Probing the extent of the non-thermal emission from the Vela X region at TeV energies with HESS

被引：62

作者：

Abramowski, A. ^{[1
]}

Acero, F. ^{[2
]}

Aharonian, F. ^{[3
,4
,5
]}

Akhperjanian, A. G. ^{[5
,6
]}

Anton, G. ^{[7
]}

Balenderan, S. ^{[8
]}

Balzer, A. ^{[7
]}

Barnacka, A. ^{[9
,10
]}

Becherini, Y. ^{[11
,12
]}

Tjus, J. Becker ^{[13
]}

Bernloehr, K. ^{[3
,14
]}

Birsin, E. ^{[14
]}

Biteau, J. ^{[12
]}

Bochow, A. ^{[3
]}

Boisson, C. ^{[15
]}

Bolmont, J. ^{[16
]}

Bordas, P. ^{[17
]}

Brucker, J. ^{[7
]}

Brun, F. ^{[12
]}

Brun, P. ^{[10
]}

Bulik, T. ^{[18
]}

Carrigan, S. ^{[3
]}

Casanova, S. ^{[3
,19
]}

Cerruti, M. ^{[15
]}

Chadwick, P. M. ^{[8
]}

Charbonnier, A. ^{[16
]}

Chaves, R. C. G. ^{[3
,10
]}

Cheesebrough, A. ^{[8
]}

Cologna, G. ^{[20
]}

Conrad, J. ^{[21
]}

Couturier, C. ^{[16
]}

Dalton, M. ^{[14
,22
]}

Daniel, M. K. ^{[8
]}

Davids, I. D. ^{[23
]}

Degrange, B. ^{[12
]}

Deil, C. ^{[3
]}

deWilt, P. ^{[24
]}

Dickinson, H. J. ^{[21
]}

Djannati-Atai, A. ^{[11
]}

Domainko, W. ^{[3
]}

Drury, L. O' C. ^{[4
]}

Dubois, F. ^{[29
]}

Dubus, G. ^{[25
]}

Dutson, K. ^{[26
]}

Dyks, J. ^{[9
]}

Dyrda, M. ^{[27
]}

Egberts, K. ^{[28
]}

Eger, P. ^{[7
]}

Espigat, P. ^{[11
]}

Fallon, L. ^{[4
]}

机构：

[1] Univ Hamburg, Inst Expt Phys, D-22761 Hamburg, Germany

[2] Univ Montpellier 2, Lab Universe & Particules Montpellier, CNRS, IN2P3, F-34095 Montpellier 5, France

[3] Max Planck Inst Kernphys, D-69029 Heidelberg, Germany

[4] Dublin Inst Adv Studies, Dublin 2, Ireland

[5] Natl Acad Sci Republ Armenia, Yerevan, Armenia

[6] Yerevan Phys Inst, Yerevan 375036, Armenia

[7] Univ Erlangen Nurnberg, Inst Phys, D-91058 Erlangen, Germany

[8] Univ Durham, Dept Phys, Durham DH1 3LE, England

[9] Nicolaus Copernicus Astron Ctr, PL-00716 Warsaw, Poland

[10] CEA Saclay, DSM Irfu, F-91191 Gif Sur Yvette, France

[11] Univ Paris Diderot, APC, CNRS, IN2P3,CEA Irfu,Observ Paris, F-75205 Paris 13, France

[12] Ecole Polytech, Lab Leprince Ringuet, CNRS, IN2P3, F-91128 Palaiseau, France

[13] Ruhr Univ Bochum, Inst Theoret Phys, Lehrstuhl Weltraum & Astrophys 4, D-44780 Bochum, Germany

[14] Univ Berlin, Inst Phys, D-12489 Berlin, Germany

[15] Univ Paris Diderot, CNRS, Observ Paris, LUTH, F-92190 Meudon, France

[16] Univ Paris 07, Univ Paris 06, LPNHE, CNRS,IN2P3, F-75252 Paris 5, France

[17] Univ Tubingen, Inst Astron & Astrophys, D-72076 Tubingen, Germany

[18] Univ Warsaw, Astron Observ, PL-00478 Warsaw, Poland

[19] North West Univ, Unit Space Phys, ZA-2520 Potchefstroom, South Africa

[20] Heidelberg Univ, Landessternwarte, D-69117 Heidelberg, Germany

[21] Stockholm Univ, Dept Phys, Oskar Klein Ctr, Albanova Univ Ctr, S-10691 Stockholm, Sweden

