Satoshi Nakahira

Repetitive patterns in rapid optical variations in the nearby black-hole binary V404 Cygni.

How black holes accrete surrounding matter is a fundamental yet unsolved question in astrophysics. It is generally believed that matter is absorbed into black holes via accretion disks, the state of which depends primarily on the mass-accretion rate. When this rate approaches the critical rate (the Eddington limit), thermal instability is supposed to occur in the inner disk, causing repetitive patterns of large-amplitude X-ray variability (oscillations) on timescales of minutes to hours. In fact, such oscillations have been observed only in sources with a high mass-accretion rate, such as GRS 1915+105 (refs 2, 3). These large-amplitude, relatively slow timescale, phenomena are thought to have physical origins distinct from those of X-ray or optical variations with small amplitudes and fast timescales (less than about 10 seconds) often observed in other black-hole binaries—for example, XTE J1118+480 (ref. 4) and GX 339−4 (ref. 5). Here we report an extensive multi-colour optical photometric data set of V404 Cygni, an X-ray transient source containing a black hole of nine solar masses (and a companion star) at a distance of 2.4 kiloparsecs (ref. 8). Our data show that optical oscillations on timescales of 100 seconds to 2.5 hours can occur at mass-accretion rates more than ten times lower than previously thought. This suggests that the accretion rate is not the critical parameter for inducing inner-disk instabilities. Instead, we propose that a long orbital period is a key condition for these large-amplitude oscillations, because the outer part of the large disk in binaries with long orbital periods will have surface densities too low to maintain sustained mass accretion to the inner part of the disk. The lack of sustained accretion—not the actual rate—would then be the critical factor causing large-amplitude oscillations in long-period systems.

THE ACCRETION DISK AND IONIZED ABSORBER OF THE 9.7 hr DIPPING BLACK HOLE BINARY MAXI J1305–704

We report the results from X-ray studies of the newly discovered black hole candidate MAXI J1305–704 based on Suzaku and Swift observations in the low/hard and high/soft states, respectively. The long Suzaku observation shows two types of clear absorption dips, both of which recur on a dip interval of 9.74 ± 0.04 hr, which we identify with the orbital period. There is also partially ionized absorption in the nondip (persistent) emission in both the high/soft state and, very unusually, the low/hard state. However, this absorption (in both states) has substantially lower ionization than that seen in other high inclination systems, where the material forms a homogeneous disk wind. Here instead the absorption is most likely associated with clumpy, compact structures associated with the dipping material, which we see uniquely in this source likely because we view it at a very large inclination angle. A large inclination angle is also favored, together with a low black hole mass, to explain the high disk temperature seen in the fairly low luminosity high/soft state, as Doppler boosting enhances the disk temperature at high inclination. The disk radius inferred from these data is significantly smaller than that of the soft component seen in the low/hard state, supporting models where the disk is truncated at low luminosities. We find, however, that the lack of variability power on timescales of ~50 s in the Suzaku low/hard state data is difficult to explain, even with a low-mass black hole.

Combined Spectral and Timing Analysis of the Black Hole Candidate MAXI J1659-152, Discovered by MAXI and Swift

We report on X-ray spectral and timing results of the new black hole candidate (BHC) MAXI J1659-152 with the orbital period of 2.41 hours (shortest among BHCs) in the 2010 outburst from 65 Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) observations and 8 simultaneous Swift and RXTE observations. According to the definitions of the spectral states in Remillard & McClintock (2006), most of the observations have been classified into the intermediate state. All the X-ray broadband spectra can be modeled by a multi-color disk plus a power-law with an exponential cutoff or a multi-color disk plus a Comptonization component. During the initial phase of the outburst, a high energy cutoff was visible at 30-40 keV. The innermost radius of the disk gradually decreased by a factor of more than 3 from the onset of the outburst and reached a constant value of 35 d(sub 10)cos(i sup 1/2) km, where d(sub 10) is the distance in units of 10 kpc and i is the inclination. The type-C quasi-periodic oscillation (QPO) frequency varied from 1.6 Hz to 7.3 Hz in association with a change of the innermost radius, while the innermost radius remained constant during the type-B QPO detections at 1.6-4.1 Hz. Hence, we suggest that the origin of the type-B QPOs is different from that of type-C QPOs, the latter of which would originate from the disk truncation radius. Assuming the constant innermost radius in the latter phase of the outburst as the innermost stable circular orbit, the black hole mass in MAXI J1659-152 is estimated to be 3.6-8.0 solar mass for a distance of 5.3-8.6 kpc and an inclination angle of 60-75 degrees.

