Subjects: Astronomy >> Astrophysical processes submitted time 2023-02-19
Alexandra Veledina
Fabio Muleri
Juri Poutanen
Jakub Podgorný
Michal Dovčiak
Fiamma Capitanio
Eugene Churazov
Alessandra De Rosa
Alessandro Di Marco
Sofia Forsblom
Philip Kaaret
Henric Krawczynski
Fabio La Monaca
Vladislav Loktev
Alexander A. Lutovinov
Sergey V. Molkov
Alexander A. Mushtukov
Ajay Ratheesh
Nicole Rodriguez Cavero
James F. Steiner
Abstract： How black holes consume and eject matter has been the subject of intense studies for more than 60 years. The luminosity of these systems are often compared to the Eddington limit, the border at which the spherical accretion is inhibited by the radiation pressure of photons it produces. The discovery of ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) showed that accretion can proceed even when the apparent luminosity exceeds the Eddington limit (Kaaret et al. 2017). High apparent luminosity might be produced by the beaming of the incident radiation by a thick collimated outflow or by a truly super-Eddington accretion flow. However, possibilities to study these outflows in detail are limited, as ULXs are typically found in distant galaxies. Using the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE, Weisskopf et al. 2022), we made the first measurement of X-ray polarization in Galactic X-ray binary Cyg X-3. The detection of high, $\approx$25\%, nearly energy-independent linear polarization, orthogonal to the direction of the radio ejections, unambiguously indicates the primary source is obscured and the observer on Earth only sees reflected and scattered light. Modelling shows there is an optically thick envelope with a narrow funnel around the primary X-ray source in the system. We derive an upper limit on the opening angle of the funnel that implies a lower limit on the beamed luminosity exceeding the Eddington value. We show that Cyg X-3 is viewed as a ULX to an extragalactic observer located along the axis of the funnel. Our findings reveal this unique persistent source as an ideal laboratory for the study of the inner workings of ULX central engines.
Peer Review Status:
Awaiting Review
Subjects: Astronomy >> Astrophysical processes submitted time 2023-02-19
Junhao Liu
Qizhou Zhang
Patrick M. Koch
Hauyu Baobab Liu
Zhi-Yun Li
Shanghuo Li
Josep Miquel Girart
Huei-Ru Vivien Chen
Tao-Chung Ching
Paul T. P. Ho
Shih-Ping Lai
Keping Qiu
Ramprasad Rao
Ya-wen Tang
Abstract： We present ALMA dust polarization and molecular line observations toward 4 clumps (I(N), I, IV, and V) in the massive star-forming region NGC 6334. In conjunction with large-scale dust polarization and molecular line data from JCMT, Planck, and NANTEN2, we make a synergistic analysis of relative orientations between magnetic fields ($\theta_{\mathrm{B}}$), column density gradients ($\theta_{\mathrm{NG}}$), local gravity ($\theta_{\mathrm{LG}}$), and velocity gradients ($\theta_{\mathrm{VG}}$) to investigate the multi-scale (from $\sim$30 pc to 0.003 pc) physical properties in NGC 6334. We find that the relative orientation between $\theta_{\mathrm{B}}$ and $\theta_{\mathrm{NG}}$ changes from statistically more perpendicular to parallel as column density ($N_{\mathrm{H_2}}$) increases, which is a signature of trans-to-sub-Alfv\'{e}nic turbulence at complex/cloud scales as revealed by previous numerical studies. Because $\theta_{\mathrm{NG}}$ and $\theta_{\mathrm{LG}}$ are preferentially aligned within the NGC 6334 cloud, we suggest that the more parallel alignment between $\theta_{\mathrm{B}}$ and $\theta_{\mathrm{NG}}$ at higher $N_{\mathrm{H_2}}$ is because the magnetic field line is dragged by gravity. At even higher $N_{\mathrm{H_2}}$, the angle between $\theta_{\mathrm{B}}$ and $\theta_{\mathrm{NG}}$ or $\theta_{\mathrm{LG}}$ transits back to having no preferred orientation or statistically slightly more perpendicular, suggesting that the magnetic field structure is impacted by star formation activities. A statistically more perpendicular alignment is found between $\theta_{\mathrm{B}}$ and $\theta_{\mathrm{VG}}$ throughout our studied $N_{\mathrm{H_2}}$ range, which indicates a trans-to-sub-Alfv\'{e}nic state at small scales as well. The normalised mass-to-flux ratio derived from the polarization-intensity gradient (KTH) method increases with $N_{\mathrm{H_2}}$.
