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  • American Astronomical Society  (99)
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  • 1
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    First Sagittarius A* Event Horizon Telescope Results. I. The Shadow of the Supermassive Black Hole in the Center of the Milky Way
    American Astronomical Society ; 2022
    In:  The Astrophysical Journal Letters Vol. 930, No. 2 ( 2022-05-01), p. L12-
    Details
    In: The Astrophysical Journal Letters, American Astronomical Society, Vol. 930, No. 2 ( 2022-05-01), p. L12-
    Abstract: We present the first Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) observations of Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*), the Galactic center source associated with a supermassive black hole. These observations were conducted in 2017 using a global interferometric array of eight telescopes operating at a wavelength of λ = 1.3 mm. The EHT data resolve a compact emission region with intrahour variability. A variety of imaging and modeling analyses all support an image that is dominated by a bright, thick ring with a diameter of 51.8 ± 2.3 μ as (68% credible interval). The ring has modest azimuthal brightness asymmetry and a comparatively dim interior. Using a large suite of numerical simulations, we demonstrate that the EHT images of Sgr A* are consistent with the expected appearance of a Kerr black hole with mass ∼4 × 10 6 M ⊙ , which is inferred to exist at this location based on previous infrared observations of individual stellar orbits, as well as maser proper-motion studies. Our model comparisons disfavor scenarios where the black hole is viewed at high inclination ( i 〉 50°), as well as nonspinning black holes and those with retrograde accretion disks. Our results provide direct evidence for the presence of a supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way, and for the first time we connect the predictions from dynamical measurements of stellar orbits on scales of 10 3 –10 5 gravitational radii to event-horizon-scale images and variability. Furthermore, a comparison with the EHT results for the supermassive black hole M87* shows consistency with the predictions of general relativity spanning over three orders of magnitude in central mass.
    Type of Medium: Online Resource
    ISSN: 2041-8205 , 2041-8213
    URL: Article
    DOI: 10.3847/2041-8213/ac6674
    Language: Unknown
    Publisher: American Astronomical Society
    Publication Date: 2022
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2207648-7
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2006858-X
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  • 2
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    Broadband Multi-wavelength Properties of M87 during the 2017 Event Horizon Telescope Campaign
    American Astronomical Society ; 2021
    In:  The Astrophysical Journal Letters Vol. 911, No. 1 ( 2021-04-01), p. L11-
    Details
    In: The Astrophysical Journal Letters, American Astronomical Society, Vol. 911, No. 1 ( 2021-04-01), p. L11-
    Abstract: In 2017, the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) Collaboration succeeded in capturing the first direct image of the center of the M87 galaxy. The asymmetric ring morphology and size are consistent with theoretical expectations for a weakly accreting supermassive black hole of mass ∼6.5 × 10 9 M ⊙ . The EHTC also partnered with several international facilities in space and on the ground, to arrange an extensive, quasi-simultaneous multi-wavelength campaign. This Letter presents the results and analysis of this campaign, as well as the multi-wavelength data as a legacy data repository. We captured M87 in a historically low state, and the core flux dominates over HST-1 at high energies, making it possible to combine core flux constraints with the more spatially precise very long baseline interferometry data. We present the most complete simultaneous multi-wavelength spectrum of the active nucleus to date, and discuss the complexity and caveats of combining data from different spatial scales into one broadband spectrum. We apply two heuristic, isotropic leptonic single-zone models to provide insight into the basic source properties, but conclude that a structured jet is necessary to explain M87’s spectrum. We can exclude that the simultaneous γ -ray emission is produced via inverse Compton emission in the same region producing the EHT mm-band emission, and further conclude that the γ -rays can only be produced in the inner jets (inward of HST-1) if there are strongly particle-dominated regions. Direct synchrotron emission from accelerated protons and secondaries cannot yet be excluded.
