0FGL J1830.3+0617: A FERMI BLAZAR NEAR THE GALACTIC PLANE

We present a multiwavelength study of the unidentified Fermi gamma-ray source 0FGL J1830.3+0617, which exhibits variability above 200 MeV on timescales of days to weeks. Within the Fermi 95% confidence error contour lies B1827+0617, a radio source with spectral index alpha = 0.09 between 1.4 and 4.85 GHz. The flat spectral index and flux density of 443 mJy at 4.85 GHz are consistent with the bulk of Fermi sources associated with blazars. It is also detected in the 0.3-10 keV band by Swift. Optical imaging in 2009 May identifies B1827+0617 at R approximate to 16.9, and shows that it is at least 2 mag brighter than on the Palomar Sky Survey plates. Contemporaneous optical spectroscopy acquired during this high state finds a weak emission line that we attribute to MgII lambda 2798 at redshift z = 0.75, supporting a flat spectrum radio quasar classification. The variability characteristics and radio properties together indicate that 0FGL J1830.3+0617 at Galactic latitude b = +7 degrees.5 is a blazar. Blazar identifications of three additional low-latitude Fermi sources, 0FGL J0643.2+0858, 0FGL J1326.6-5302, and 0FGL J1328.8-5604, are also suggested.