A Nonthermal Bomb Explains the Near-infrared Superflare of Sgr A&z.ast

The Galactic center supermassive black hole, Sgr A, has experienced a strong, unprecedented flare in 2019 May when its near-infrared luminosity reached much brighter levels than ever measured. We argue that an explosive event of particle acceleration to nonthermal energies in the innermost parts of...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Gutiérrez, Eduardo Mario, Nemmen, Rodrigo, Cafardo, Fabio
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2020
País:Argentina
Institución:Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
Repositorio:CONICET Digital (CONICET)
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:ri.conicet.gov.ar:11336/121347
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/11336/121347
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:BLACK HOLE PHYSICS
RELATIVISTIC PARTICLES
RADIATION MECHANISMS: NONTHERMAL
https://purl.org/becyt/ford/1.3
https://purl.org/becyt/ford/1
Descripción
Sumario:The Galactic center supermassive black hole, Sgr A, has experienced a strong, unprecedented flare in 2019 May when its near-infrared luminosity reached much brighter levels than ever measured. We argue that an explosive event of particle acceleration to nonthermal energies in the innermost parts of the accretion flow- A nonthermal bomb-explains the near-infrared light curve. We discuss potential mechanisms that could explain this event such as magnetic reconnection and relativistic turbulence acceleration. Multiwavelength monitoring of such superflares in radio, infrared, and X-rays should allow a concrete test of the nonthermal bomb model and put better constraints on the mechanism that triggered the bomb.