    Type of Medium: Online Resource
    ISSN: 2041-8205 , 2041-8213
    URL: Article
    DOI: 10.3847/2041-8213/abef71
    Language: Unknown
    Publisher: American Astronomical Society
    Publication Date: 2021
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2207648-7
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2006858-X
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  • 3
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    Millimeter Light Curves of Sagittarius A* Observed during the 2017 Event Horizon Telescope Campaign
    American Astronomical Society ; 2022
    In:  The Astrophysical Journal Letters Vol. 930, No. 2 ( 2022-05-01), p. L19-
    Details
    In: The Astrophysical Journal Letters, American Astronomical Society, Vol. 930, No. 2 ( 2022-05-01), p. L19-
    Abstract: The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) observed the compact radio source, Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*), in the Galactic Center on 2017 April 5–11 in the 1.3 mm wavelength band. At the same time, interferometric array data from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array and the Submillimeter Array were collected, providing Sgr A* light curves simultaneous with the EHT observations. These data sets, complementing the EHT very long baseline interferometry, are characterized by a cadence and signal-to-noise ratio previously unattainable for Sgr A* at millimeter wavelengths, and they allow for the investigation of source variability on timescales as short as a minute. While most of the light curves correspond to a low variability state of Sgr A*, the April 11 observations follow an X-ray flare and exhibit strongly enhanced variability. All of the light curves are consistent with a red-noise process, with a power spectral density (PSD) slope measured to be between −2 and −3 on timescales between 1 minute and several hours. Our results indicate a steepening of the PSD slope for timescales shorter than 0.3 hr. The spectral energy distribution is flat at 220 GHz, and there are no time lags between the 213 and 229 GHz frequency bands, suggesting low optical depth for the event horizon scale source. We characterize Sgr A*’s variability, highlighting the different behavior observed just after the X-ray flare, and use Gaussian process modeling to extract a decorrelation timescale and a PSD slope. We also investigate the systematic calibration uncertainties by analyzing data from independent data reduction pipelines.
    Type of Medium: Online Resource
    ISSN: 2041-8205 , 2041-8213
    URL: Article
    DOI: 10.3847/2041-8213/ac6428
    Language: Unknown
    Publisher: American Astronomical Society
    Publication Date: 2022
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2207648-7
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2006858-X
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  • 4
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    First Sagittarius A* Event Horizon Telescope Results. III. Imaging of the Galactic Center Supermassive Black Hole
    American Astronomical Society ; 2022
    In:  The Astrophysical Journal Letters Vol. 930, No. 2 ( 2022-05-01), p. L14-
    Details
    In: The Astrophysical Journal Letters, American Astronomical Society, Vol. 930, No. 2 ( 2022-05-01), p. L14-
    Abstract: We present the first event-horizon-scale images and spatiotemporal analysis of Sgr A* taken with the Event Horizon Telescope in 2017 April at a wavelength of 1.3 mm. Imaging of Sgr A* has been conducted through surveys over a wide range of imaging assumptions using the classical CLEAN algorithm, regularized maximum likelihood methods, and a Bayesian posterior sampling method. Different prescriptions have been used to account for scattering effects by the interstellar medium toward the Galactic center. Mitigation of the rapid intraday variability that characterizes Sgr A* has been carried out through the addition of a “variability noise budget” in the observed visibilities, facilitating the reconstruction of static full-track images. Our static reconstructions of Sgr A* can be clustered into four representative morphologies that correspond to ring images with three different azimuthal brightness distributions and a small cluster that contains diverse nonring morphologies. Based on our extensive analysis of the effects of sparse ( u , v )-coverage, source variability, and interstellar scattering, as well as studies of simulated visibility data, we conclude that the Event Horizon Telescope Sgr A* data show compelling evidence for an image that is dominated by a bright ring of emission with a ring diameter of ∼50 μ as, consistent with the expected “shadow” of a 4 × 10 6 M ⊙ black hole in the Galactic center located at a distance of 8 kpc.
