Milliarcsecond X-Ray Positions and X-Ray Varstrometry for the Strongly Lensed Active Galactic Nucleus HE 0435-1223
Active galactic nuclei (AGN) are some of the most powerful objects in the Universe. For this reason, they can be observed up to high redshifts ( z ), giving valuable insights into the evolution of our Universe. However, high- z AGN are too distant to be spatially resolved with current or upcoming X-...
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IOP Publishing
2025-01-01
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| Series: | The Astrophysical Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/add71a |
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| author | Alysa Rogers Daniel Schwartz Cristiana Spingola Anna Barnacka |
| author_facet | Alysa Rogers Daniel Schwartz Cristiana Spingola Anna Barnacka |
| author_sort | Alysa Rogers |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Active galactic nuclei (AGN) are some of the most powerful objects in the Universe. For this reason, they can be observed up to high redshifts ( z ), giving valuable insights into the evolution of our Universe. However, high- z AGN are too distant to be spatially resolved with current or upcoming X-ray facilities. In this paper, we show how we can exploit gravitationally lensed AGN to significantly increase spatial resolution even at high z . We combine astrometric data from Gaia DR3 with imaging from the Chandra X-ray Observatory of the quadruply lensed quasar HE 0435-1223 to measure for the first time possible offsets between the optical and the X-ray emissions. We measure the X-ray source position for HE 0435-1223 within a 1 σ quasi-elliptical region of 0.5 × 1.3 milliarcsecond (mas), about 150 pc ^2 at the redshift of the source ( z = 1.689). We find evidence for the X-ray emission being offset by a projected 3 mas from the Gaia (optical) emission. The positional offset is most likely associated with a portion of the X-ray emission arising from an X-ray jet or outflow. We also discuss how this method can be used to indicate the presence of a binary/offset AGN system. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-0cb647ffdabf499ebd0949a518a461a1 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1538-4357 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
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| series | The Astrophysical Journal |
| spelling | doaj-art-0cb647ffdabf499ebd0949a518a461a12025-08-20T03:29:53ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572025-01-0198717510.3847/1538-4357/add71aMilliarcsecond X-Ray Positions and X-Ray Varstrometry for the Strongly Lensed Active Galactic Nucleus HE 0435-1223Alysa Rogers0https://orcid.org/0009-0009-2028-6521Daniel Schwartz1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8252-4753Cristiana Spingola2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2231-6861Anna Barnacka3https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5655-4158Physics Department, Brandeis University , Waltham, MA 02451, USASmithsonian Astrophysical Observatory , Cambridge, MA 02138, USA ; das@cfa.harvard.eduINAF—Istituto di Radioastronomia , Via Gobetti 101, I–40129, Bologna, ItalySmithsonian Astrophysical Observatory , Cambridge, MA 02138, USA ; das@cfa.harvard.edu; Astronomical Observatory, Jagiellonian University , ul. Orla 171, 30-244 Cracow, PolandActive galactic nuclei (AGN) are some of the most powerful objects in the Universe. For this reason, they can be observed up to high redshifts ( z ), giving valuable insights into the evolution of our Universe. However, high- z AGN are too distant to be spatially resolved with current or upcoming X-ray facilities. In this paper, we show how we can exploit gravitationally lensed AGN to significantly increase spatial resolution even at high z . We combine astrometric data from Gaia DR3 with imaging from the Chandra X-ray Observatory of the quadruply lensed quasar HE 0435-1223 to measure for the first time possible offsets between the optical and the X-ray emissions. We measure the X-ray source position for HE 0435-1223 within a 1 σ quasi-elliptical region of 0.5 × 1.3 milliarcsecond (mas), about 150 pc ^2 at the redshift of the source ( z = 1.689). We find evidence for the X-ray emission being offset by a projected 3 mas from the Gaia (optical) emission. The positional offset is most likely associated with a portion of the X-ray emission arising from an X-ray jet or outflow. We also discuss how this method can be used to indicate the presence of a binary/offset AGN system.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/add71aGravitational lensingActive galactic nucleiX-ray astronomy |
| spellingShingle | Alysa Rogers Daniel Schwartz Cristiana Spingola Anna Barnacka Milliarcsecond X-Ray Positions and X-Ray Varstrometry for the Strongly Lensed Active Galactic Nucleus HE 0435-1223 The Astrophysical Journal Gravitational lensing Active galactic nuclei X-ray astronomy |
| title | Milliarcsecond X-Ray Positions and X-Ray Varstrometry for the Strongly Lensed Active Galactic Nucleus HE 0435-1223 |
| title_full | Milliarcsecond X-Ray Positions and X-Ray Varstrometry for the Strongly Lensed Active Galactic Nucleus HE 0435-1223 |
| title_fullStr | Milliarcsecond X-Ray Positions and X-Ray Varstrometry for the Strongly Lensed Active Galactic Nucleus HE 0435-1223 |
| title_full_unstemmed | Milliarcsecond X-Ray Positions and X-Ray Varstrometry for the Strongly Lensed Active Galactic Nucleus HE 0435-1223 |
| title_short | Milliarcsecond X-Ray Positions and X-Ray Varstrometry for the Strongly Lensed Active Galactic Nucleus HE 0435-1223 |
| title_sort | milliarcsecond x ray positions and x ray varstrometry for the strongly lensed active galactic nucleus he 0435 1223 |
| topic | Gravitational lensing Active galactic nuclei X-ray astronomy |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/add71a |
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