Narrow Results

We have performed the first 3.5 mm polarimetric survey of radio loud active galactic nuclei (AGN) with the IRAM 30 m Telescope. Unlike radio wavelengths, millimeter observations allow us to measure the intrinsic linearly polarized emission from AGN, thanks to the marginal effect of Faraday rotation and depolarization at mm wavelengths. The sample contains 145 sources, and it essentially consists of all flat-spectrum AGN with declinations accessible to the 30 m Telescope (Dec. (J2000.0) > -30°), and with 3 mm flux density ≳ 1 Jy, as measured from 1978 to 1994. LBAS quasars in our sample show larger luminosity than non-LBAS ones, which is consistent with previous work claiming larger Doppler factors for brighter γ-ray blazars. This effect cannot be claimed for BL Lacertae objects in our sample, which suggests that only quasars contribute to distribute LBAS blazars towards larger luminosities. We find a systematic 3.5 mm linear polarization degree excess by a factor of ~ 2 with regard to the one at 2 cm for all optical and γ-ray classes of sources considered here. Our sample shows a significant trend to increase the luminosity of their jets for decreasing linear polarization fraction. Unlike previous studies in the radio spectral range, we do not find a clear relation between the linear polarization angle and the jet structural position angle of any source class in our sample. This is interpreted as a markedly non-axisymmetric character of the 3 mm emitting region of radio loud AGN jets.

Active galactic nuclei present continuum and line emission. The emission lines are originated by gas located close to the central supermassive black hole. Some of these lines are broad, and would be produced in a small region called broad-line region. This region could be formed by clouds surrounding the central black hole. In this work, we study the interaction of such clouds with the base of the jets in active galactic nuclei, and we compute the produced high-energy emission. We focus on sources with low luminosities in the inner jet regions, to avoid strong gamma-ray absorption. We find that the resulting high-energy radiation may be significant in Centaurus A. Also, this phenomenon might be behind the variable gamma-ray emission detected in M87, if very large dark clouds are present. The detection of jet–cloud interactions in active galactic nuclei would give information on the properties of the jet base and the very central regions.

We present a detailed statistical analysis of the alignment of polarizations of radio sources at high redshift. This study is motivated by the puzzling signal of alignment of polarizations from distant quasars at optical frequencies. We use a coordinate invariant measure of dispersion to test for alignment of polarizations of widely separated sources. The data from JVAS/CLASS 8.4 GHz surveys are used for our study. We find that the data set with polarization flux greater than 1 mJy shows a significant signal of alignment at distance scales of order 150 Mpc. The significance of alignment decreases as we go to larger distances. In contrast the data set with polarization flux less than 1 mJy does not show significant alignment at short distances. However this set, as well as the full data sample, shows a very significant signal at large distances of order 500–850 Mpc. Due to the presence of relatively large error in the low polarization sample, this signal needs to be tested further with more refined data. We also study the signal by imposing a cut on the error in polarization. We find that the significance of alignment increases with decrease in fractional error. We are unable to attribute our results to known sources of bias. We discuss a possible physical explanation of our results.

Recollimation shocks (RS) appear associated with relativistic flows propagating through pressure mismatched atmospheres. Astrophysical scenarios invoking the presence of such shocks include jets from AGNs and X-ray binaries and GRBs. We shall start reviewing the theoretical background behind the structure of RS in overpressured jets. Next, basing on numerical simulations, we will focus on the properties of RS in relativistic steady jets threaded by helical magnetic fields depending on the dominant type of energy. Synthetic radio maps from the simulation of the synchrotron emission for a selection of models in the context of parsec-scale extragalactic jets will also be discussed.

The inner regions of galaxies are rich in gas and stars that can interact with the jet and produce high-energy nonthermal emission, as well as significantly mass-load the jet. In this work, we focus on a population of stars with strong winds, which accumulate material around the star outside the jet, confined by pressure equilibrium with the environment, in the form of a bubble. When these bubbles reach the jet, a shock is produced in the external bubble layer, which may cause part of the material to be peeled away and carried upstream at the contact discontinuity (CD). Part of the remaining bubble may penetrate the jet, and eventually detach and accelerate up to relativistic speeds, producing nonthermal emission.

