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Start Over Subject very long baseline interferometry
1. AB Dor A VLBI images
ID:
ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/A+A/641/A90
Title:
AB Dor A VLBI images
Short Name:
J/A+A/641/A90
Date:
21 Oct 2021
Publisher:
CDS
Description:
The fast rotator, pre-main sequence star AB Dor A is a strong and persistent radio emitter. The extraordinary coronal flaring activity is thought to be the origin of compact radio emission and other associated phenomena, such as large slingshot prominences. We aim to investigate the radio emission mechanism and the milliarcsecond radio structure around AB Dor A. We performed phase-referenced VLBI observations at 22.3GHz, 8.4GHz, and 1.4GHz over more than one decade using the Australian VLBI array. Our 8.4GHz images show a double core-halo morphology, similar at all epochs, with emission extending at heights between 5 and 18 stellar radii. Furthermore, the sequence of the 8.4GHz maps shows a clear variation of the source structure within the observing time. However, images at 1.4GHz and 22.3GHz are compatible with a compact source. The phase-reference position at 8.4GHz and 1.4GHz are coincident with those expected from the well-known milliarcsecond-precise astrometry of this star, meanwhile the 22.3GHz position is 4sigma off the prediction in the north-west direction. The origin of this offset is still unclear. We have considered several models to explain the morphology and evolution of the inner radio structure detected in AB Dor A. These models include emission from the stellar polar caps, a flaring, magnetically-driven loop structure, and the presence of helmet streamers. We also investigated a possible close companion to AB Dor A. Our results confirm the extraordinary coronal magnetic activity of this star, capable of producing compact radio structures at very large heights that have so far only been seen in binary interacting systems.
2. AGN in IFRS. VLBA observations
ID:
ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/A+A/578/A67
Title:
AGN in IFRS. VLBA observations
Short Name:
J/A+A/578/A67
Date:
21 Oct 2021
Publisher:
CDS
Description:
Infrared-faint radio sources (IFRS) form a new class of galaxies characterised by radio flux densities between tenths and tens of mJy and faint or absent infrared counterparts. It has been suggested that these objects are radio-loud active galactic nuclei (AGNs) at significant redshifts (z>2). Whereas the high redshifts of IFRS have been recently confirmed based on spectroscopic data, the evidence for the presence of AGNs in IFRS is mainly indirect. So far, only two AGNs have been unquestionably confirmed in IFRS based on very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) observations. In this work, we test the hypothesis that IFRS contain AGNs in a large sample of sources using VLBI. We observed 57 IFRS with the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) down to a detection sensitivity in the sub-mJy regime and detected compact cores in 35 sources. Our VLBA detections increase the number of VLBI-detected IFRS from 2 to 37 and provide strong evidence that most - if not all - IFRS contain AGNs. We find that IFRS have a marginally higher VLBI detection fraction than randomly selected sources with mJy flux densities at arcsec-scales. Moreover, our data provide a positive correlation between compactness - defined as the ratio of milliarcsec- to arcsec-scale flux density - and redshift for IFRS, but suggest a decreasing mean compactness with increasing arcsec-scale radio flux density. Based on these findings, we suggest that IFRS tend to contain young AGNs whose jets have not formed yet or have not expanded, equivalent to very compact objects. We found two IFRS that are resolved into two components. The two components are spatially separated by a few hundred milliarcseconds in both cases. They might be components of one AGN, a binary black hole, or the result of gravitational lensing.
