The Unanticipated Phenomenology of the Blazar PKS~2131\(-\)021: A Unique Super-Massive Black Hole Binary Candidate

The Unanticipated Phenomenology of the Blazar PKS~2131\(-\)021: A Unique Super-Massive Black Hole Binary Candidate

Most large galaxies host supermassive black holes in their nuclei and are subject to mergers, which can produce a supermassive black hole binary (SMBHB), and hence periodic signatures due to orbital motion. We report unique periodic radio flux density variations in the blazar PKS~2131\(-\)021, which...

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Veröffentlicht in:arXiv.org 2022-01
Hauptverfasser: O'Neill, S, Kiehlmann, S, Readhead, A C S, Aller, M F, Blandford, R D, Liodakis, I, Lister, M L, Mróz, P, O'Dea, C P, Pearson, T J, Ravi, V, Vallisneri, M, Cleary, K A, Graham, M J, Grainge, K J B, Hodges, M W, Hovatta, T, Lähteenmäki, A, Lamb, J W, Lazio, T J W, Max-Moerbeck, W, Pavlidou, V, Prince, T A, Reeves, R A, Tornikoski, M, P Vergara de la Para, Zensus, J A
Format: Artikel
Sprache:eng
Schlagworte:
Flux density
Galaxies
Gravitational waves
Light curve
Modulation
Periodic variations
Physics - High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
Pulsars
Sine waves
Supermassive black holes
Z transforms
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Zusammenfassung:Most large galaxies host supermassive black holes in their nuclei and are subject to mergers, which can produce a supermassive black hole binary (SMBHB), and hence periodic signatures due to orbital motion. We report unique periodic radio flux density variations in the blazar PKS~2131\(-\)021, which strongly suggest an SMBHB with an orbital separation of \(\sim 0.001-0.01\) pc. Our 45.1-year radio light curve shows two epochs of strong sinusoidal variation with the same period and phase to within \(
ISSN:2331-8422
DOI:10.48550/arxiv.2111.02436