| 1. |
- Abdollahi, S., et al.
(author)
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The Second Catalog of Flaring Gamma-Ray Sources from the Fermi All-sky Variability Analysis
- 2017
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In: Astrophysical Journal. - : American Astronomical Society. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 846:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We present the second catalog of flaring gamma-ray sources (2FAV) detected with the Fermi All-sky Variability Analysis (FAVA), a tool that blindly searches for transients over the entire sky observed by the Large Area Telescope (LAT) on board the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope. With respect to the first FAVA catalog, this catalog benefits from a larger data set, the latest LAT data release (Pass 8), as well as from an improved analysis that includes likelihood techniques for a more precise localization of the transients. Applying this analysis to the first 7.4 years of Fermi observations, and in two separate energy bands 0.1-0.8 GeV and 0.8-300 GeV, a total of 4547 flares were detected with significance greater than 6s (before trials), on the timescale of one week. Through spatial clustering of these flares, 518 variable gamma-ray sources were identified. Based on positional coincidence, likely counterparts have been found for 441 sources, mostly among the blazar class of active galactic nuclei. For 77 2FAV sources, no likely gamma-ray counterpart has been found. For each source in the catalog, we provide the time, location, and spectrum of each flaring episode. Studying the spectra of the flares, we observe a harder-when-brighter behavior for flares associated with blazars, with the exception of BL Lac flares detected in the low-energy band. The photon indexes of the flares are never significantly smaller than 1.5. For a leptonic model, and under the assumption of isotropy, this limit suggests that the spectrum of freshly accelerated electrons is never harder than p similar to 2.
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| 2. |
- Abeysekara, A. U., et al.
(author)
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VERITAS and Fermi-LAT Observations of TeV Gamma-Ray Sources Discovered by HAWC in the 2HWC Catalog
- 2018
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In: Astrophysical Journal. - : Institute of Physics Publishing. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 866:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The High Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC) collaboration recently published their 2HWC catalog, listing 39 very high energy (VHE; >100 GeV) gamma-ray sources based on 507 days of observation. Among these, 19 sources are not associated with previously known teraelectronvolt (TeV) gamma-ray sources. We have studied 14 of these sources without known counterparts with VERITAS and Fermi-LAT. VERITAS detected weak gamma-ray emission in the 1 TeV-30 TeV band in the region of DA 495, a pulsar wind nebula coinciding with 2HWC J1953+294, confirming the discovery of the source by HAWC. We did not find any counterpart for the selected 14 new HAWC sources from our analysis of Fermi-LAT data for energies higher than 10 GeV. During the search, we detected gigaelectronvolt (GeV) gamma-ray emission coincident with a known TeV pulsar wind nebula, SNR G54.1+0.3 (VER J1930+188), and a 2HWC source, 2HWC J1930+188. The fluxes for isolated, steady sources in the 2HWC catalog are generally in good agreement with those measured by imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes. However, the VERITAS fluxes for SNR G54.1+0.3, DA 495, and TeV J2032+4130 are lower than those measured by HAWC, and several new HAWC sources are not detected by VERITAS. This is likely due to a change in spectral shape, source extension, or the influence of diffuse emission in the source region.
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| 3. |
- Ackermann, M., et al.
(author)
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Observations of M31 and M33 with the Fermi Large Area Telescope : A Galactic Center Excess in Andromeda?
- 2017
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In: Astrophysical Journal. - : IOP PUBLISHING LTD. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 836:2
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) has opened the way for comparative studies of cosmic rays (CRs) and high-energy objects in the Milky Way (MW) and in other, external, star-forming galaxies. Using 2 yr of observations with the Fermi LAT, Local Group galaxy M31 was detected as a marginally extended gamma-ray source, while only an upper limit has been derived for the other nearby galaxy M33. We revisited the gamma-ray emission in the direction of M31 and M33 using more than 7 yr of LAT Pass 8 data in the energy range 0.1-100 GeV, presenting detailed morphological and spectral analyses. M33 remains undetected, and we computed an upper limit of 2.0 x 10(-12) erg cm(-2) s(-1) on the 0.1-100 GeV energy flux (95% confidence level). This revised upper limit remains consistent with the observed correlation between gamma-ray luminosity and star formation rate tracers and implies an average CR density in M33 that is at most half of that of the MW. M31 is detected with a significance of nearly 10 sigma. Its spectrum is consistent with a power law with photon index Gamma = 2.4 +/- 0.1(stat) (vertical bar) (syst) and a 0.1-100 GeV energy flux of (5.6 +/- 0.6(stat vertical bar syst)) x 10(-12) erg cm(-1) s(-1). M31 is detected to be extended with a 4 sigma significance. The spatial distribution of the emission is consistent with a uniform-brightness disk with a radius of 0 degrees.4 and no offset from the center of the galaxy, but nonuniform intensity distributions cannot be excluded. The flux from M31 appears confined to the inner regions of the galaxy and does not fill the disk of the galaxy or extend far from it. The gamma-ray signal is not correlated with regions rich in gas or star formation activity, which suggests that the emission is not interstellar in origin, unless the energetic particles radiating in gamma rays do not originate in recent star formation. Alternative and nonexclusive interpretations are that the emission results from a population of millisecond pulsars dispersed in the bulge and disk of M31 by disrupted globular clusters or from the decay or annihilation of dark matter particles, similar to what has been proposed to account for the so-called Galactic center excess found in Fermi-LAT observations of the MW.