Peer Review Status:Awaiting Review
Subjects: Astronomy >> Astrophysical processes submitted time 2023-02-19
Tao-Chung Ching
Keping Qiu
Di Li
Zhiyuan Ren
Shih-Ping Lai
David Berry
Kate Pattle
Ray Furuya
Derek Ward-Thompson
Doug Johnstone
Patrick M. Koch
Chang Won Lee
Thiem Hoang
Tetsuo Hasegawa
Woojin Kwon
Pierre Bastien
Chakali Eswaraiah
Jia-Wei Wang
Kyoung Hee Kim
Jihye Hwang
Abstract： We present 850 $\mu$m dust polarization observations of the massive DR21 filament from the B-fields In STar-forming Region Observations (BISTRO) survey, using the POL-2 polarimeter and the SCUBA-2 camera on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope. We detect ordered magnetic fields perpendicular to the parsec-scale ridge of the DR21 main filament. In the sub-filaments, the magnetic fields are mainly parallel to the filamentary structures and smoothly connect to the magnetic fields of the main filament. We compare the POL-2 and Planck dust polarization observations to study the magnetic field structures of the DR21 filament on 0.1--10 pc scales. The magnetic fields revealed in the Planck data are well aligned with those of the POL-2 data, indicating a smooth variation of magnetic fields from large to small scales. The plane-of-sky magnetic field strengths derived from angular dispersion functions of dust polarization are 0.6--1.0 mG in the DR21 filament and $\sim$ 0.1 mG in the surrounding ambient gas. The mass-to-flux ratios are found to be magnetically supercritical in the filament and slightly subcritical to nearly critical in the ambient gas. The alignment between column density structures and magnetic fields changes from random alignment in the low-density ambient gas probed by Planck to mostly perpendicular in the high-density main filament probed by JCMT. The magnetic field structures of the DR21 filament are in agreement with MHD simulations of a strongly magnetized medium, suggesting that magnetic fields play an important role in shaping the DR21 main filament and sub-filaments.
Peer Review Status:Awaiting Review
Subjects: Astronomy >> Astrophysical processes submitted time 2023-02-19
Tao-Chung Ching
Keping Qiu
Di Li
Zhiyuan Ren
Shih-Ping Lai
David Berry
Kate Pattle
Ray Furuya
Derek Ward-Thompson
Doug Johnstone
Patrick M. Koch
Chang Won Lee
Thiem Hoang
Tetsuo Hasegawa
Woojin Kwon
Pierre Bastien
Chakali Eswaraiah
Jia-Wei Wang
Kyoung Hee Kim
Jihye Hwang
Abstract： We present 850 $\mu$m dust polarization observations of the massive DR21 filament from the B-fields In STar-forming Region Observations (BISTRO) survey, using the POL-2 polarimeter and the SCUBA-2 camera on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope. We detect ordered magnetic fields perpendicular to the parsec-scale ridge of the DR21 main filament. In the sub-filaments, the magnetic fields are mainly parallel to the filamentary structures and smoothly connect to the magnetic fields of the main filament. We compare the POL-2 and Planck dust polarization observations to study the magnetic field structures of the DR21 filament on 0.1--10 pc scales. The magnetic fields revealed in the Planck data are well aligned with those of the POL-2 data, indicating a smooth variation of magnetic fields from large to small scales. The plane-of-sky magnetic field strengths derived from angular dispersion functions of dust polarization are 0.6--1.0 mG in the DR21 filament and $\sim$ 0.1 mG in the surrounding ambient gas. The mass-to-flux ratios are found to be magnetically supercritical in the filament and slightly subcritical to nearly critical in the ambient gas. The alignment between column density structures and magnetic fields changes from random alignment in the low-density ambient gas probed by Planck to mostly perpendicular in the high-density main filament probed by JCMT. The magnetic field structures of the DR21 filament are in agreement with MHD simulations of a strongly magnetized medium, suggesting that magnetic fields play an important role in shaping the DR21 main filament and sub-filaments.
Peer Review Status:Awaiting Review
Subjects: Astronomy >> Astrophysical processes submitted time 2023-02-19
Riccardo Middei
Ioannis Liodakis
Matteo Perri
Simonetta Puccetti
Elisabetta Cavazzuti
Laura Di Gesu
Steven R. Ehlert
Grzegorz Madejski
Alan P. Marscher
Herman L. Marshall
Fabio Muleri
Michela Negro
Svetlana G. Jorstad
Beatriz Agís-González
Iván Agudo
Giacomo Bonnoli
Maria I. Bernardos
Víctor Casanova
Maya García-Comas
César Husillos
Abstract： Blazars are a class of jet-dominated active galactic nuclei with a typical double-humped spectral energy distribution. It is of common consensus the Synchrotron emission to be responsible for the low frequency peak, while the origin of the high frequency hump is still debated. The analysis of X-rays and their polarization can provide a valuable tool to understand the physical mechanisms responsible for the origin of high-energy emission of blazars. We report the first observations of BL Lacertae performed with the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer ({IXPE}), from which an upper limit to the polarization degree $\Pi_X<$12.6\% was found in the 2-8 keV band. We contemporaneously measured the polarization in radio, infrared, and optical wavelengths. Our multiwavelength polarization analysis disfavors a significant contribution of proton synchrotron radiation to the X-ray emission at these epochs. Instead, it supports a leptonic origin for the X-ray emission in BL Lac.