A PROPELLER-EFFECT INTERPRETATION OF MAXI/GSC LIGHT CURVES OF 4U 1608–52 AND Aql X-1 AND APPLICATION TO XTE J1701–462

We present the luminosity dwell-time distributions during the hard states of two low-mass X-ray binaries containing a neutron star (NS), 4U 1608?52 and Aql X-1, observed with MAXI/GSC. The luminosity distributions show a steep cutoff on the low-luminosity side at ~1.0 ? 1036?erg?s?1 in both sources. The cutoff implies a rapid luminosity decrease in their outburst decay phases and this decrease can be interpreted as being due to the propeller effect. We estimate the surface magnetic field of 4U 1608?52 to be (0.5-1.6) ? 108?G and Aql X-1 to be (0.6-1.9) ? 108?G from the cutoff luminosity and apply the same propeller mechanism to the similar rapid luminosity decrease observed in the transient Z source, XTE J1701?462, with RXTE/ASM. Assuming that the spin period of the NS is on the order of milliseconds, the observed cutoff luminosity implies a surface magnetic field on the order of 109?G.

The First MAXI/GSC Catalog in the High Galactic-Latitude Sky

AbstractWe present the first unbiased source catalog of the Monitor of All-sky X-ray Image (MAXI) mission athigh Galactic latitudes (|b|>10 ◦ ), produced from the first 7-month data (2009 September 1 to 2010 March31) of the Gas Slit Camera in the 4–10 keV band. We develop an analysis procedure to detect faint sourcesfrom the MAXI data, utilizing a maximum likelihood image fitting method, where the image response,background, and detailed observational conditions are taken into account. The catalog consists of 143X-ray sources above 7 sigma significance level with a limiting sensitivity of ∼ 1.5×10 −11 ergs cm −2 s −1 (1.2 mCrab) in the 4–10 keV band. Among them, we identify 38 Galactic/LMC/SMC objects, 48 galaxyclusters, 39 Seyfert galaxies, 12 blazars, and 1 galaxy. Other 4 sources are confused with multiple objects,and one remains unidentified. The log N - log S relation of extragalactic objects is in a good agreementwith the HEAO-1 A-2 result, although the list of the brightest AGNs in the entire sky has significantlychanged since that in 30 years ago.Key words:catalogs — surveys — galaxies: active — X-rays: galaxies1. INTRODUCTIONAll-sky X-ray surveys are powerful tools to investigatethe whole populations of active and hot phenomena inthe universe at the brightest flux end. The strong X-ray emitters include Galactic objects such as active stars,SNRs, pulsars, CVs, low mass and high mass X-ray bi-naries (with a neutron star or a black hole as the pri-mary), and extragalactic objects, mainly active galacticnuclei (AGNs; Seyfert galaxies and blazars) and clustersof galaxies. The source catalog consisting of a statisticallywell-defined sample detected from an unbiased survey isa primary product on which many subsequent studies arebased. For extragalactic populations, in particular, theseresults define the “local” sample in the present universe,the end point of their cosmological evolution. Thus, toestablish the statistical properties of bright X-ray sourcesusing the best quality data over the entire sky has alwaysbeen a key issue in high energy astrophysics.Past all-sky X-ray surveys indeed brought valuable in-formation on the X-ray source populations. In the softX-ray band, the ROSAT mission conducted an all-sky sur-vey in the 0.1–2.4 keV band, producing the ROSAT All-Sky Survey (RASS) Bright Source Catalog (BSC; Voges

Revisit of Local X-Ray Luminosity Function of Active Galactic Nuclei with the MAXI Extragalactic Survey

We construct a new X-ray (2--10 keV) luminosity function of Compton-thin active galactic nuclei (AGNs) in the local universe, using the first MAXI/GSC source catalog surveyed in the 4--10 keV band. The sample consists of 37 non-blazar AGNs at

Spectral Evolution of a New X-Ray Transient MAXI J0556−332 Observed by MAXI, Swift, and RXTE

z=0.002-0.2

SUZAKU observation of the black hole binary 4U 1630-47 in the very high state.

, whose identification is highly (

CALET UPPER LIMITS on X-RAY and GAMMA-RAY COUNTERPARTS of GW151226

>97%

Repeated short-term spectral softening in the low/hard state of the Galactic black hole candidate Swift J1753.5-0127

) complete. We confirm the trend that the fraction of absorbed AGNs with