| Literature DB >> 32801381 |
G G Fazio1, J L Hora1, G Witzel2, S P Willner1, M L N Ashby3, F Baganoff4, E Becklin5, S Carey6, D Haggard7, C Gammie8, A Ghez9, M A Gurwell10, J Ingalls6, D Marrone11, M R Morris12, H A Smith1.
Abstract
Sgr A*, the supermassive black hole (SMBH) at the center of our Milky Way Galaxy, is known to be a variable source of X-ray, near-infrared (NIR), and submillimeter radiation and therefore a prime candidate to study the electromagnetic radiation generated by mass accretion flow onto a black hole and/or a related jet. Disentangling the power source and emission mechanisms of this variability is a central challenge to our understanding of accretion flows around SMBHs. Simultaneous multiwavelength observations of the flux variations and their time correlations can play an important role in obtaining a better understanding of possible emission mechanisms and their origin. This paper presents observations of two flares that both apparently violate the previously established patterns in the relative timing of submillimeter/NIR/X-ray flares from Sgr A*. One of these events provides the first evidence of coeval structure between NIR and submillimeter flux increases, while the second event is the first example of the sequence of submillimeter/X-ray/NIR flux increases all occurring within ~1 hr. Each of these two events appears to upend assumptions that have been the basis of some analytic models of flaring in Sgr A*. However, it cannot be ruled out that these events, even though unusual, were just coincidental. These observations demonstrate that we do not fully understand the origin of the multiwavelength variability of Sgr A* and show that there is a continued and important need for long-term, coordinated, and precise multiwavelength observations of Sgr A* to characterize the full range of variability behavior.Keywords: Galaxy: center; X-rays: individual (Sgr A*); accretion; accretion disks; black hole physics; infrared: general; submillimeter: general
Year: 2019 PMID: 32801381 PMCID: PMC7422726 DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/aad4a2
Source DB: PubMed Journal: Astrophys J ISSN: 0004-637X Impact factor: 5.874