3. 6 and 20cm flux densities of radio galaxies
ID:
ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/A+A/342/378
Title:
6 and 20cm flux densities of radio galaxies
Short Name:
J/A+A/342/378
Date:
21 Oct 2021
Publisher:
CDS
Description:
We discuss the "angular size-redshift" relation for compact radio sources distributed over a wide range of redshifts 0.011<=z<=4.72. Our study is based on a sample of 330 5 GHz VLBI contour maps taken from the literature. Unlike extended source samples, the "angular size - redshift" relation for compact radio sources appears consistent with the predictions of standard Friedmann world models with q_0_=~0.5 without the need to consider evolutionary or selection effects due to a "linear size-luminosity" dependence. By confining our analysis to sources having a spectral index, -0.38<={alpha}<=0.18, and a total radio luminosity, Lh^2^>= 10^26^W/Hz (H_0_=100hkm/s/Mpc, q_0_=0.5 used as a numerical example), we are able to restrict the dispersion in the "angular size-redshift" relation. The best fitting regression analysis in the framework of the Friedmann-Robertson-Walker model gives the value of the deceleration parameter q_0_=0.21+/-0.30 if there are no evolutionary or selection effects due to a "linear size-luminosity", "linear size-redshift" or "linear size-spectral index" dependence.
4. Angular sizes of AGN cores at 2-43GHz
ID:
ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/MNRAS/452/4274
Title:
Angular sizes of AGN cores at 2-43GHz
Short Name:
J/MNRAS/452/4274
Date:
21 Oct 2021
Publisher:
CDS
Description:
We have measured the angular sizes of radio cores of active galactic nuclei (AGN) and analyzed their sky distributions and frequency dependencies to study synchrotron opacity in AGN jets and the strength of angular broadening in the interstellar medium. We have used archival very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) data of more than 3000 compact extragalactic radio sources observed at frequencies, {nu}, from 2 to 43GHz to measure the observed angular size of VLBI cores. We have found a significant increase in the angular sizes of the extragalactic sources seen through the Galactic plane (|b|<10{deg}) at 2, 5 and 8GHz, about 1/3 of which show significant scattering. These sources are mainly detected in directions to the Galactic bar, the Cygnus region, and a region with galactic longitudes 220{deg}<l<260{deg} (the Fitzgerald window). The strength of interstellar scattering of the AGNs is found to correlate with the Galactic H{alpha} intensity, free-electron density, and Galactic rotation measure. The dependence of scattering strengths on source redshift is insignificant, suggesting that the dominant scattering screens are located in our Galaxy. The observed angular size of Sgr-A* is found to be the largest among thousands of AGN observed over the sky; we discuss possible reasons of this strange result. Excluding extragalactic radio sources with significant scattering, we find that angular size of opaque cores in AGN scales typically as {nu}^-1^ confirming predictions of a conical synchrotron jet model with equipartition.
5. A universal pattern in halo magnetic fields
ID:
ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/A+A/649/A94
Title:
A universal pattern in halo magnetic fields
Short Name:
J/A+A/649/A94
Date:
22 Feb 2022
Publisher:
CDS
Description:
Magnetic fields in galaxy halos are in general very difficult to observe. Most recently, the Continuum HAlos in Nearby Galaxies - an EVLA Survey (CHANG-ES) collaboration investigated the radio halos of 35 nearby edge-on spiral galaxies in detail and detected large-scale magnetic fields in 16 of them. We used the CHANG-ES radio polarization data to create rotation measure (RM) maps for all galaxies in the sample and stack them with the aim of amplifying any underlying universal toroidal magnetic field pattern in the halo above and below the disk of the galaxy. We discovered a large-scale magnetic field in the central region of the stacked galaxy profile, which is attributable to an axial electric current that universally outflows from the center, both above and below the plane of the disk. A similar symmetry-breaking has also been observed in astrophysical jets, but never before in galaxy halos. This is an indication that galaxy halo magnetic fields are probably not generated by pure magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) processes in the central regions of galaxies. One such promising physical mechanism is the Cosmic Battery operating in the innermost accretion disk around the central supermassive black hole. We anticipate that our discovery will stimulate a more general discussion on the origin of astrophysical magnetic fields.
