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| H2O MegaMaser emission in NGC 4258 indicative of a periodic disc instability | |
Baan, Willem A.1,2,3 ; An, Tao3; Henkel, Christian1,4,5; Imai, Hiroshi6; Kostenko, Vladimir7; Sobolev, Andrej8
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| 2022-06-30 | |
| Source Publication | NATURE ASTRONOMY
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| ISSN | 2397-3366 |
| Volume | 6Issue:8Pages:976-983 |
| Contribution Rank | 1 |
| Abstract | H2O MegaMaser emission may arise from thin gas discs surrounding the massive nuclei of galaxies such as NGC 4258, but the physical conditions responsible for the amplified emission are unclear. A detailed view of these regions is possible using the very high angular resolution afforded by space very long baseline interferometry (SVLBI). Here we report SVLBI experiments conducted using the orbiting RadioAstron Observatory that have resulted in detections of the H2O 22 GHz emission in NGC 4258, with Earth-space baselines of 1.3, 9.5 and 19.5 Earth diameters. Observations at the highest angular resolutions of 11 and 23 mu as show distinct and regularly spaced regions within the rotating disc, at an orbital radius of about 0.126 pc. These observations at three subsequent epochs also indicate a time evolution of the emission features, with a sudden rise in amplitude followed by a slow decay. The formation of these emission regions, their regular spacing and their time-dependent behaviour appear consistent with the occurrence of a periodic magneto-rotational instability in the disc. This type of shear-driven instability within the differentially rotating disc has been suggested to be the mechanism governing the radial momentum transfer and viscosity within a mass-accreting disc. The connection of the H2O MegaMaser activity with the magneto-rotational instability activity would make it an indicator of the mass-accretion rate in the nuclear disc of the host galaxy. Harnessing the resolving power of space very long baseline interferometry results in a link between 22 GHz H2O MegaMaser emission and accretion activity in the thin disc around the nucleus of galaxy NGC 4258. The emission regions appear consistent with a periodic magneto-rotational instability in the disc. |
| DOI | 10.1038/s41550-022-01706-y |
| Indexed By | SCI |
| Language | 英语 |
| WOS Keyword | WEAKLY MAGNETIZED DISKS ; LOCAL SHEAR INSTABILITY ; ACTIVE GALAXY NGC-4258 ; MASS ACCRETION RATE ; GEOMETRIC DISTANCE ; X-RAY ; RADIATION ; STABILITY ; TURBULENT ; SPECTRA |
| Funding Project | State Space Corporation ROSCOSMOS ; National Natural Science Foundation of China[11433008] ; Chinese Academy of Sciences President's International Fellowship Initiative[2019VMA0040] ; Chinese Academy of Sciences President's International Fellowship Initiative[2021VMA0008] ; Chinese Academy of Sciences President's International Fellowship Initiative[2022VMA0019] ; Youth Innovation Promotion Association of CAS ; Ministry of Education and Science of Russia[FEUZ-2020-0030] ; Ministry of Education and Science of Russia[K 1567] ; H2O MegaMaser Team |
| WOS Research Area | Astronomy & Astrophysics |
| WOS Subject | Astronomy & Astrophysics |
| WOS ID | WOS:000819337100002 |
| Publisher | NATURE PORTFOLIO |
| Funding Organization | State Space Corporation ROSCOSMOS ; National Natural Science Foundation of China ; Chinese Academy of Sciences President's International Fellowship Initiative ; Youth Innovation Promotion Association of CAS ; Ministry of Education and Science of Russia ; H2O MegaMaser Team |
| Citation statistics | |
| Document Type | 期刊论文 |
| Identifier | http://ir.xao.ac.cn/handle/45760611-7/4830 |
| Collection | 射电天文研究室_恒星形成与演化研究团组 |
| Corresponding Author | Baan, Willem A. |
| Affiliation | 1.Chinese Acad Sci, Xinjiang Astron Observ, Urumqi, Peoples R China 2.Netherlands Inst Radio Astron ASTRON, Dwingeloo, Netherlands 3.Chinese Acad Sci, Shanghai Astron Observ, Shanghai, Peoples R China 4.Max Planck Inst Radioastron, Bonn, Germany 5.King Abdulaziz Univ, Astron Deptartment, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia 6.Kagoshima Univ, Amanogawa Galaxy Astron Res Ctr, Grad Sch Sci & Engn, Kagoshima, Japan 7.Lebedev Inst, AstroSpace Ctr, Moscow, Russia 8.Ural Fed Univ, Astron Observ, Ekaterinburg, Russia |
| First Author Affilication | Xinjiang Astronomical Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences |
| Corresponding Author Affilication | Xinjiang Astronomical Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences |
| Recommended Citation GB/T 7714 | Baan, Willem A.,An, Tao,Henkel, Christian,et al. H2O MegaMaser emission in NGC 4258 indicative of a periodic disc instability[J]. NATURE ASTRONOMY,2022,6(8):976-983. |
| APA | Baan, Willem A.,An, Tao,Henkel, Christian,Imai, Hiroshi,Kostenko, Vladimir,&Sobolev, Andrej.(2022).H2O MegaMaser emission in NGC 4258 indicative of a periodic disc instability.NATURE ASTRONOMY,6(8),976-983. |
| MLA | Baan, Willem A.,et al."H2O MegaMaser emission in NGC 4258 indicative of a periodic disc instability".NATURE ASTRONOMY 6.8(2022):976-983. |
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| Baan-2022-H2O MegaMa（1828KB） | 期刊论文 | 出版稿 | 开放获取 | CC BY-NC-SA | View Application Full Text | |
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