Multiwavelength variability power spectrum analysis of the blazars 3C 279 and PKS 1510–089 on multiple timescales
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Published version
Date
2022-03-01
Authors
Goyal, Arti
Soida, Marian
Stawarz, Łukasz
Wiita, Paul J.
Nilsson, Kari
Jorstad, Svetlana
Marscher, Alan P.
Aller, Margo F.
Aller, Hugh D.
Lähteenmäki, Anne
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OA Version
Published version
Citation
A. Goyal, M. Soida, Ł. Stawarz, P.J. Wiita, K. Nilsson, S. Jorstad, A.P. Marscher, M.F. Aller, H.D. Aller, A. Lähteenmäki, T. Hovatta, S. Zoła, K. Nalewajko, M. Tornikoski, J. Tammi, M. Hodges, S. Kiehlmann, A.C.S. Readhead, W. Max-Moerbeck, E. Lindfors, V.F. Ramazani, D.E. Reichart, D.B. Caton, J. Valverde, D. Horan, R. Ojha, P. van Zyl. 2022. "Multiwavelength Variability Power Spectrum Analysis of the Blazars 3C 279 and PKS 1510–089 on Multiple Timescales" The Astrophysical Journal: an international review of astronomy and astronomical physics, Volume 927, Issue 2, pp.214-214. https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ac4d95
Abstract
We present the results of variability power spectral density (PSD) analysis using multiwavelength radio to GeV γ-ray light curves covering timescales of decades/years to days/minutes for the blazars 3C 279 and PKS 1510−089. The PSDs are modeled as single power laws, and the best-fit spectral shape is derived using the “power spectral response” method. With more than 10 yr of data obtained with weekly/daily sampling intervals, most of the PSDs cover ∼2–4 decades in temporal frequency; moreover, in the optical band, the PSDs cover ∼6 decades for 3C 279 due to the availability of intranight light curves. Our main results are the following: (1) on timescales ranging from decades to days, the synchrotron and the inverse-Compton spectral components, in general, exhibit red-noise (slope ∼2) and flicker-noise (slope ∼1) type variability, respectively; (2) the slopes of γ-ray variability PSDs obtained using a 3 hr integration bin and 3 weeks total duration exhibit a range between ∼1.4 and ∼2.0 (mean slope = 1.60 ± 0.70), consistent within errors with the slope on longer timescales; (3) comparisons of fractional variability indicate more power on timescales ≤100 days at γ-ray frequencies compared to longer wavelengths, in general (except between the γ-ray and optical wavelengths for PKS 1510−089); (4) the normalization of intranight optical PSDs for 3C 279 appears to be a simple extrapolation from longer timescales, indicating a continuous (single) process driving the variability at optical wavelengths; and (5) the emission at optical/infrared wavelengths may involve a combination of disk and jet processes for PKS 1510−089.
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© 2022. The Author(s). Published by the American Astronomical Society. Original content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI.