Search results for " accretion"
showing 10 items of 122 documents
Unveiling the environment and faint features of the isolated galaxy CIG 96 with deep optical and HI observations
2018
Context. Asymmetries in atomic hydrogen (HI) in galaxies are often caused by the interaction with close companions, making isolated galaxies an ideal framework to study secular evolution. The AMIGA project has demonstrated that isolated galaxies show the lowest level of asymmetry in their HI integrated profiles compared to even field galaxies, yet some present significant asymmetries. CIG 96 (NGC 864) is a representative case reaching a 16% level. Aims. Our aim is to investigate the HI asymmetries of the spiral galaxy CIG 96 and what processes have triggered the star-forming regions observed in the XUV pseudo-ring. Methods. We performed deep optical observations at CAHA1.23m, CAHA2.2m and V…
First M87 Event Horizon Telescope Results. V. Physical Origin of the Asymmetric Ring
2019
The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) has mapped the central compact radio source of the elliptical galaxy M87 at 1.3 mm with unprecedented angular resolution. Here we consider the physical implications of the asymmetric ring seen in the 2017 EHT data. To this end, we construct a large library of models based on general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic (GRMHD) simulations and synthetic images produced by general relativistic ray tracing. We compare the observed visibilities with this library and confirm that the asymmetric ring is consistent with earlier predictions of strong gravitational lensing of synchrotron emission from a hot plasma orbiting near the black hole event horizon. The ring rad…
QPO emission from moving hot spots on the surface of neutron stars: a model
2009
We present recent results of 3D magnetohydrodynamic simulations of neutron stars with small misalignment angles, as regards the features in lightcurves produced by regular movements of the hot spots during accretion onto the star. In particular, we show that the variation of position of the hot spot created by the infalling matter, as observed in 3D simulations, can produce high frequency Quasi Periodic Oscillations with frequencies associated with the inner zone of the disk. Previously reported simulations showed that the usual assumption of a fixed hot spot near the polar region is valid only for misalignment angles relatively large. Otherwise, two phenomena challenge the assumption: one …
Accretion Shocks in Young Stars: the Role of Local Absorption on the X-ray Emission
2015
We investigate the X-ray emission from accretion shocks in classical T Tauri stars, due to the infalling material impacting the stellar surface. Several aspects in both observations and models of the accretion process are still unclear: the observed X-ray luminosity of the post-shock plasma is below the predicted value, the density vs temperature structure of the shocked plasma, with increasing densities at higher temperature, is opposite of what expected from simple accretion shock models. To address these issues we performed numerical magnetohydrodynamic simulations describing the impact of an accretion stream onto the stellar surface and considered the local absorption due to the surroun…
Spin down of an Accreting Millisecond Pulsar, the case of XTE J1814‐338
2007
We report about a timing analysis performed on the data gathered by RXTE of the accreting millisecond pulsar XTE J1814-338 during its 2003 outburst. The first full orbital solution of this binary system is given. Moreover the evolution of the phase of the pulsed emission reveals that the rotating compact object is spinning down at a rate ν˙ = (-6.7 +/- 0.7) × 10-14 Hz/s, while accreting. This behavior is considered as a result of the braking effect due to the interaction between the magnetosphere and the inner parts of the accretion disc, in the case of an accretion rate low enough to allow the expansion of the magnetospheric radius to the corotation limit. In this context we derive an esti…
Study of the accretion torque during the 2014 outburst of the X-ray pulsar GRO J1744−28
2017
We present the spectral and timing analysis of the X-ray pulsar GRO J1744-28 during its 2014 outburst using data collected with the X-ray satellites Swift, INTEGRAL, Chandra, and XMM-Newton. We derived, by phase-connected timing analysis of the observed pulses, an updated set of the source ephemeris. We were also able to investigate the spin-up of the X-ray pulsar as a consequence of the accretion torque during the outburst. Relating the spin-up rate and the mass accretion rate as $\dot{\nu}\propto\dot{M}^{\beta}$, we fitted the pulse phase delays obtaining a value of $\beta=0.96(3)$. Combining the results from the source spin-up frequency derivative and the flux estimation, we constrained …
Gravitational-wave Detection and Parameter Estimation for Accreting Black-hole Binaries and Their Electromagnetic Counterpart
2020
We study the impact of gas accretion on the orbital evolution of black-hole binaries initially at large separation in the band of the planned Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA). We focus on two sources: (i)~stellar-origin black-hole binaries~(SOBHBs) that can migrate from the LISA band to the band of ground-based gravitational-wave observatories within weeks/months; and (ii) intermediate-mass black-hole binaries~(IMBHBs) in the LISA band only. Because of the large number of observable gravitational-wave cycles, the phase evolution of these systems needs to be modeled to great accuracy to avoid biasing the estimation of the source parameters. Accretion affects the gravitational-wave p…
On Relativistic Disk Spectroscopy in Compact Objects with X-ray CCD Cameras
2010
X-ray charge-coupled devices (CCDs) are the workhorse detectors of modern X-ray astronomy. Typically covering the 0.3-10.0 keV energy range, CCDs are able to detect photoelectric absorption edges and K shell lines from most abundant metals. New CCDs also offer resolutions of 30-50 (E/dE), which is sufficient to detect lines in hot plasmas and to resolve many lines shaped by dynamical processes in accretion flows. The spectral capabilities of X-ray CCDs have been particularly important in detecting relativistic emission lines from the inner disks around accreting neutron stars and black holes. One drawback of X-ray CCDs is that spectra can be distorted by photon "pile-up", wherein two or mor…
A TEST of the NATURE of the FE K LINE in the NEUTRON STAR LOW-MASS X-RAY BINARY SERPENS X-1
2015
Broad Fe K emission lines have been widely observed in the X-ray spectra of black hole systems, and in neutron star systems as well. The intrinsically narrow Fe K fluorescent line is generally believed to be part of the reflection spectrum originating in an illuminated accretion disk, and broadened by strong relativistic effects. However, the nature of the lines in neutron star LMXBs has been under debate. We therefore obtained the longest, high-resolution X-ray spectrum of a neutron star LMXB to date with a 300 ks Chandra HETGS observation of Serpens X-1. The observation was taken under the "continuous clocking" mode and thus free of photon pile-up effects. We carry out a systematic analys…
Radiative accretion shocks along nonuniform stellar magnetic fields in classical T Tauri stars
2013
(abridged) AIMS. We investigate the dynamics and stability of post-shock plasma streaming along nonuniform stellar magnetic fields at the impact region of accretion columns. We study how the magnetic field configuration and strength determine the structure, geometry, and location of the shock-heated plasma. METHODS. We model the impact of an accretion stream onto the chromosphere of a CTTS by 2D axisymmetric magnetohydrodynamic simulations. Our model takes into account the gravity, the radiative cooling, and the magnetic-field-oriented thermal conduction. RESULTS. The structure, stability, and location of the shocked plasma strongly depend on the configuration and strength of the magnetic f…