2016ApJ...830L..35R -
Astrophys. J., 830, L35-L35 (2016/October-3)
Deep Chandra observations of the compact starburst galaxy Henize 2-10: X-rays from the massive black hole.
REINES A.E., REYNOLDS M.T., MILLER J.M., SIVAKOFF G.R., GREENE J.E., HICKOX R.C. and JOHNSON K.E.
Abstract (from CDS):
We present follow-up X-ray observations of the candidate massive black hole (BH) in the nucleus of the low-mass, compact starburst galaxy Henize 2-10. Using new high-resolution observations from the Chandra X-ray Observatory totaling 200 ks in duration, as well as archival Chandra observations from 2001, we demonstrate the presence of a previously unidentified X-ray point source that is spatially coincident with the known nuclear radio source in Henize 2-10 (i.e., the massive BH). We show that the hard X-ray emission previously identified in the 2001 observation is dominated by a source that is distinct from the nucleus, with the properties expected for a high-mass X-ray binary. The X-ray luminosity of the nuclear source suggests the massive BH is radiating significantly below its Eddington limit (∼10–6 LEdd), and the soft spectrum resembles other weakly accreting massive BHs including Sagittarius A*. Analysis of the X-ray light curve of the nucleus reveals the tentative detection of a ∼9 hr periodicity, although additional observations are required to confirm this result. Our study highlights the need for sensitive high-resolution X-ray observations to probe low-level accretion, which is the dominant mode of BH activity throughout the universe.
Abstract Copyright:
© 2016. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.
Journal keyword(s):
accretion, accretion disks - galaxies: active - galaxies: dwarf - galaxies: nuclei - X-rays: general - X-rays: general
Simbad objects:
3
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