Observation of the $\gamma$-ray Emission from W43 with LHAASO

TL;DR

This paper reports the detection of very-high-energy and ultra-high-energy gamma-ray emissions from the star-forming region W43 using LHAASO, indicating potential cosmic ray acceleration to hundreds of TeV.

Contribution

First detection of VHE and UHE gamma rays from W43, revealing it as a potential cosmic ray accelerator in a young star cluster.

Findings

Gamma-ray source detected with ~16-17 sigma significance.

Angular extension of about 0.5 degrees, ~50 pc physical size.

W43 likely accelerates cosmic rays to several hundred TeV.

Abstract

In this paper, we report the detection of the very-high-energy (VHE, $ 100{\rm\ GeV} < E < 100{\rm\ TeV} $) and ultra-high-energy (UHE, $E > 100\rm\ TeV$) $\gamma$-ray emissions from the direction of the young star-forming region W43, observed by the Large High Altitude Air Shower Observation (LHAASO). The extended $\gamma$-ray source was detected with a significance of ${\sim}16\,\sigma$ by KM2A and ${\sim}17\,\sigma$ by WCDA, respectively. The angular extension of this $\gamma$-ray source is about 0.5 degrees, corresponding to a physical size of about 50 pc. We discuss the origin of the $\gamma$-ray emission and possible cosmic ray acceleration in the W43 region using multi-wavelength data. Our findings suggest that W43 is likely another young star cluster capable of accelerating cosmic rays (CRs) to at least several hundred TeV.