ALBERT

Description: We report on deep XMM-Newton observations of the vertex filament in the southern giant lobe of the Fanaroff–Riley class I radio galaxy Centaurus A. We find no X-ray excess from the filament region and place a 3 upper limit on the 1 keV flux density of the filament of 9.6 nJy. This directly constrains the electron density and magnetic field strength in the filament. For the first time in an individual filament, we show that so long as the particle index ≥2, the excess in synchrotron emissivity cannot be produced purely by excess electrons: the filament magnetic field strength must be higher than in the giant lobes as a whole, and close to or above the equipartition value for the filament. The filaments are not significantly overpressured with respect to the surrounding lobe with a pressure provided by relativistic electrons.

Description: Recent investigations have shown that many parameters and assumptions made in the application of spectral-ageing models to FR II radio galaxies (e.g. injection index, uniform magnetic field, non-negligible cross-lobe age variations) may not be as reliable as previously thought. In this paper we use new Very Large Array observations, which allow spectral curvature at GHz frequencies to be determined in much greater detail than has previously been possible, to investigate two cluster-centre radio galaxies, 3C 438 and 3C 28. We find that for both sources the injection index is much steeper than the values traditionally assumed, consistent with our previous findings. We suggest that the Tribble model of spectral ageing provides the most convincing description when both goodness-of-fit and physically plausibility are considered, but show that even with greatly improved coverage at GHz frequencies, a disparity exists in cluster-centre FR IIs when spectral ages are compared to those determined from a dynamical viewpoint. We find for 3C 438 that although the observations indicate the lobes are expanding, its energetics suggest that the radiating particles and magnetic field at equipartition cannot provide the necessary pressure to support the lobes, similar to other cluster-centre source such as Cygnus A. We confirm that small-scale, cross-lobe age variations are likely to be common in FR II sources and should be properly accounted for when undertaking spectral-ageing studies. Contrary to the assumption of some previous studies, we also show that 3C 28 is an FR II (rather than FR I) source, and suggest that it is most likely a relic system with the central engine being turned off between 6 and 9 Myr ago.

Description: The interactions between radio-loud AGN and their environments play an important rôle in galaxy and cluster evolution. Recent work has demonstrated fundamental differences between high- and low-excitation radio galaxies (HERGs and LERGs), and shown that they may have different relationships with their environments. In the Chandra Large Project ERA (Environments of Radio-loud AGN), we made the first systematic X-ray environmental study of the cluster environments of radio galaxies at a single epoch ( z  ~ 0.5), and found tentative evidence for a correlation between radio luminosity and cluster X-ray luminosity. We also found that this relationship appeared to be driven by the LERG subpopulation. We have now repeated the analysis with a low-redshift sample ( z  ~ 0.1), and found strong correlations between radio luminosity and environment richness and between radio luminosity and central density for the LERGs but not for the HERGs. These results are consistent with models in which the HERGs are fuelled from accretion discs maintained from local reservoirs of gas, while LERGs are fuelled more directly by gas ingested from the intracluster medium. Comparing the samples, we found that although the maximum environment richness of the HERG environments is similar in both samples, there are poorer HERG environments in the z  ~ 0.1 sample than in the z  ~ 0.5 sample. We have therefore tentative evidence of evolution of the HERG environments. We found no differences between the LERG subsamples for the two epochs, as would be expected if radio and cluster luminosities are related.

Description: We report on deep Chandra observations of the nearby broad-line radio galaxy Pictor A, which we combine with new Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) observations. The new X-ray data have a factor of 4 more exposure than observations previously presented and span a 15 yr time baseline, allowing a detailed study of the spatial, temporal and spectral properties of the AGN, jet, hotspot and lobes. We present evidence for further time variation of the jet, though the flare that we reported in previous work remains the most significantly detected time-varying feature. We also confirm previous tentative evidence for a faint counterjet. Based on the radio through X-ray spectrum of the jet and its detailed spatial structure, and on the properties of the counterjet, we argue that inverse-Compton models can be conclusively rejected, and propose that the X-ray emission from the jet is synchrotron emission from particles accelerated in the boundary layer of a relativistic jet. For the first time, we find evidence that the bright western hotspot is also time-varying in X-rays, and we connect this to the small-scale structure in the hotspot seen in high-resolution radio observations. The new data allow us to confirm that the spectrum of the lobes is in good agreement with the predictions of an inverse-Compton model and we show that the data favour models in which the filaments seen in the radio images are predominantly the result of spatial variation of magnetic fields in the presence of a relatively uniform electron distribution.

