Abstract
The high brightness temperatures, Tb ≳ 1013 K, detected in several active galactic nuclei by RadioAstron space VLBI observations challenge theoretical limits. Refractive scattering by the ...interstellar medium may affect such measurements. We quantify the scattering properties and the sub-mas scale source parameters for the quasar B0529+483. Using RadioAstron correlated flux density measurements at 1.7, 4.8, and 22 GHz on projected baselines up to 240 000 km we find two characteristic angular scales in the quasar core, about 100 and 10 μas. Some indications of scattering substructure are found. Very high brightness temperatures, Tb ≥ 1013 K, are estimated at 4.8 and 22 GHz even taking into account the refractive scattering. Our findings suggest a clear dominance of the particle energy density over the magnetic field energy density in the core of this quasar.
We have conducted a detailed investigation of the broadband spectral properties of the gamma-ray selected blazars of the Fermi LAT Bright AGN Sample (LBAS). By combining our accurately estimated ...Fermi gamma-ray spectra with Swift, radio, infra-red, optical, and other hard X-ray/gamma-ray data, collected within 3 months of the LBAS data taking period, we were able to assemble high-quality and quasi-simultaneous spectral energy distributions (SED) for 48 LBAS blazars. The SED of these gamma-ray sources is similar to that of blazars discovered at other wavelengths, clearly showing, in the usual log nu-log nu F-nu representation, the typical broadband spectral signatures normally attributed to a combination of low-energy synchrotron radiation followed by inverse Compton emission of one or more components. We have used these SED to characterize the peak intensity of both the low-and the high-energy components. The results have been used to derive empirical relationships that estimate the position of the two peaks from the broadband colors (i.e., the radio to optical, alpha(ro), and optical to X-ray, alpha(ox), spectral slopes) and from the gamma-ray spectral index. Our data show that the synchrotron peak frequency (nu(S)(peak)) is positioned between 10(12.5) and 10(14.5) Hz in broad-lined flat spectrum radio quasars (FSRQs) and between 10(13) and 10(17) Hz in featureless BL Lacertae objects. We find that the gamma-ray spectral slope is strongly correlated with the synchrotron peak energy and with the X-ray spectral index, as expected at first order in synchrotron-inverse Compton scenarios. However, simple homogeneous, one-zone, synchrotron self-Compton (SSC) models cannot explain most of our SED, especially in the case of FSRQs and low energy peaked (LBL) BL Lacs. More complex models involving external Compton radiation or multiple SSC components are required to reproduce the overall SED and the observed spectral variability. While more than 50% of known radio bright high energy peaked (HBL) BL Lacs are detected in the LBAS sample, only less than 13% of known bright FSRQs and LBL BL Lacs are included. This suggests that the latter sources, as a class, may be much fainter gamma-ray emitters than LBAS blazars, and could in fact radiate close to the expectations of simple SSC models. We categorized all our sources according to a new physical classification scheme based on the generally accepted paradigm for Active Galactic Nuclei and on the results of this SED study. Since the LAT detector is more sensitive to flat spectrum gamma-ray sources, the correlation between nu(S)(peak) and gamma-ray spectral index strongly favors the detection of high energy peaked blazars, thus explaining the Fermi overabundance of this type of sources compared to radio and EGRET samples. This selection effect is similar to that experienced in the soft X-ray band where HBL BL Lacs are the dominant type of blazars.