    Type of Medium: Online Resource
    ISSN: 2041-8205 , 2041-8213
    URL: Article
    DOI: 10.3847/2041-8213/ac6429
    Language: Unknown
    Publisher: American Astronomical Society
    Publication Date: 2022
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2207648-7
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2006858-X
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  • 5
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    The Event Horizon Telescope Image of the Quasar NRAO 530
    American Astronomical Society ; 2023
    In:  The Astrophysical Journal Vol. 943, No. 2 ( 2023-02-01), p. 170-
    Details
    In: The Astrophysical Journal, American Astronomical Society, Vol. 943, No. 2 ( 2023-02-01), p. 170-
    Abstract: We report on the observations of the quasar NRAO 530 with the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) on 2017 April 5−7, when NRAO 530 was used as a calibrator for the EHT observations of Sagittarius A*. At z = 0.902, this is the most distant object imaged by the EHT so far. We reconstruct the first images of the source at 230 GHz, at an unprecedented angular resolution of ∼20 μ as, both in total intensity and in linear polarization (LP). We do not detect source variability, allowing us to represent the whole data set with static images. The images reveal a bright feature located on the southern end of the jet, which we associate with the core. The feature is linearly polarized, with a fractional polarization of ∼5%–8%, and it has a substructure consisting of two components. Their observed brightness temperature suggests that the energy density of the jet is dominated by the magnetic field. The jet extends over 60 μ as along a position angle ∼ −28°. It includes two features with orthogonal directions of polarization (electric vector position angle), parallel and perpendicular to the jet axis, consistent with a helical structure of the magnetic field in the jet. The outermost feature has a particularly high degree of LP, suggestive of a nearly uniform magnetic field. Future EHT observations will probe the variability of the jet structure on microarcsecond scales, while simultaneous multiwavelength monitoring will provide insight into the high-energy emission origin.
    Type of Medium: Online Resource
    ISSN: 0004-637X , 1538-4357
    URL: Article
    DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/acaea8
    RVK:
    UA 1000
    Language: Unknown
    Publisher: American Astronomical Society
    Publication Date: 2023
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2207648-7
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 1473835-1
    SSG: 16,12
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  • 6
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    Resolving the Inner Parsec of the Blazar J1924–2914 with the Event Horizon Telescope
    American Astronomical Society ; 2022
    In:  The Astrophysical Journal Vol. 934, No. 2 ( 2022-08-01), p. 145-
    Details
    In: The Astrophysical Journal, American Astronomical Society, Vol. 934, No. 2 ( 2022-08-01), p. 145-
    Abstract: The blazar J1924–2914 is a primary Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) calibrator for the Galactic center’s black hole Sagittarius A*. Here we present the first total and linearly polarized intensity images of this source obtained with the unprecedented 20 μ as resolution of the EHT. J1924–2914 is a very compact flat-spectrum radio source with strong optical variability and polarization. In April 2017 the source was observed quasi-simultaneously with the EHT (April 5–11), the Global Millimeter VLBI Array (April 3), and the Very Long Baseline Array (April 28), giving a novel view of the source at four observing frequencies, 230, 86, 8.7, and 2.3 GHz. These observations probe jet properties from the subparsec to 100 pc scales. We combine the multifrequency images of J1924–2914 to study the source morphology. We find that the jet exhibits a characteristic bending, with a gradual clockwise rotation of the jet projected position angle of about 90° between 2.3 and 230 GHz. Linearly polarized intensity images of J1924–2914 with the extremely fine resolution of the EHT provide evidence for ordered toroidal magnetic fields in the blazar compact core.