We conclude that, for the studied population, these events are unlikely to mass-load the jet significantly and affect it dynamically. Our results show that the generated emission is potentially detectable for nearby sources, though not as persistent radiation, but rather in the form of long “flares” lasting for a few years, and with an event rate of about a few per century.

Recent discoveries by VERITAS, H.E.S.S., and MAGIC indicate that very-high-energy (VHE) gamma-rays may be produced in all types of blazars, including radio-loud quasars. In the dense nuclear radiation fields (BLR, dust torus IR) in these objects, VHE gamma-rays may be efficiently absorbed and initiate Compton-supported pair cascades. We have developed a Monte-Carlo code following the full 3-dimensional development of pair cascades in AGN environments. We have shown that even very weak magnetic fields may lead to efficient quasi-isotropization of the cascade emission, escaping predominantly in MeV – GeV gamma-rays. We propose this as a potential contributor to the Fermi gamma-ray flux from several radio galaxies, and present model fits to the Fermi-detected radio galaxies NGC 1275 and Cen A.

We present some results on the radiative signatures of the one zone hadronic model. For this we have solved five spatially averaged, time-dependent coupled kinetic equations which describe the evolution of relativistic protons, electrons, photons, neutrons and neutrinos in a spherical volume containing a magnetic field. Protons are injected and lose energy by synchrotron, photopair and photopion production. We model photopair and photopion using the results of relevant MC codes, like the SOPHIA code in the case of photopion, which give accurate description for the injection of secondaries which then become source functions in their respective equations. This approach allows us to calculate the expected photon and neutrino spectra simultaneously in addition to examining questions like the efficiency and the temporal behaviour of the hadronic models.

We review the high energy properties of Misaligned AGNs associated with γ-ray sources detected by Fermi in 24 months of survey. Most of them are nearby emission low power radio galaxies (i.e FRIs) which probably have structured jets. On the contrary, high power radio sources (i.e FRIIs) with GeV emission are rare. The small number of FRIIs does not seem to be related to their higher redshifts. Assuming proportionality between the radio core flux and the γ-ray flux, several of them are expected to be bright enough to be detected above 100 MeV in spite of their distance. We suggest that beaming/jet structural differences are responsible for the detection rate discrepancy observed between FRIs and FRIIs.

Relativistic jets in blazars on parsec scales can now be explored with direct imaging at radio wavelengths as well as observations of time variability of flux and linear polarization at various wavebands. The results thus far suggest that the millimeter-wave "core" is usually a standing, conical shock and that the jet plasma is turbulent. Disturbances and turbulent plasma crossing the standing shock can explain much of the observed variability, as well as the appearance of bright knots moving down the jet at superluminal apparent speeds. The core, located parsecs downstream of the central engine, appears to be the site of many of the outbursts observed at optical, X-ray, and γ-ray energies. Rotations in the optical polarization position angle prior to the passage of a knot through the millimeter-wave core provide evidence for helical magnetic fields that accelerate and collimate the jet before turbulence tangles the fields.

I review constraints on the physical properties of AGN jets revealed through Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) studies of the structure and time-evolution of parsec-scale jets, including recent results from the MOJAVE program. In particular I focus on constraints available from very long time baseline studies which probe a wide range of jet behavior over many outbursts. Kinematic studies of propagating jet features find an apparent speed distribution that peaks around 10c for blazars, with speeds up to 50c observed. These observed speeds require Lorentz factors at least as large, implying that parsec-scale Lorentz factors up to 10-20 are common for blazars with a tail up to ~ 50. Jet flows are still becoming organized on these scales as evidenced by the high incidence of non-radial motions and/or accelerations of jet features (including increases and decreases in apparent speed and direction). Changes in Lorentz factors of propagating jet features appear to play a significant role in the observed accelerations, and while the connection between acceleration of jet features and the underlying flow is not clear, the pattern of observed accelerations suggest the flow may increase in speed near the base of the jet and decrease further out. In some jets, ejections of new features span a range of ejection angles over many epochs, tracing out wider opening angles on parsec-scales than are apparent in single epoch observations.

