spectral changes are observed during the flare.
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| 8. |
- Abdo, A. A., et al.
(författare)
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Gamma-ray light curves and variability of bright fermi-detected blazars
- 2010
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 722:1, s. 520-542
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper presents light curves as well as the first systematic characterization of variability of the 106 objects in the high-confidence Fermi Large Area Telescope Bright AGN Sample (LBAS). Weekly light curves of this sample, obtained during the first 11 months of the Fermi survey (2008 August 4-2009 July 4), are tested for variability and their properties are quantified through autocorrelation function and structure function analysis. For the brightest sources, 3 or 4 day binned light curves are extracted in order to determine power density spectra (PDSs) and to fit the temporal structure of major flares. More than 50% of the sources are found to be variable with high significance, where high states do not exceed 1/4 of the total observation range. Variation amplitudes are larger for flat spectrum radio quasars and low/intermediate synchrotron frequency peaked BL Lac objects. Autocorrelation timescales derived from weekly light curves vary from four to a dozen of weeks. Variable sources of the sample have weekly and 3-4 day bin light curves that can be described by 1/f(alpha) PDS, and show two kinds of gamma-ray variability: (1) rather constant baseline with sporadic flaring activity characterized by flatter PDS slopes resembling flickering and red noise with occasional intermittence and (2)-measured for a few blazars showing strong activity-complex and structured temporal profiles characterized by long-term memory and steeper PDS slopes, reflecting a random walk underlying mechanism. The average slope of the PDS of the brightest 22 FSRQs and of the 6 brightest BL Lacs is 1.5 and 1.7, respectively. The study of temporal profiles of well-resolved flares observed in the 10 brightest LBAS sources shows that they generally have symmetric profiles and that their total duration vary between 10 and 100 days. Results presented here can assist in source class recognition for unidentified sources and can serve as reference for more detailed analysis of the brightest gamma-ray blazars.
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| 9. |
- Abdo, A. A., et al.
(författare)
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THE FIRST FERMI MULTIFREQUENCY CAMPAIGN ON BL LACERTAE : CHARACTERIZING THE LOW-ACTIVITY STATE OF THE EPONYMOUS BLAZAR
- 2011
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 730:2, s. 101-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on observations of BL Lacertae during the first 18 months of Fermi LAT science operations and present results from a 48 day multifrequency coordinated campaign from 2008 August 19 to 2008 October 7. The radio to gamma-ray behavior of BL Lac is unveiled during a low-activity state thanks to the coordinated observations of radio-band (Metsahovi and VLBA), near-IR/optical (Tuorla, Steward, OAGH, and MDM), and X-ray (RXTE and Swift) observatories. No variability was resolved in gamma rays during the campaign, and the brightness level was 15 times lower than the level of the 1997 EGRET outburst. Moderate and uncorrelated variability has been detected in UV and X-rays. The X-ray spectrum is found to be concave, indicating the transition region between the low- and high-energy components of the spectral energy distribution (SED). VLBA observation detected a synchrotron spectrum self-absorption turnover in the innermost part of the radio jet appearing to be elongated and inhomogeneous, and constrained the average magnetic field there to be less than 3 G. Over the following months, BL Lac appeared variable in gamma rays, showing flares (in 2009 April and 2010 January). There is no evidence for the correlation of gamma rays with the optical flux monitored from the ground in 18 months. The SED may be described by a single-zone or a two-zone synchrotron self-Compton (SSC) model, but a hybrid SSC plus external radiation Compton model seems to be preferred based on the observed variability and the fact that it provides a fit closest to equipartition.
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| 10. |
- Ackermann, M., et al.
(författare)
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The fermi large area telescope on orbit : Event classification, instrument response functions, and calibration
- 2012
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Ingår i: Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series. - : American Astronomical Society. - 0067-0049 .- 1538-4365. ; 203:1, s. 4-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Fermi 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, high-energy γ-ray telescope, covering the energy range from 20MeV to more than 300GeV. During the first years of the mission, the LAT team has gained considerable insight into the in-flight performance of the instrument. Accordingly, we have updated the analysis used to reduce LAT data for public release as well as the instrument response functions (IRFs), the description of the instrument performance provided for data analysis. In this paper, we describe the effects that motivated these updates. Furthermore, we discuss how we originally derived IRFs from Monte Carlo simulations and later corrected those IRFs for discrepancies observed between flight and simulated data. We also give details of the validations performed using flight data and quantify the residual uncertainties in the IRFs. Finally, we describe techniques the LAT team has developed to propagate those uncertainties into estimates of the systematic errors on common measurements such as fluxes and spectra of astrophysical sources.
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