MeerKAT

Abstract:

We derive accretion rate functions (ARFs) and kinetic luminosity functions (KLFs) for jet-launching supermassive black holes. The accretion rate as well as the kinetic power of an active galaxy is estimated from the radio emission of the jet. For compact low-power jets, we use the core radio emission while the jet power of high-power radio-loud quasars is estimated using the extended low-frequency emission to avoid beaming effects. We find that at low luminosities the ARF derived from the radio emission is in agreement with the measured bolometric luminosity function (BLF) of active galactic nucleus (AGN), i.e. all low-luminosity AGN launch strong jets. We present a simple model, inspired by the analogy between X-ray binaries (XRBs) and AGN, that can reproduce both the measured ARF of jet-emitting sources as well as the BLF. The model suggests that the break in power-law slope of the BLF is due to the inefficient accretion of strongly sub-Eddington sources. As our accretion measure is based on the jet power it also allows us to calculate the KLF and therefore the total kinetic power injected by jets into the ambient medium. We compare this with the kinetic power output from supernova remnants (SNRs) and XRBs, and determine its cosmological evolution. © 2007 The Authors.

Abstract:

We have observed a total of 67 pulsars at five frequencies ranging from 243 to 3100 MHz. Observations at the lower frequencies were made at the Giant Metre-Wave Telescope in India and those at higher frequencies at the Parkes Telescope in Australia. We present profiles from 34 of the sample with the best signal-to-noise ratio and the least scattering. The general 'rules' of pulsar profiles are seen in the data; profiles get narrower, the polarization fraction declines and outer components become more prominent as the frequency increases. Many counterexamples to these rules are also observed, and pulsars with complex profiles are especially prone to rule breaking. We hypothesize that the location of pulsar emission within the magnetosphere evolves with time as the pulsar spins down. In highly energetic pulsars, the emission comes from a confined range of high altitudes, in the middle range of spin down energies the emission occurs over a wide range of altitudes whereas in pulsars with low spin-down energies it is confined to low down in the magnetosphere. © 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2008 RAS.

Abstract:

We measured a sample of 150 pulsar rotation measures (RMs) using the 20-cm receiver of the Parkes 64-m radio telescope. 46 of the pulsars in our sample have not had their RM values previously published, whereas 104 pulsar RMs have been revised. We used a novel quadratic fitting algorithm to obtain an accurate RM from the calibrated polarization profiles recorded across 256 MHz of receiver bandwidth. The new data are used in conjunction with previously known dispersion measures and the NE2001 electron-density model to study models of the direction and magnitude of the Galactic magnetic field. © 2008 RAS.

Abstract:

We present deep optical and infrared (IR) observations of the short-duration GRB 050906. Although no X-ray or optical/IR afterglow was discovered to deep limits, the error circle of the gamma-ray burst (GRB) (as derived from the Swift Burst Alert Telescope, or BAT) is unusual in containing the relatively local starburst galaxy IC328. This makes GRB 050906 a candidate burst from a soft gamma-ray repeater (SGR), similar to the giant flare from SGR 1806-20. The probability of chance alignment of a given BAT position with such a galaxy is small (≲1 per cent), although the size of the error circle (2.6 arcmin radius) is such that a higher z origin cannot be ruled out. Indeed, the error circle also includes a moderately rich galaxy cluster at z = 0.43, which is a plausible location for the burst given the apparent preference that short-duration GRBs have for regions of high mass density. No residual optical or IR emission has been observed, in the form of either an afterglow or a later time emission from any associated supernova-like event. We discuss the constraints these limits place on the progenitor of GRB 050906 based on the expected optical signatures from both SGRs and merging compact object systems. © 2008 RAS.

Abstract:

Near-infrared (NIR) and optical polarimetric observations of a selection of X-ray binaries are presented. The targets were observed using the Very Large Telescope and the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope. We detect a significant level (3σ) of linear polarization in four sources. The polarization is found to be intrinsic (at the >3σ level) in two sources; GRO J1655-40 (∼4-7 per cent in the H and Ks bands during an outburst) and Sco X-1 (∼0.1-0.9 per cent in the H and K bands), which is stronger at lower frequencies. This is likely to be the signature of optically thin synchrotron emission from the collimated jets in these systems, whose presence indicates that a partially ordered magnetic field is present at the inner regions of the jets. In Sco X-1, the intrinsic polarization is variable (and sometimes absent) in the H and K bands. In the J band (i.e. at higher frequencies), the polarization is not significantly variable and is consistent with an interstellar origin. The optical light from GX 339-4 is also polarized, but at a level and position angle consistent with scattering by interstellar dust. The other polarized source is SS 433, which has a low level (0.5-0.8 per cent) of J-band polarization, likely due to local scattering. The NIR counterparts of GRO J0422+32, XTE J1118+480, 4U 0614+09 and Aql X-1 (which were all in or near quiescence) have a linear polarization level of <16 per cent (3σ upper limit, some are <6 per cent). We discuss how such observations may be used to constrain the ordering of the magnetic field close to the base of the jet in such systems. © 2008 The Authors.