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| 4. |
- Ackermann, M., et al.
(author)
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Search for Extended Sources in the Galactic Plane Using Six Years of Fermi-Large Area Telescope Pass 8 Data above 10GeV
- 2017
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In: Astrophysical Journal. - : Institute of Physics Publishing (IOPP). - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 843:2
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The spatial extension of gamma-ray source is an essential ingredient to determine its spectral properties, as well as its potential multiwavelength counterpart. The capability to spatially resolve gamma-ray sources is greatly improved by the newly delivered Fermi-Large Area Telescope (LAT) Pass 8 event-level analysis, which provides a greater acceptance and an improved point-spread function, two crucial factors for the detection of extended sources. Here, we present a complete search for extended sources located within 7 degrees from the Galactic plane, using 6 yr of Fermi-LAT data above 10 GeV. We find 46 extended sources and provide their morphological and spectral characteristics. This constitutes the first catalog of hard Fermi-LAT extended sources, named the Fermi Galactic Extended Source Catalog, which allows a thorough study of the properties of the Galactic plane in the sub-TeV domain.
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| 5. |
- Ackermann, M., et al.
(author)
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Search for Gamma-Ray Emission from Local Primordial Black Holes with the Fermi Large Area Telescope
- 2018
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In: Astrophysical Journal. - : Institute of Physics Publishing (IOPP). - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 857:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Black holes with masses below approximately 10(15) g are expected to emit gamma-rays with energies above a few tens of MeV, which can be detected by the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT). Although black holes with these masses cannot be formed as a result of stellar evolution, they may have formed in the early universe and are therefore called primordial black holes (PBHs). Previous searches for PBHs have focused on either short-timescale bursts or the contribution of PBHs to the isotropic gamma-ray emission. We show that, in cases of individual PBHs, the Fermi-LAT is most sensitive to PBHs with temperatures above approximately 16 GeV and masses 6 x 10(11) g, which it can detect out to a distance of about 0.03 pc. These PBHs have a remaining lifetime of months to years at the start of the Fermi mission. They would appear as potentially moving point sources with gamma-ray emission that become spectrally harder and brighter with time until the PBH completely evaporates. In this paper, we develop a new algorithm to detect the proper motion of gamma-ray point sources, and apply it to 318 unassociated point sources at a high galactic latitude in the third Fermi-LAT source catalog. None of the unassociated point sources with spectra consistent with PBH evaporation show significant proper motion. Using the nondetection of PBH candidates, we derive a 99% confidence limit on the PBH evaporation rate in the vicinity of Earth, <(rho)over dot>(PBH) < 7.2 x 10(3) pc(-3) yr(-1). This limit is similar to the limits obtained with ground-based gamma-ray observatories.
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| 6. |
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| 7. |
- Ackermann, M., et al.
(author)
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The Fermi Galactic Center GeV Excess and Implications for Dark Matter
- 2017
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In: Astrophysical Journal. - : Institute of Physics Publishing. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 840:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The region around the Galactic Center (GC) is now well established to be brighter at energies of a few GeV than what is expected from conventional models of diffuse gamma-ray emission and catalogs of known gamma-ray sources. We study the GeV excess using 6.5 yr of data from the Fermi Large Area Telescope. We characterize the uncertainty of the GC excess spectrum and morphology due to uncertainties in cosmic-ray source distributions and propagation, uncertainties in the distribution of interstellar gas in the Milky Way, and uncertainties due to a potential contribution from the Fermi bubbles. We also evaluate uncertainties in the excess properties due to resolved point sources of gamma rays. The GC is of particular interest, as it would be expected to have the brightest signal from annihilation of weakly interacting massive dark matter (DM) particles. However, control regions along the Galactic plane, where a DM signal is not expected, show excesses of similar amplitude relative to the local background. Based on the magnitude of the systematic uncertainties, we conservatively report upper limits for the annihilation cross-section as a function of particle mass and annihilation channel.