    Type of Medium: Online Resource
    ISSN: 0004-637X , 1538-4357
    URL: Article
    DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/ac7a40
    RVK:
    UA 1000
    Language: Unknown
    Publisher: American Astronomical Society
    Publication Date: 2022
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2207648-7
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 1473835-1
    SSG: 16,12
    Location Call Number Limitation Availability
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  • 7
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    Comparison of Polarized Radiative Transfer Codes Used by the EHT Collaboration
    American Astronomical Society ; 2023
    In:  The Astrophysical Journal Vol. 950, No. 1 ( 2023-06-01), p. 35-
    Details
    In: The Astrophysical Journal, American Astronomical Society, Vol. 950, No. 1 ( 2023-06-01), p. 35-
    Abstract: Interpretation of resolved polarized images of black holes by the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) requires predictions of the polarized emission observable by an Earth-based instrument for a particular model of the black hole accretion system. Such predictions are generated by general relativistic radiative transfer (GRRT) codes, which integrate the equations of polarized radiative transfer in curved spacetime. A selection of ray-tracing GRRT codes used within the EHT Collaboration is evaluated for accuracy and consistency in producing a selection of test images, demonstrating that the various methods and implementations of radiative transfer calculations are highly consistent. When imaging an analytic accretion model, we find that all codes produce images similar within a pixel-wise normalized mean squared error (NMSE) of 0.012 in the worst case. When imaging a snapshot from a cell-based magnetohydrodynamic simulation, we find all test images to be similar within NMSEs of 0.02, 0.04, 0.04, and 0.12 in Stokes I , Q , U , and V , respectively. We additionally find the values of several image metrics relevant to published EHT results to be in agreement to much better precision than measurement uncertainties.
    Type of Medium: Online Resource
    ISSN: 0004-637X , 1538-4357
    URL: Article
    DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/acc586
    RVK:
    UA 1000
    Language: Unknown
    Publisher: American Astronomical Society
    Publication Date: 2023
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2207648-7
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 1473835-1
    SSG: 16,12
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  • 8
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    A Universal Power-law Prescription for Variability from Synthetic Images of Black Hole Accretion Flows
    American Astronomical Society ; 2022
    In:  The Astrophysical Journal Letters Vol. 930, No. 2 ( 2022-05-01), p. L20-
    Details
    In: The Astrophysical Journal Letters, American Astronomical Society, Vol. 930, No. 2 ( 2022-05-01), p. L20-
    Abstract: We present a framework for characterizing the spatiotemporal power spectrum of the variability expected from the horizon-scale emission structure around supermassive black holes, and we apply this framework to a library of general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic (GRMHD) simulations and associated general relativistic ray-traced images relevant for Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) observations of Sgr A*. We find that the variability power spectrum is generically a red-noise process in both the temporal and spatial dimensions, with the peak in power occurring on the longest timescales and largest spatial scales. When both the time-averaged source structure and the spatially integrated light-curve variability are removed, the residual power spectrum exhibits a universal broken power-law behavior. On small spatial frequencies, the residual power spectrum rises as the square of the spatial frequency and is proportional to the variance in the centroid of emission. Beyond some peak in variability power, the residual power spectrum falls as that of the time-averaged source structure, which is similar across simulations; this behavior can be naturally explained if the variability arises from a multiplicative random field that has a steeper high-frequency power-law index than that of the time-averaged source structure. We briefly explore the ability of power spectral variability studies to constrain physical parameters relevant for the GRMHD simulations, which can be scaled to provide predictions for black holes in a range of systems in the optically thin regime. We present specific expectations for the behavior of the M87* and Sgr A* accretion flows as observed by the EHT.
