A possible relativistic jetted outburst from a massive black hole fed by a tidally disrupted star

Joshua S. Bloom; Dimitrios Giannios; Brian D. Metzger; S. Bradley Cenko; Daniel A. Perley; Nathaniel R. Butler; Nial R. Tanvir; Andrew J. Levan; Paul T. O'Brien; Linda E. Strubbe; Fabio De Colle; Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz; William H. Lee; Sergei Nayakshin; Eliot Quataert; Andrew R. King; Antonino Cucchiara; James Guillochon; Geoffrey C. Bower; Andrew S. Fruchter; Adam N. Morgan; Alexander J. Van Der Horst

doi:10.1126/science.1207150

A possible relativistic jetted outburst from a massive black hole fed by a tidally disrupted star

Joshua S. Bloom, Dimitrios Giannios, Brian D. Metzger, S. Bradley Cenko, Daniel A. Perley, Nathaniel R. Butler, Nial R. Tanvir, Andrew J. Levan, Paul T. O'Brien, Linda E. Strubbe, Fabio De Colle, Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz, William H. Lee, Sergei Nayakshin, Eliot Quataert, Andrew R. King, Antonino Cucchiara, James Guillochon, Geoffrey C. Bower, Andrew S. FruchterAdam N. Morgan, Alexander J. Van Der Horst

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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 10⁶ to 10⁷ 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.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	203-206
Number of pages	4
Journal	Science
Volume	333
Issue number	6039
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1207150
State	Published - Jul 8 2011
Externally published	Yes

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Bloom, J. S., Giannios, D., Metzger, B. D., Cenko, S. B., Perley, D. A., Butler, N. R., Tanvir, N. R., Levan, A. J., O'Brien, P. T., Strubbe, L. E., De Colle, F., Ramirez-Ruiz, E., Lee, W. H., Nayakshin, S., Quataert, E., King, A. R., Cucchiara, A., Guillochon, J., Bower, G. C., ... Van Der Horst, A. J. (2011). A possible relativistic jetted outburst from a massive black hole fed by a tidally disrupted star. Science, 333(6039), 203-206. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1207150

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 & Van Der Horst, AJ 2011, 'A possible relativistic jetted outburst from a massive black hole fed by a tidally disrupted star', Science, vol. 333, no. 6039, pp. 203-206. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1207150

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title = "A possible relativistic jetted outburst from a massive black hole fed by a tidally disrupted star",

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 106 to 107 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.",

author = "Bloom, {Joshua S.} and Dimitrios Giannios and Metzger, {Brian D.} and Cenko, {S. Bradley} and Perley, {Daniel A.} and Butler, {Nathaniel R.} and Tanvir, {Nial R.} and Levan, {Andrew J.} and O'Brien, {Paul T.} and Strubbe, {Linda E.} and {De Colle}, Fabio and Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz and Lee, {William H.} and Sergei Nayakshin and Eliot Quataert and King, {Andrew R.} and Antonino Cucchiara and James Guillochon and Bower, {Geoffrey C.} and Fruchter, {Andrew S.} and Morgan, {Adam N.} and {Van Der Horst}, {Alexander J.}",

year = "2011",

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doi = "10.1126/science.1207150",

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T1 - A possible relativistic jetted outburst from a massive black hole fed by a tidally disrupted star

AU - Bloom, Joshua S.

AU - Giannios, Dimitrios

AU - Metzger, Brian D.

AU - Cenko, S. Bradley

AU - Perley, Daniel A.

AU - Butler, Nathaniel R.

AU - Tanvir, Nial R.

AU - Levan, Andrew J.

AU - O'Brien, Paul T.

AU - Strubbe, Linda E.

AU - De Colle, Fabio

AU - Ramirez-Ruiz, Enrico

AU - Lee, William H.

AU - Nayakshin, Sergei

AU - Quataert, Eliot

AU - King, Andrew R.

AU - Cucchiara, Antonino

AU - Guillochon, James

AU - Bower, Geoffrey C.

AU - Fruchter, Andrew S.

AU - Morgan, Adam N.

AU - Van Der Horst, Alexander J.

PY - 2011/7/8

Y1 - 2011/7/8

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AB - 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 106 to 107 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.

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A possible relativistic jetted outburst from a massive black hole fed by a tidally disrupted star

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