[22] Univ Bordeaux 1, CNRS, IN2P3, Ctr Etud Nucl Bordeaux Gradignan, F-33175 Gradignan, France

[23] Univ Namibia, Dept Phys, Windhoek, Namibia

[24] Univ Adelaide, Sch Chem & Phys, Adelaide, SA 5005, Australia

[25] UJF Grenoble 1, CNRS, INSU, IPAG,UMR 5274, F-38041 Grenoble, France

[26] Univ Leicester, Dept Phys & Astron, Leicester LE1 7RH, Leics, England

[27] Inst Fizyki Jadrowej PAN, PL-31342 Krakow, Poland

[28] Univ Innsbruck, Inst Astro & Teilchenphys, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria

[29] Univ Savoie, Lab Annecy le Vieux Phys Particules, CNRS, IN2P3, F-74941 Annecy Le Vieux, France

[30] Uniwersytet Jagiellonski, Obserwatorium Astron, PL-30244 Krakow, Poland

[31] Nicolaus Copernicus Univ, Torun Ctr Astron, PL-87100 Torun, Poland

[32] Charles Univ Prague, Fac Math & Phys, Inst Particle & Nucl Phys, CR-18000 Prague 8, Czech Republic

[33] Univ Leeds, Sch Phys & Astron, Leeds LS2 9JT, W Yorkshire, England

来源：

ASTRONOMY & ASTROPHYSICS | 2012年 / 548卷

关键词：

radiation mechanisms: non-thermal; ISM: individual objects: Vela X; ISM: individual objects: HESS J0835-455; gamma rays: general; PULSAR WIND NEBULA; ATMOSPHERIC CHERENKOV TELESCOPES; RAY-EMISSION; CRAB-NEBULA; GAMMA-RAYS; RADIO; EVOLUTION; SYSTEM; DISCOVERY; JET;

D O I：

10.1051/0004-6361/201219919

中图分类号：

P1 [天文学];

学科分类号：

0704 ;

摘要：

Context. Vela X is a region of extended radio emission in the western part of the Vela constellation: one of the nearest pulsar wind nebulae, and associated with the energetic Vela pulsar (PSR B0833-45). Extended very-high-energy (VHE) gamma-ray emission (HESS J0835-455) was discovered using the H. E. S. S. experiment in 2004. The VHE gamma-ray emission was found to be coincident with a region of X-ray emission discovered with ROSAT above 1.5 keV (the so-called Vela X cocoon): a filamentary structure extending southwest from the pulsar to the centre of Vela X. Aims. A deeper observation of the entire Vela X nebula region, also including larger offsets from the cocoon, has been performed with H. E. S. S. This re-observation was carried out in order to probe the extent of the non-thermal emission from the Vela X region at TeV energies and to investigate its spectral properties. Methods. To increase the sensitivity to the faint gamma-ray emission from the very extended Vela X region, a multivariate analysis method combining three complementary reconstruction techniques of Cherenkov-shower images is applied for the selection of gamma-ray events. The analysis is performed with the On/Off background method, which estimates the background from separate observations pointing away from Vela X; towards regions free of gamma-ray sources but with comparable observation conditions. Results. The gamma-ray surface brightness over the large Vela X region reveals that the detection of non-thermal VHE gamma-ray emission from the PWN HESS J0835-455 is statistically significant over a region of radius 1.2 degrees around the position alpha = 08(h)35(m)00(s), delta = -45 degrees 36'00 '' (J2000). The Vela X region exhibits almost uniform gamma-ray spectra over its full extent: the differential energy spectrum can be described by a power-law function with a hard spectral index Gamma = 1.32 +/- 0.06(stat) +/- 0.12(sys) and an exponential cutoff at an energy of (14.0 +/- 1.6(stat) +/- 2.6(sys)) TeV. Compared to the previous H. E. S. S. observations of Vela X the new analysis confirms the general spatial overlap of the bulk of the VHE gamma-ray emission with the X-ray cocoon, while its extent and morphology appear more consistent with the (more extended) radio emission, contradicting the simple correspondence between VHE gamma-ray and X-ray emissions. Morphological and spectral results challenge the interpretation of the origin of gamma-ray emission in the GeV and TeV ranges in the framework of current models.

引用

页数：11

共 55 条

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