    Type of Medium: Online Resource
    ISSN: 2041-8205 , 2041-8213
    URL: Article
    DOI: 10.3847/2041-8213/ac65eb
    Language: Unknown
    Publisher: American Astronomical Society
    Publication Date: 2022
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2207648-7
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2006858-X
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  • 9
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    First Sagittarius A* Event Horizon Telescope Results. VI. Testing the Black Hole Metric
    American Astronomical Society ; 2022
    In:  The Astrophysical Journal Letters Vol. 930, No. 2 ( 2022-05-01), p. L17-
    Details
    In: The Astrophysical Journal Letters, American Astronomical Society, Vol. 930, No. 2 ( 2022-05-01), p. L17-
    Abstract: Astrophysical black holes are expected to be described by the Kerr metric. This is the only stationary, vacuum, axisymmetric metric, without electromagnetic charge, that satisfies Einstein’s equations and does not have pathologies outside of the event horizon. We present new constraints on potential deviations from the Kerr prediction based on 2017 EHT observations of Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*). We calibrate the relationship between the geometrically defined black hole shadow and the observed size of the ring-like images using a library that includes both Kerr and non-Kerr simulations. We use the exquisite prior constraints on the mass-to-distance ratio for Sgr A* to show that the observed image size is within ∼10% of the Kerr predictions. We use these bounds to constrain metrics that are parametrically different from Kerr, as well as the charges of several known spacetimes. To consider alternatives to the presence of an event horizon, we explore the possibility that Sgr A* is a compact object with a surface that either absorbs and thermally reemits incident radiation or partially reflects it. Using the observed image size and the broadband spectrum of Sgr A*, we conclude that a thermal surface can be ruled out and a fully reflective one is unlikely. We compare our results to the broader landscape of gravitational tests. Together with the bounds found for stellar-mass black holes and the M87 black hole, our observations provide further support that the external spacetimes of all black holes are described by the Kerr metric, independent of their mass.
    Type of Medium: Online Resource
    ISSN: 2041-8205 , 2041-8213
    URL: Article
    DOI: 10.3847/2041-8213/ac6756
    Language: Unknown
    Publisher: American Astronomical Society
    Publication Date: 2022
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2207648-7
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2006858-X
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  • 10
    Online Resource
    Online Resource
    Characterizing and Mitigating Intraday Variability: Reconstructing Source Structure in Accreting Black Holes with mm-VLBI
    American Astronomical Society ; 2022
    In:  The Astrophysical Journal Letters Vol. 930, No. 2 ( 2022-05-01), p. L21-
    Details
    In: The Astrophysical Journal Letters, American Astronomical Society, Vol. 930, No. 2 ( 2022-05-01), p. L21-
    Abstract: The extraordinary physical resolution afforded by the Event Horizon Telescope has opened a window onto the astrophysical phenomena unfolding on horizon scales in two known black holes, M87 * and Sgr A*. However, with this leap in resolution has come a new set of practical complications. Sgr A* exhibits intraday variability that violates the assumptions underlying Earth aperture synthesis, limiting traditional image reconstruction methods to short timescales and data sets with very sparse ( u , v ) coverage. We present a new set of tools to detect and mitigate this variability. We develop a data-driven, model-agnostic procedure to detect and characterize the spatial structure of intraday variability. This method is calibrated against a large set of mock data sets, producing an empirical estimator of the spatial power spectrum of the brightness fluctuations. We present a novel Bayesian noise modeling algorithm that simultaneously reconstructs an average image and statistical measure of the fluctuations about it using a parameterized form for the excess variance in the complex visibilities not otherwise explained by the statistical errors. These methods are validated using a variety of simulated data, including general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations appropriate for Sgr A* and M87 * . We find that the reconstructed source structure and variability are robust to changes in the underlying image model. We apply these methods to the 2017 EHT observations of M87 * , finding evidence for variability across the EHT observing campaign. The variability mitigation strategies presented are widely applicable to very long baseline interferometry observations of variable sources generally, for which they provide a data-informed averaging procedure and natural characterization of inter-epoch image consistency.
    Type of Medium: Online Resource
    ISSN: 2041-8205 , 2041-8213
    URL: Article
    DOI: 10.3847/2041-8213/ac6584
    Language: Unknown
    Publisher: American Astronomical Society
    Publication Date: 2022
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2207648-7
    detail.hit.zdb_id: 2006858-X
    Location Call Number Limitation Availability
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