The giant radio galaxy M 87, with its proximity (16 Mpc) and its very massive black hole ((3-6) × 10⁹ M_⊙), provides a unique laboratory to investigate very high energy (E>100 GeV; VHE) gamma-ray emission from active galactic nuclei and, thereby, probe particle acceleration to relativistic energies near supermassive black holes (SMBH) and in relativistic jets. M 87 has been established as a VHE γ-ray emitter since 2005. The VHE γ-ray emission displays strong variability on timescales as short as a day. In 2008, a rise in the 43 GHz Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) radio emission of the innermost region (core; extension of < 100 R_s; Schwarzschild radii) was found to coincide with a flaring activity at VHE. This had been interpreted as a strong indication that the VHE emission is produced in the direct vicinity of the SMBH. In 2010 a flare at VHE was again detected triggering further multi-wavelength (MWL) observations with the VLBA, Chandra, and other instruments. At the same time, M 87 was also observed with the Fermi-LAT telescope at MeV/GeV energies, the European VLBI Network (EVN), and the Liverpool Telescope (LT). Here, preliminary results from the 2010 campaign will be reported.

Helical magnetic fields may play an important role in the formation, collimation, and acceleration of relativistic jets in active galactic nuclei. These may be searched for by looking for Faraday rotation measure (RM) gradients and emission stratification across the jet width. Multi-epoch polarimetric Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) observations of the radio galaxy 3C 120 have revealed the existence of such a RM gradient across the jet, but the presence of a localized region of enhanced RM and uncorrelated changes in the polarization of the underlying jet emission and the Faraday rotation screen suggest that a significant fraction of the RM found in 3C 120 originates in foreground clouds. Thanks to the combination of 48 images spanning 14 years of 15 GHz VLBA observations of 3C 273 we have found a stratification in total intensity across the jet that flips sides with distance along the jet, supporting a model in which the jet of 3C 273 accelerates and is threaded by a helical magnetic field.

We locate the γ-ray and lower frequency emission in flares of the BL Lac object AO 0235+164 at ≳12 pc in the jet of the source from the central engine. We employ time-dependent multi-spectral-range flux and linear polarization monitoring observations, as well as ultra-high resolution (~0.15 milliarcsecond) imaging of the jet structure at λ = 7 mm. The time coincidence in the end of 2008 of the propagation of the brightest superluminal feature detected in AO 0235+164 (Qs) with an extreme multi-spectral-range (γ-ray to radio) outburst, and an extremely high optical and 7 mm (for Qs) polarization degree provides strong evidence supporting that all these events are related. This is confirmed at high significance by probability arguments and Monte-Carlo simulations. These simulations show the unambiguous correlation of the γ-ray flaring state in the end of 2008 with those in the optical, millimeter, and radio regime, as well as the connection of a prominent X-ray flare in October 2008, and of a series of optical linear polarization peaks, with the set of events in the end of 2008. The observations are interpreted as the propagation of an extended moving perturbation through a re-collimation structure at the end of the jet's acceleration and collimation zone.

We introduce MAPCAT, a long-term observing program for "Monitoring of AGN with Polarimetry at the Calar Alto Telescopes". Multi-spectral-range studies are critical to understand some of the most relevant current problems of high energy astrophysics of blazars such as their high energy emission mechanisms and the location of their γ-ray emission region through event associations across the spectrum. Adding multi-spectral-range polarimetry allows for even more reliable identification of polarized flares across the spectrum in these kind of objects, as well as for more accurate modeling of their magnetic field. As part of a major international effort to study the long term multi-spectral range polarimetric behavior of blazars, MAPCAT uses -since mid 2007- CAFOS on the 2.2m Telescope at the Calar Alto Observatory (Almería, Spain) to obtain monthly optical (R-band) photo-polarimetric measurements of a sample of 34 of the brightest γ-ray, optical, and radio-millimeter blazars accessible from the northern hemisphere.

