Discovery of recurrent flares of 6.7 GHz methanol maser emission in Cepheus A HW2

TL;DR

This study reveals recurrent flares in 6.7 GHz methanol masers in Cepheus A HW2, showing periodic activity linked to local conditions near a high-mass young stellar object, with detailed monitoring over 12 years.

Contribution

First detailed long-term monitoring of methanol maser variability in Cepheus A HW2, identifying recurrent flares and their association with local stellar activity.

Findings

Flares occur with a ~5-year period.

Flares have asymmetric profiles with high amplitude.

Velocity drifts of maser cloudlets observed over 11.5 years.

Abstract

Context: Class II methanol masers at 6.7 GHz originate close to high-mass young stellar objects (HMYSOs). Their high sensitivity to local condition variations makes them a useful marker of the activity of the emerging massive stars. Aims: We aim to closely examine the variability of the 6.7 GHz methanol masers in Cep A HW2 using the new and archival single-dish and high-resolution Very-Long-Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) datasets. Methods: We monitored 6.7 GHz methanol masers towards the target between 2009 and 2021 using the Torun 32 m radio telescope, and analysed nine datasets of VLBI observations taken over 16 yr. Results: Faint, extremely redshifted maser emission located close to the presumed central star position and coincident with the radio jet shows flaring activity with a period of ~ 5 yr. Flares have an asymmetric profile with a rise-to-decay time ratio of 0.18 and relative amplitude higher than 10. The velocity of the flaring cloudlets drifts at a rate of 3-4 * 10^-5 km/s/d for about 11.5 yr of the monitoring. The time-lag between the peaks of the two flaring features implies a propagation speed of the exciting factor of ~ 1000 km/s. Synchronised and anticorrelated variations of the flux density of blue- and redshifted features begin ~ 2.5 yr after flares of the extremely redshifted emission.