We present an optical-to-radio study of the BL Lac object S4 0954+658 observations during 1998–2023. The measurements were obtained with the SAO RAS Zeiss-1000 and AS-500/2 0.5-m telescopes in ...2003–2023, with the RATAN-600 radio telescope at 1.25 (0.96, 1.1), 2.3, 4.7 (3.7, 3.9), 8.2 (7.7), 11.2, 22.3 (21.7) GHz in 1998–2023, with the IAA RAS RT-32 Zelenchukskaya and Badary telescopes at 5.05 and 8.63 GHz in 2020–2023, and with the RT-22 single-dish telescope of CrAO RAS at 36.8 GHz in 2009–2023. In this period the blazar was showing extremely high broadband activity with the variability amplitude of the flux densities up to 70–100
both in the optical and radio domains. During the period of 2014–2023 the blazar displayed extremely high activity in the radio wavelengths, and we detected multiple radio flares of varying amplitude and duration. The large flares last on average from 0.3 to 1 year at 22–36.8 GHz and slightly longer at 5–11.2 GHz. The optical flares are shorter and last 7–50 days. The characteristic time scale
of variation at 5–22 GHz is about 100 days in the most active epoch of 2014–2023 and about 1000 days for the state with lower activity in 2009–2014. We found a general correlation between the optical, radio, and
-ray flux variations, which suggesting that we observe the same photon population from different emission regions. We estimated the linear size of this region as 0.5–2 pc for different conditions. A broadband radio spectrum with two components of the S4 0954+658 jet was modeled using both electrons and protons as emitting particles. The results suggest that the synchrotron radio waves in this AGN may be produced by relativistic protons.
The possible association with the high-energy neutrino event IceCube-170922A has sparked interest in the blazar TXS 0506+056. We present 72 instantaneous 1–22 GHz spectra measured over the past ...20 years with the RATAN-600 telescope and compare them with the results of observations of 700 variable Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) studied within the same program. The recent radio flare of TXS 0506+056 started from a minimum in 2013 and reached its first peak in December 2017 and a second peak in May-June 2018. This was the third strong radio flare in this source since 1997. The spectrum remains nearly flat during the flares. The spectral shape and variability pattern observed in TXS 0506+056 are typical for variable AGN. RadioAstron Space VLBI observations in 2013–2015 did not detect TXS 0506+056 on space-ground baselines of more than 9 Earth diameters. However, an observation on 23 September 2015 resulted in the detection of interferometric signal on 6 Earth diameter baselines at 18 cm close to the detection limit. We consider the possibility that TXS 0506+056 and other AGN may accelerate relativistic protons more efficiently than electrons. Relativistic protons are necessary to produce both the high-energy neutrinos observed in the IceCube Observatory and the high AGN brightness temperatures implied by the RadioAstron detection. They may also provide the main contribution to the observed synchrotron radiation of parsec-scale AGN jets. This supports the suggestion that relativistic protons may play a much more important part in extragalactic astrophysics than earlier anticipated.
The results of a large number of the antenna radiometric measurements at bands of 92, 18, 6.2, 1.35, and 1.7-1.2 cm are presented by the data of the standard telemetry system of the
Spektr-R
...spacecraft. Both special sessions of calibration object observations in the mode of a single space radio telescope (SRT) operation and numerous observations of researched sources in the mode of the ground-space interferometer were used. The obtained results agree with the first results of Kardashev et al. (2013), i.e., within 10–15% at bands of 92, 18, and 6.2 cm and 20–25% at the band of 1.35 cm. In the main, the measurements for the eight subbands at wavelengths of 1.7-1.2 cm indicate a monotonic increase in the spectral system equivalent flux density (SEFD) of noise radiation with a frequency consistent with the calculated estimates for the discussed model. The sensitivity of the ground-space interferometer for the five subbands at wavelengths from 1.35 to 1.7 cm can be higher by a factor of 1.5, and for the three subbands from 1.35 to 1.2 cm lower by a factor of 1.5 than at the band of 1.35 cm. The SRT contribution to the interferometer sensitivity proportional to the square root of SEFD is close to the design one at the bands of 92 and 18 cm and decreases the design sensitivity approximately by a factor of 1.5 and 2 at the bands of 6.2 and 1.35 cm, respectively. These differences of implemented values from the design ones were not significantly affected the scientific program implementation.
