New blazars from the cross-match of recent multi-frequency catalogs

TL;DR

This study cross-matched multiple recent astronomical catalogs across different frequencies to identify and confirm 15 new blazar sources with characteristic properties, expanding the known population of these energetic active galactic nuclei.

Contribution

It introduces a novel multi-catalog cross-matching approach combining infrared, radio, and X-ray data to discover new blazars, enhancing the existing catalog of such sources.

Findings

Identified 15 new blazar candidates with confirmed properties.

Developed a methodology for multi-frequency catalog cross-matching.

Refined criteria for blazar classification based on spectral and morphological features.

Abstract

Blazars are radio-loud active galactic nuclei well known for their non thermal emission spanning a wide range of frequencies. The Roma-BZCAT is, to date, the most comprehensive list of these sources. We performed the cross-match of several catalogs obtained from recent surveys at different frequencies to search for new blazars. We cross-matched the 1$^{st}$ Swift-XRT Point Source catalog with the spectroscopic sample of the 9$^{th}$ Data Release of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. Then, we performed further cross-matches with the catalogs corresponding to the Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty cm survey and to the AllWISE Data release, focusing on sources with infrared colors similar to those of confirmed $\gamma$-ray blazars included in the Second Fermi-LAT catalog. As a result, we obtained a preliminary list of objects with all the elements needed for a proper blazar classification according to the prescriptions of the Roma-BZCAT. We carefully investigated additional properties such as their morphology and the slope of their spectral energy distribution in the radio domain, the features shown in their optical spectrum, and the luminosity in the soft X rays to exclude generic active galactic nuclei and focus on authentic blazar-like sources. At the end of our screening we obtained a list of 15 objects with firmly established blazar properties.