Accretion instabilities and jet formation in GRS 1915+105

TL;DR

This study presents simultaneous multi-wavelength observations of GRS 1915+105, linking accretion disk instabilities to relativistic jet ejections and revealing energetic plasma clouds during X-ray flux oscillations.

Contribution

It provides new observational evidence connecting accretion disk behavior with jet formation in GRS 1915+105, highlighting the role of accretion instabilities in jet ejection processes.

Findings

Relativistic plasma clouds are ejected during accretion disk replenishment.

Ejected clouds contain particles with Lorentz factors around 1000.

Ejections are small-scale analogs of larger relativistic jets.

Abstract

We report simultaneous observations in the X-ray, infrared, and radio wavelengths of the galactic superluminal source GRS 1915+105. During episodes of rapid disappearance and follow up replenishment of the inner accretion disk evidenced by the X-ray oscillating flux, we observe the ejection of relativistic plasma clouds in the form of synchrotron flares at infrared and radio wavelengths. The expelled clouds contain very energetic particles with Lorentz factors of about 1000, or more. These ejections can be viewed as small-scale analogs of the more massive ejecta with relativistic bulk motions that have been previously observed in GRS 1915+105.