We present an optical-to-radio study of the BL Lac object S4 0954+658 observations during 1998-2023. The measurements were obtained with the SAO RAS Zeiss-1000 1-m and AS-500/2 0.5-m telescopes in ...2003-2023, with the RATAN-600 radio telescope at 1.25 (0.96, 1.1), 2.3, 4.7 (3.7, 3.9), 8.2 (7.7), 11.2, 22.3 (21.7) GHz in 1998-2023, with the IAA RAS RT-32 Zelenchukskaya and Badary telescopes at 5.05 and 8.63 GHz in 2020--2023, and with the RT-22 single-dish telescope of CrAO RAS at 36.8 GHz in 2009-2023. In this period the blazar had been showing extremely high broadband activity with the variability amplitude of flux densities up to 70-100% both in the optical and radio domains. In the period of 2014-2023 the blazar had been showing the historically highest activity in the radio wavelengths, and we detected multiple radio flares of varying amplitude and duration. The large flares last on average from 0.3 to 1 year at 22-36.8 GHz and slightly longer at 5-11.2 GHz. The optical flares are shorter and last 7-50 days. In the most active epoch of 2018-2023 the characteristic time scale \(\tau\) of variation at 5-22 GHz is about 100 days and about 1000 days for the state with lower activity in 2009-2014. We found a general correlation between the optical, radio, and \(\gamma\)-ray flux variations, which suggests that we observe the same photon population from different emission regions. We estimated linear size of this region as 0.5-2 pc for different epochs. A broadband two components radio spectrum of S4 0954+658 jet was modelled by using both electrons and protons as emitting particles. It is shown that the synchrotron radio waves in this AGN may be generated by relativistic protons.
We present the automated systemfor estimating the parameters of radio sources observed on all available continuum radiometers (two receiving facilities of secondary mirrors No. 1 and No. 2 with a ...total of 30 radiometers) developed at RATAN-600 radio telescope and put into normal operation. The system is also used for the monitoring of the parameters of the antenna and receiving systems of RATAN-600 radio telescope, which is carried out using current measurements of calibration radio sources.
The results of the first stage of the “Cosmological Gene” project of the Russian Academy of Sciences are reported. These results consist in the accumulation of multi-frequency data in 31 frequency ...channels in the wavelength interval 1–55 cm with maximum achievable statistical sensitivity limited by the noise of background radio sources at all wavelengths exceeding 1.38 cm. The survey region is determined by constraints 00
h
<
RA
< 24
h
and 40°30′ <
DEC
< 42°30′. The scientific goals of the project are refined in view of recent proposals to use cosmological background radiation data for the development of a unified physical theory. Experimental data obtained with the RATAN-600 radio telescope are used to refine the contribution of the main “screens” located between the observer and the formation epoch of cosmic background radiation (
z
= 1100). Experimental data for synchrotron radiation and free-free noise on scales that are of interest for the anisotropy of cosmic microwave background are reported as well as the contribution of these noise components in millimeter-wave experiments to be performed in the nearest years. The role of dipole radio emission of fullerene-type dust nanostructures is shown to be small. The most precise estimates of the role of background radio sources with inverted spectra are given and these sources are shown to create no serious interference in experiments. The average spectral indices of the weakest sources of the NVSS and FIRST catalogs are estimated. The “saturation” data for all wavelengths allowed a constraint to be imposed on the Sunyaev-Zeldovich noise (the SZ noise) at all wavelengths, and made it possible to obtain independent estimates of the average sky temperature from sources, substantially weaker than those listed in the NVSS catalog. These estimates are inconsistent with the existence of powerful extragalactic synchrotron background associated with radio sources. Appreciable “quadrupole” anisotropy in is detected in the distribution of the spectral index of the synchrotron radiation of the Galaxy, and this anisotropy should be taken into account when estimating the polarization of the cosmic microwave background on small
l
. All the results are compared to the results obtained by foreign researchers in recent years.
A survey of the North Celestial Pole region using the RATAN-600 radio telescope at five frequencies in the range 2.3 to 21.7 GHz is described. Sources were chosen from the NVSS catalogue. The flux ...densities of 171 sources in the Declination range $+75\degr$ to $+88\degr$ are presented; typical flux density errors are 5-10 percent including calibration errors. About 20 percent of the sources have flat spectra or a flat component.
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