6. Bright AGN VLBI imaging study at 2 and 8GHz
ID:
ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/A+A/544/A34
Title:
Bright AGN VLBI imaging study at 2 and 8GHz
Short Name:
J/A+A/544/A34
Date:
21 Oct 2021
Publisher:
CDS
Description:
We investigate statistical and individual astrophysical properties of active galactic nuclei (AGNs), such as parsec-scale flux density, core dominance, angular and linear sizes, maximum observed brightness temperatures of VLBI core components, spectral index distributions for core and jet components, and evolution of brightness temperature along the jets. Furthermore, we statistically compare core flux densities and brightness temperature as well as jet spectral indices of {gamma}-ray bright and weak sources. We used 19 very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) observing sessions carried out simultaneously at 2.3GHz and 8.6GHz with the participation of 10 Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) stations and up to 10 additional geodetic telescopes. The observations span the period 1998-2003. We present here single-epoch results from high-resolution radio observations of 370 AGNs. Our VLBI images at 2.3GHz and 8.6GHz as well as Gaussian models are presented and analyzed. At least one-fourth of the cores are completely unresolved on the longest baselines of the global VLBI observations. The VLBI core components are partially opaque with the median value of spectral index of alpha_core_~0.3, while the jet features are usually optically thin alpha_jet_~-0.7. The spectral index typically decreases along the jet ridge line owing to the spectral aging, with a median value of -0.05mas^-1^. Brightness temperatures are found to be affected by Doppler boosting and reach up to ~10^13^K with a median of ~2.5x10^11^K at both frequencies. The brightness temperature gradients along the jets typically follow a power law T_b_~r^-2.2^ at both frequencies. We find that 147 sources (40%) positionally associated with gamma-ray detections from the Fermi LAT Second Source Catalog have higher core flux densities and brightness temperatures, and are characterized by the less steep radio spectrum of the optically thin jet emission.
7. BVRI photometry of OQ 530
ID:
ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/A+A/423/935
Title:
BVRI photometry of OQ 530
Short Name:
J/A+A/423/935
Date:
21 Oct 2021
Publisher:
CDS
Description:
Results of VLBI and optical observations are presented for the BL Lac object OQ 530 (B1418+546), whose long-term optical variability is characterised by a decreasing mean luminosity trend. EVN images at 1.6GHz and 5GHz of OQ 530 show a very bright core with a much weaker jet extending to about 35-40mas. The radio flux density from the core in June 2001 was much higher than that measured in February 1999. A similar increase was also found from nearly simultaneous optical photometry, while the total flux density of the jet remained unchanged. The structure of the jet shows several knots which move outward with an apparent superluminal motion with a beta_app_>=3.5h^-1^. The region within about 3mas from the core contains a component not well resolved in our images and emerging from it in the jet direction. That component was also detected in images taken from 1990 to 1997 and it seems to be a rather stable structural feature. Using nearly simultaneous optical and radio data, we can describe the SED of the synchrotron peak with a simple formula, approximating a power law at low frequencies and a log-parabola at the high ones, whose maximum lies in the range 3.5-5x10^13^Hz, and the extrapolation in the X-ray range give a flux comparable to that observed with BeppoSAX.