We present results of multiwavelength observations of the ultraluminous radio-loud quasar PKS 0528+134 in quiescence in the Fall of 2009. Significant flux variability on a time-scale of several hours was found in the optical regime, accompanied by a weak trend of spectral softening with increasing flux. The optical flux is weakly polarized with rapid variations of the degree and direction of polarization. Optical spectropolarimetry suggests a trend of increasing degree of polarization with increasing wavelength. Together with the spectral variability, this provides evidence for an unpolarized, slowly variable emission component, possibly thermal emission from the accretion disk, contributing towards the blue end of the optical spectrum.

We find that even in the quiescent state, the bolometric luminosity of PKS 0528+134 is dominated by its γ-ray emission. A leptonic single-zone jet model produced acceptable fits to the SEDs with contributions to the high-energy emission from both synchrotron self-Compton radiation and Comptonization of direct accretion disk emission. The moderate variability on long time scales, compared to the expected radiative cooling time scales, implies the existence of on-going particle acceleration, while the observed optical polarization variability seems to point towards a turbulent acceleration process.

We present Very Long Baseline Array observations of the radio galaxy 3C 120 during 2010, revealing the existence of a very unusual component (hereafter C80) located at 80 mas (deprojected to 140 pc) with a brightness temperature ≈ 600 times higher than expected at such distance from the core. No significant changes in the position and flux density of C80 has been observed from its discovered up to these new observations suggesting that it may be associated with a strong recollimation shock. Components downstream of C80 move at superluminal velocities, resembling the situation near the HST-1 component in M87.

Diffuse, non-thermal extended emission not associated with the AGN phenomenon, found in many clusters of galaxies hosted by an AGN, are related to the acceleration of cosmic rays. In the current work we present preliminary evidence of absence of such formations in clusters of galaxies hosted by optically identified cD galaxies. Our subsample consists of three powerful low redshift radiogalaxies, centered in poor clusters of galaxies. We have searched for radio relics and (mini) halos which could be forming as a result of the confinement of cosmic rays by bubbles creayed by the AGN. We report on the work in progress.

Radio and optical images of the M 87 jet show bright filaments, twisted into an apparent double helix, extending from HST-1 to knot A. Proper motions within the jet suggest a decelerating jet flow passing through a slower, accelerating wave pattern. A mass and energy flux conserving model requires the jet to be an internally hot, but subrelativistic plasma, from HST-1 to knot A. Kelvin-Helmholtz (KH) elliptical mode generated twisted filaments require the cocoon to be cooler than the jet at HST-1 but nearly as hot as the jet at knot A. A pseudo-synchrotron image of our model jet shows both similarities and differences when compared to an image of the real jet.

We describe a Chandra ToO project designed to isolate the site of TeV flaring in the radio galaxy M87. To date, we have triggered the Chandra observations only once (2010 April) and by the time of our first observation, the TeV flare had ended. However, we found that the X-ray intensity of the unresolved nucleus was at an elevated level at the time of our first of 9 observations. Of the ~70 observations we have made of the M87 jet covering 9 years, the nucleus was measured at > 1 keV/s only 3 times. Two of these occasions can be associated with TeV flaring, and at the time of the third event, there were no TeV monitoring activities. We discuss the implications of these data.

The blazar 3C 454.3 has become the most active and brightest γ-ray source of the sky, earning the nickname of Crazy Diamond. The short-term variability in the γ-ray energy band and the extremely high peak fluxes reached during intense flaring episodes make 3C 454.3 one of the best targets to investigate the blazar jet properties. We will review four years of observational properties of this remarkable source, discussing both short- and long-term multi-wavelength campaigns, with particular emphasis on the recent flaring episode which occurred on 2010 November 20, when 3C 454.3 reached on a daily time-scale a gamma-ray flux (E > 100 MeV) higher than 6 × 10^-5 photons cm^-2 s^-1, about six times the flux of the brightest γ-ray steady source, the Vela Pulsar.