Peer Review Status:Awaiting Review
Subjects: Astronomy >> Astrophysical processes submitted time 2023-02-19
Mehrnoosh Tahani
Pierre Bastien
Ray S. Furuya
Kate Pattle
Doug Johnstone
Doris Arzoumanian
Yasuo Doi
Tetsuo Hasegawa
Shu-ichiro Inutsuka
Simon Coudé
Laura Fissel
Michael Chun-Yuan Chen
Frédérick Poidevin
Sarah Sadavoy
Rachel Friesen
Patrick M. Koch
James Di Francesco
Gerald H. Moriarty-Schieven
Zhiwei Chen
Eun Jung Chung
Abstract： We study the HII regions associated with the NGC 6334 molecular cloud observed in the sub-millimeter and taken as part of the B-fields In STar-forming Region Observations (BISTRO) Survey. In particular, we investigate the polarization patterns and magnetic field morphologies associated with these HII regions. Through polarization pattern and pressure calculation analyses, several of these bubbles indicate that the gas and magnetic field lines have been pushed away from the bubble, toward an almost tangential (to the bubble) magnetic field morphology. In the densest part of NGC 6334, where the magnetic field morphology is similar to an hourglass, the polarization observations do not exhibit observable impact from HII regions. We detect two nested radial polarization patterns in a bubble to the south of NGC 6334 that correspond to the previously observed bipolar structure in this bubble. Finally, using the results of this study, we present steps (incorporating computer vision; circular Hough Transform) that can be used in future studies to identify bubbles that have physically impacted magnetic field lines.
Peer Review Status:Awaiting Review
Subjects: Astronomy >> Astrophysical processes submitted time 2023-02-19
Jihye Hwang
Jongsoo Kim
Kate Pattle
Chang Won Lee
Patrick M. Koch
Doug Johnstone
Kohji Tomisaka
Anthony Whitworth
Ray S. Furuya
Ji-hyun Kang
A-Ran Lyo
Eun Jung Chung
Doris Arzoumanian
Geumsook Park
Woojin Kwon
Shinyoung Kim
Motohide Tamura
Jungmi Kwon
Archana Soam
Ilseung Han
Abstract： We present and analyze observations of polarized dust emission at 850 $\mu$m towards the central 1 pc $\times$ 1 pc hub-filament structure of Monoceros R2 (Mon R2). The data are obtained with SCUBA-2/POL-2 on the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope (JCMT) as part of the BISTRO (B-fields in Star-forming Region Observations) survey. The orientations of the magnetic field follow the spiral structure of Mon R2, which are well-described by an axisymmetric magnetic field model. We estimate the turbulent component of the magnetic field using the angle difference between our observations and the best-fit model of the underlying large-scale mean magnetic field. This estimate is used to calculate the magnetic field strength using the Davis-Chandrasekhar-Fermi method, for which we also obtain the distribution of volume density and velocity dispersion using a column density map derived from $Herschel$ data and the C$^{18}$O ($J$ = 3-2) data taken with HARP on the JCMT, respectively. We make maps of magnetic field strengths and mass-to-flux ratios, finding that magnetic field strengths vary from 0.02 to 3.64 mG with a mean value of 1.0 $\pm$ 0.06 mG, and the mean critical mass-to-flux ratio is 0.47 $\pm$ 0.02. Additionally, the mean Alfv\'en Mach number is 0.35 $\pm$ 0.01. This suggests that in Mon R2, magnetic fields provide resistance against large-scale gravitational collapse, and magnetic pressure exceeds turbulent pressure. We also investigate the properties of each filament in Mon R2. Most of the filaments are aligned along the magnetic field direction and are magnetically sub-critical.
Peer Review Status:Awaiting Review
Subjects: Astronomy >> Astrophysical processes submitted time 2023-02-19
Derek Ward-Thompson
Janik Karoly
Kate Pattle
Anthony Whitworth
Jason Kirk
David Berry
Pierre Bastien
Tao-Chung Ching
Simon Coude
Jihye Hwang
Woojin Kwon
Archana Soam
Jia-Wei Wang
Tetsuo Hasegawa
Shih-Ping Lai
Keping Qiu
Doris Arzoumanian
Tyler L. Bourke
Do-Young Byun
Huei-Ru Vivien Chen
Abstract： We present BISTRO Survey 850 {\mu}m dust emission polarisation observations of the L1495A-B10 region of the Taurus molecular cloud, taken at the JCMT. We observe a roughly triangular network of dense filaments. We detect 9 of the dense starless cores embedded within these filaments in polarisation, finding that the plane-of-sky orientation of the core-scale magnetic field lies roughly perpendicular to the filaments in almost all cases. We also find that the large-scale magnetic field orientation measured by Planck is not correlated with any of the core or filament structures, except in the case of the lowest-density core. We propose a scenario for early prestellar evolution that is both an extension to, and consistent with, previous models, introducing an additional evolutionary transitional stage between field-dominated and matter-dominated evolution, observed here for the first time. In this scenario, the cloud collapses first to a sheet-like structure. Uniquely, we appear to be seeing this sheet almost face-on. The sheet fragments into filaments, which in turn form cores. However, the material must reach a certain critical density before the evolution changes from being field-dominated to being matter-dominated. We measure the sheet surface density and the magnetic field strength at that transition for the first time and show consistency with an analytical prediction that had previously gone untested for over 50 years (Mestel 1965).
Peer Review Status:Awaiting Review
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