Five years of 6.7 GHz methanol maser monitoring with Irbene radio telescopes

TL;DR

This 5-year monitoring study of 42 6.7 GHz methanol masers using Irbene telescopes reveals diverse variability patterns, demonstrating the telescope's effectiveness for maser research and uncovering new variability trends.

Contribution

First long-term maser monitoring program with Irbene telescopes, identifying various variability types and demonstrating the instrument's suitability for maser studies.

Findings

Over 55% of sources showed significant variability

Multiple types of variability observed, including periodic and anti-correlated features

New variability trends identified in several sources

Abstract

We present the results of a 5-year monitoring program of 42 sources targeted at 6.7 GHz methanol masers, conducted from March 2017 to October 2022 using the Irbene 32 and 16 meter radio telescopes. Sources were observed with irregular intervals where time between two consecutive observation ranged from twenty four hours to thirty five days. We found that more than 55 per cent of the sources showed significant variability, but often only one or a few spectral features were varying significantly. Numerous type of variability were found in our sample: low-variable, periodic, irregular, synchronised and anti-correlated between features and steadily raising or falling flux. Our analysis techniques also uncover new variability trends for several sources. The maser monitoring program is one of the first single-dish science initiatives at the Irbene radio telescope complex, initiated shortly after the instrument's reconstruction and upgrades. Our findings unequivocally demonstrate its suitability for maser research purposes.