Concurrent X-ray, near-infrared, sub-millimeter, and GeV gamma-ray observations of Sgr A*

TL;DR

This study presents a comprehensive multi-wavelength observational campaign of Sgr A*'s flaring activity, revealing complex emission processes and challenging simple models, with new spectral data and potential gamma-ray detection insights.

Contribution

It provides the first NIR spectral measurement of a flare and explores the limitations of simple plasmoid models in explaining broadband flaring behavior.

Findings

Detected two bright NIR flares with weak X-ray activity.

Observed a sub-mm outburst following a NIR flare.

First attempt to detect gamma-ray flaring from Sgr A*.

Abstract

The radiative counterpart of the supermassive black hole at the Galactic center (GC), Sgr A*, is subject to frequent flares visible simultaneously in X-rays and near-infrared (NIR). Often, enhanced radio variability from centimeter to sub-millimeter wavelengths is observed to follow these X-ray/NIR eruptions. We present here a multi-wavelength campaign carried out in April 2009, with the aim of characterizing this broadband flaring activity. Concurrent data from the XMM-Newton/EPIC (2-10 keV), VLT/NACO (2.1 microns, 3.8 microns), APEX/LABOCA (870 microns), and Fermi/LAT (0.1-200 GeV) instruments are employed to derive light curves and spectral energy distributions of new flares from Sgr A*. We detected two relatively bright NIR flares both associated with weak X-ray activity, one of which was followed by a strong sub-mm outburst 200 min later. Photometric spectral information on a NIR flare was obtained for the first time with NACO giving a power-law photon index alpha=-0.4\pm0.3. The first attempt to detect flaring activity from the Fermi GC source 1FGL J1745.6-2900 is also reported. NIR, X-ray, and sub-mm flares are finally modeled in the context of non-thermal emission processes. It is found that the simplest scenario involving a single expanding plasmoid releasing synchrotron NIR/sub-mm and synchrotron self-Compton X-ray radiation is inadequate to reproduce the data, but suggestions to reconcile the basic elements of the theory and the observations are proposed.