1. A possible relativistic jetted outburst from a massive black hole fed by a tidally disrupted star.
- Author
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Bloom JS, Giannios D, Metzger BD, Cenko SB, Perley DA, Butler NR, Tanvir NR, Levan AJ, O'Brien PT, Strubbe LE, De Colle F, Ramirez-Ruiz E, Lee WH, Nayakshin S, Quataert E, King AR, Cucchiara A, Guillochon J, Bower GC, Fruchter AS, Morgan AN, and van der Horst AJ
- Abstract
Gas accretion onto some massive black holes (MBHs) at the centers of galaxies actively powers luminous emission, but most MBHs are considered dormant. Occasionally, a star passing too near an MBH is torn apart by gravitational forces, leading to a bright tidal disruption flare (TDF). Although the high-energy transient Sw 1644+57 initially displayed none of the theoretically anticipated (nor previously observed) TDF characteristics, we show that observations suggest a sudden accretion event onto a central MBH of mass about 10(6) to 10(7) solar masses. There is evidence for a mildly relativistic outflow, jet collimation, and a spectrum characterized by synchrotron and inverse Compton processes; this leads to a natural analogy of Sw 1644+57 to a temporary smaller-scale blazar.
- Published
- 2011
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