2025ApJ...978..120P -
Astrophys. J., 978, 120 (2025/January-2)
B2 1308+326: A Changing-look Blazar or Not?
PANDEY A., HU C., WANG J.-M., CZERNY B., CHEN Y.-J., SONGSHENG Y.-Y., WANG Y.-L., ZHANG H. and ACEITUNO J.
Abstract (from CDS):
In our previous study, we identified a shift in the synchrotron peak frequency of the blazar B2 1308+326 from 1012.9 to 1014.8 Hz during a flare, suggesting it could be a changing-look blazar (CLB). In this work, we investigate the changing-look behaviour of B2 1308+326 by analysing a newly acquired optical spectrum and comparing it with an archival spectrum. We find that between the two epochs, the continuum flux increased by a factor of ∼4.4, while the Mg II emission line flux decreased by a factor of 1.4 ± 0.2. Additionally, the equivalent width of the Mg II line reduced from ∼20 to ∼3 Å, indicating an apparent shift from a flat-spectrum radio quasar (FSRQ) class to a BL Lacertae (BL Lac) class. Despite this apparent change, the ratio of accretion disk luminosity to Eddington luminosity remains >10–2 during both epochs, indicating efficient accretion persists in B2 1308+326. The measured black hole mass remains consistent with an average $\mathrm{log}{M}_{{\rm{BH}}}=8.44$M⊙. Our findings suggest that B2 1308+326 is not a genuine CLB but rather an intrinsic FSRQ that emerges as a BL Lac during high-flux states due to enhanced nonthermal emission.
Abstract Copyright:
© 2024. The Author(s). Published by the American Astronomical Society.
Journal keyword(s):
Flat-spectrum radio quasars - Blazars - Active galactic nuclei - Radio loud quasars - Relativistic jets
Simbad objects:
4
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