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The 3 Ms Chandra campaign on Sgr A*: a census of X-ray flaring activity from the Galactic center

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 May 2014

J. Neilsen ,
M. A. Nowak ,
C. Gammie ,
J. Dexter ,
S. Markoff ,
D. Haggard ,
S. Nayakshin ,
Q. D. Wang ,
N. Grosso  and
D. Porquet
...Show all authors
J. Neilsen
Affiliation:
Einstein Fellow, Boston University, 725 Commonwealth Ave, Boston MA 02215 email: neilsenj@bu.edu MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Cambridge MA 02139
M. A. Nowak
Affiliation:
MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Cambridge MA 02139
C. Gammie
Affiliation:
Departments of Astronomy & Physics, Univ. of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Urbana IL 61801
J. Dexter
Affiliation:
Theoretical Astrophysics Center and Department of Astronomy, UC Berkeley, CA 94720-3411
S. Markoff
Affiliation:
Astronomical Institute “Anton Pannekoek”, Univ. Amsterdam, 1098 XH Amsterdam, NL
D. Haggard
Affiliation:
CIERA Fellow, Physics and Astronomy Department, Northwestern Univ., Evanston, IL 60208
S. Nayakshin
Affiliation:
Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Leicester, Leicester LE1 7RHUK
Q. D. Wang
Affiliation:
Department of Astronomy, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01002
N. Grosso
Affiliation:
Observatoire Astronomique de Strasbourg, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, 67000 Strasbourg, FR
D. Porquet
Affiliation:
Observatoire Astronomique de Strasbourg, Université de Strasbourg, CNRS, 67000 Strasbourg, FR
J. A. Tomsick
Affiliation:
Space Sciences Laboratory, 7 Gauss Way, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720
N. Degenaar
Affiliation:
Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109; ND: Hubble Fellow
P. C. Fragile
Affiliation:
Department of Physics & Astronomy, College of Charleston, Charleston, SC 29424
J. C. Houck
Affiliation:
MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Cambridge MA 02139
R. Wijnands
Affiliation:
Astronomical Institute “Anton Pannekoek”, Univ. Amsterdam, 1098 XH Amsterdam, NL
J. M. Miller
Affiliation:
Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109; ND: Hubble Fellow
F. K. Baganoff
Affiliation:
MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Cambridge MA 02139
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Abstract

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Over the last decade, X-ray observations of Sgr A* have revealed a black hole in a deep sleep, punctuated roughly once per day by brief flares. The extreme X-ray faintness of this supermassive black hole has been a long-standing puzzle in black hole accretion. To study the accretion processes in the Galactic center, Chandra (in concert with numerous ground- and space-based observatories) undertook a 3 Ms campaign on Sgr A* in 2012. With its excellent observing cadence, sensitivity, and spectral resolution, this Chandra X-ray Visionary Project (XVP) provides an unprecedented opportunity to study the behavior of the closest supermassive black hole. We present a progress report from our ongoing study of X-ray flares, including the brightest flare ever seen from Sgr A*. Focusing on the statistics of the flares and the quiescent emission, we discuss the physical implications of X-ray variability in the Galactic center.

Keywords

accretionaccretion disksblack hole physicsradiation mechanisms: nonthermal
Type
Contributed Papers
Information
Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union , Volume 9 , Symposium S303: The Galactic Center: Feeding and Feedback in a Normal Galactic Nucleus , October 2013 , pp. 374 - 378
Copyright
Copyright © International Astronomical Union 2014 

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