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| 8. |
- Ajello, M., et al.
(author)
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A Decade of Gamma-Ray Bursts Observed by Fermi-LAT : The Second GRB Catalog
- 2019
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In: Astrophysical Journal. - : Institute of Physics Publishing (IOPP). - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 878:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The Large Area Telescope (LAT) aboard the Fermi spacecraft routinely observes high-energy emission from gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). Here we present the second catalog of LAT-detected GRBs, covering the first 10 yr of operations, from 2008 to 2018 August 4. A total of 186 GRBs are found; of these, 91 show emission in the range 30-100 MeV (17 of which are seen only in this band) and 169 are detected above 100 MeV. Most of these sources were discovered by other instruments (Fermi/GBM, Swift/BAT, AGILE, INTEGRAL) or reported by the Interplanetary Network (IPN); the LAT has independently triggered on four GRBs. This catalog presents the results for all 186 GRBs. We study onset, duration, and temporal properties of each GRB, as well as spectral characteristics in the 100 MeV-100 GeV energy range. Particular attention is given to the photons with the highest energy. Compared with the first LAT GRB catalog, our rate of detection is significantly improved. The results generally confirm the main findings of the first catalog: the LAT primarily detects the brightest GBM bursts, and the high-energy emission shows delayed onset as well as longer duration. However, in this work we find delays exceeding 1 ks and several GRBs with durations over 10 ks. Furthermore, the larger number of LAT detections shows that these GRBs not only cover the high-fluence range of GBM-detected GRBs but also sample lower fluences. In addition, the greater number of detected GRBs with redshift estimates allows us to study their properties in both the observer and rest frames. Comparison of the observational results with theoretical predictions reveals that no model is currently able to explain all results, highlighting the role of LAT observations in driving theoretical models.
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| 9. |
- Ajello, M., et al.
(author)
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A Search for Cosmic-Ray Proton Anisotropy with the Fermi Large Area Telescope
- 2019
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In: Astrophysical Journal. - : American Astronomical Society. - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 883:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) has amassed a large data set of primary cosmic-ray protons throughout its mission. In fact, it is the largest set of identified cosmic-ray protons ever collected at this energy. The LAT' s wide field of view and full-sky survey capabilities make it an excellent instrument for studying cosmic-ray anisotropy. As a space-based survey instrument, the LAT is sensitive to anisotropy in both R.A. and decl., while ground-based observations only measure the anisotropy in R.A. We present the results of the first-ever proton anisotropy search using Fermi LAT. The data set was collected over eight years and consists of approximately 179 million protons above 78 GeV, enabling it to probe dipole anisotropy below an amplitude of 10(-3), resulting in the most stringent limits on the decl. dependence of the dipole to date. We measure a dipole amplitude delta = 3.9 +/- 1.5 x 10(-4) with a p-value of 0.01 (pretrials) for protons with energy greater than 78 GeV. We discuss various systematic effects that could give rise to a dipole excess and calculate upper limits on the dipole amplitude as a function of minimum energy. The 95% confidence level upper limit on the dipole amplitude is delta(UL) = 1.3 x 10(-3) for protons with energy greater than 78 GeV and delta(UL )= 1.2 x 10(-3) for protons with energy greater than 251 GeV.
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| 10. |
- Ajello, M., et al.
(author)
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Fermi-LAT Observations of LIGO/Virgo Event GW170817
- 2018
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In: Astrophysical Journal. - : Institute of Physics (IOP). - 0004-637X .- 1538-4357. ; 861:2
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We present the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) observations of the binary neutron star merger event GW170817 and the associated short gamma-ray burst (SGRB) GRB 170817A detected by the Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor. The LAT was entering the South Atlantic Anomaly at the time of the LIGO/Virgo trigger (t(GW)) and therefore cannot place constraints on the existence of high-energy (E > 100 MeV) emission associated with the moment of binary coalescence. We focus instead on constraining high-energy emission on longer timescales. No candidate electromagnetic counterpart was detected by the LAT on timescales of minutes, hours, or days after the LIGO/Virgo detection. The resulting flux upper bound (at 95% C. L.) from the LAT is 4.5. x. 10(-10) erg cm(-2) s(-1) in the 0.1-1 GeV range covering a period from tGW. +. 1153 s to t(GW). +. 2027 s. At the distance of GRB 170817A, this flux upper bound corresponds to a luminosity upper bound of 9.7. x. 10(43) erg s(-1), which is five orders of magnitude less luminous than the only other LAT SGRB with known redshift, GRB 090510. We also discuss the prospects for LAT detection of electromagnetic counterparts to future gravitational-wave events from Advanced LIGO/Virgo in the context of GW170817/GRB 170817A.
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