8. 4C52.37 and 3C 293 parsec-scale HI outflows
ID:
ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/A+A/647/A63
Title:
4C52.37 and 3C 293 parsec-scale HI outflows
Short Name:
J/A+A/647/A63
Date:
21 Oct 2021
Publisher:
CDS
Description:
Massive outflows of neutral atomic hydrogen (HI) have been observed in absorption in a number of radio galaxies and are considered a signature of active galactic nucleus (AGN) feedback. These outflows on kiloparsec scales have not been investigated in great detail as they require high-angular-resolution observations to be spatially resolved. In some radio AGN, they are likely to be the result of the radio jets interacting with the interstellar medium. We have used the global very-long-baseline-interferometry (VLBI) array to map the HI outflow in a small sample of young and restarted radio galaxies that we previously observed with the Very Large Array (VLA) and the Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope (WSRT) at a lower resolution. Here we report on our findings for 4C 52.37 and 3C 293 and we discuss the sample including the previously published 4C 12.50 and 3C 236. For 4C 52.37, we present the first ever HI VLBI observations, which recovered the majority of the outflowing HI gas in the form of clouds toward the central 100pc of the AGN. The clouds are blueshifted by up to ~600km/s with respect to the systemic velocity. 3C 293 is largely resolved out in our VLBI observation, but toward the VLBI core we detect some outflowing HI gas blueshifted with respect to the systemic velocity by up to ~300km/s. We also find indications of outflowing gas toward the other parts of the western lobe suggesting that the HI outflow is extended. Overall, we find that the fraction of HI gas recovered by our VLBI observations varies significantly within our sample, ranging from complete (4C 12.50) to marginal (3C 293). However, in all cases we find evidence for a clumpy structure of both the outflowing and the quiescent gas, consistent with predictions from numerical simulations. All the outflows include at least a component of relatively compact clouds with masses in the range of 10^4^-10^5^M_{sun}_. The outflowing clouds are often already observed at a few tens of parsecs (in projection) from the core. We find indications that the HI outflow might have a diffuse component, especially in larger sources. Our results support the interpretation that we observe these AGNs at different stages in the evolution of the interaction between the jet and the interstellar medium and this is reflected in the properties of the outflowing gas as predicted by numerical simulations.
9. Candidate ICRF flat-spectrum radio sources. III.
ID:
ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/AJ/153/157
Title:
Candidate ICRF flat-spectrum radio sources. III.
Short Name:
J/AJ/153/157
Date:
21 Oct 2021
Publisher:
CDS
Description:
In extending our spectroscopic program, which targets sources drawn from the International Celestial Reference Frame (ICRF) Catalog, we have obtained spectra for ~160 compact, flat-spectrum radio sources and determined redshifts for 112 quasars and radio galaxies. A further 14 sources with featureless spectra have been classified as BL Lac objects. Spectra were obtained at three telescopes: the 3.58m European Southern Observatory New Technology Telescope, and the two 8.2m Gemini telescopes in Hawaii and Chile. While most of the sources are powerful quasars, a significant fraction of radio galaxies is also included from the list of non-defining ICRF radio sources.
10. Catching the radio flare in CTA 102
ID:
ivo://CDS.VizieR/J/A+A/551/A32
Title:
Catching the radio flare in CTA 102
Short Name:
J/A+A/551/A32
Date:
21 Oct 2021
Publisher:
CDS
Description:
Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) observations can resolve the radio structure of active galactic nuclei (AGN) and provide estimates of the structural and kinematic characteristics on parsec-scales in their jets. The changes in the kinematics of the observed jet features can be used to study the physical conditions in the innermost regions of these sources. We performed multifrequency multiepoch Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) observations of the blazar CTA102 during its 2006 radio flare, the strongest ever reported for this source. These observations provide an excellent opportunity to investigate the evolution of the physical properties of blazars, especially during these flaring events. We want to study the kinematic changes in the source during the strong radio outburst in April 2006 and test the assumption of a shock-shock interaction. This assumption is based on the analysis and modeling of the single-dish observations of CTA 102 (Paper I, 2011A&A...531A..95F). In this paper we study the kinematics of CTA 102 at several frequencies using VLBI observations. From the modeled jet features we derived estimates for the evolution of the physical parameters, such as the particle density and the magnetic field. Furthermore ,we combined our observations during the 2006 flare with long-term VLBA monitoring of the source at 15 GHz and 43 GHz We cross-identified seven features throughout our entire multifrequency observations and find evidence of two possible recollimation shocks around 0.1mas (deprojected 18pc at a viewing angle of 2.6{deg} and 6.0mas (deprojected 1kpc) from the core. The 43GHz observations reveal a feature ejected at epoch t_ej_=2005.9+/-0.2, which could be connected to the 2006 April radio flare. Furthermore, this feature might be associated with the traveling component involved in the possible shock-shock interaction, which gives rise to the observed double peak structure in the single-dish light curves reported in Paper I, 2011A&A...531A..95F.