Description: The broad-bandwidth capabilities of next generation telescopes such as the Jansky Very Large Array (JVLA) mean that the spectrum of any given source varies significantly within the bandwidth of any given observation. Detailed spectral analysis taking this variation into account is set to become standard practice when dealing with any new broad-band radio observations; it is therefore vital that methods are developed to handle this new type of data. In this paper, we present the Broadband Radio Astronomy ToolS ( brats ) software package and, use it to carry out detailed analysis of JVLA observations of three powerful radio galaxies. We compare two of the most widely used models of spectral ageing, the Kardashev–Pacholczyk and Jaffe–Perola models and also results of the more complex, but potentially more realistic, Tribble model. We find that the Tribble model provides both a good fit to observations as well as providing a physically realistic description of the source. We present the first high-resolution spectral maps of our sources and find that the best-fitting injection indices across all models take higher values than have previously been assumed. We present characteristic hotspot advance speeds and make comparison to those derived from dynamical ages, confirming the previously known discrepancy in speed remains present when determined at high spectral resolutions. We show that some previously common assumptions made in determining spectral ages with narrow-band radio telescopes may not always hold and strongly suggest that these are accounted for in future investigations.

Description: We carry out a systematic study of the X-ray emission from the active nuclei of the 0.02 〈 z  〈 0.7 2 Jy sample, using Chandra and XMM–Newton observations. We combine our results with those from mid-infrared, optical emission-line and radio observations, and add them to those of the 3CRR sources. We show that the low-excitation objects in our samples show signs of radiatively inefficient accretion. We study the effect of the jet-related emission on the various luminosities, confirming that it is the main source of soft X-ray emission for our sources. We also find strong correlations between the accretion-related luminosities, and identify several sources whose optical classification is incompatible with their accretion properties. We derive the bolometric and jet kinetic luminosities for the samples and find a difference in the total Eddington rate between the low- and high-excitation populations, with the former peaking at ~1 per cent and the latter at ~20 per cent Eddington. Our results are consistent with a simple Eddington switch when the effects of environment on radio luminosity and black hole mass calculations are considered. The apparent independence of jet kinetic power and radiative luminosity in the high-excitation population in our plots supports a model in which jet production and radiatively efficient accretion are not strongly correlated in high-excitation objects, though they have a common underlying mechanism.

Description: The synchrotron-radiating particles and magnetic fields in low-power radio galaxies (including most nearby cluster-centre sources), if at equipartition, can provide only a small fraction of the total internal energy density of the radio lobes or plumes, which is now well constrained via X-ray observations of their external environments. We consider the constraints on models for the dominant energy contribution in low-power radio-galaxy lobes obtained from a detailed comparison of how the internal equipartition pressure and external pressure measured from X-ray observations evolve with distance for two radio galaxies, 3C 31 and Hydra A. We rule out relativistic lepton dominance of the radio lobes, and conclude that models in which magnetic field or relativistic protons/ions carried up the jet dominate lobe energetics are unlikely. Finally, we argue that entrainment of material from the jet surroundings can provide the necessary pressure, and construct a simple self-consistent model of the evolution of the entrainment rate required for pressure balance along the 100-kpc-scale plumes of 3C 31. Such a model requires that the entrained material is heated to temperatures substantially above that of the surrounding intragroup medium, and that the temperature of the thermal component of the jet increases with distance, though remaining sub-relativistic.

Description: CIZA J2242.8+5301, a merging galaxy cluster at z = 0.19, hosts a double-relic system and a faint radio halo. Radio observations at frequencies ranging from a few MHz to several GHz have shown that the radio spectral index at the outer edge of the northern relic corresponds to a shock of Mach number $4.6_{-0.9}^{+1.3}$, under the assumptions of diffusive shock acceleration of thermal particles in the test-particle regime. Here, we present results from new Chandra observations of the cluster. The Chandra surface brightness profile across the northern relic only hints to a surface brightness discontinuity (〈2 detection). Nevertheless, our reanalysis of archival Suzaku data indicates a temperature discontinuity across the relic that is consistent with a Mach number of $2.54_{-0.43}^{+0.64}$, in agreement with previously published results. This confirms that the Mach number at the shock traced by the northern relic is much weaker than predicted from the radio. Puzzlingly, in the Chandra data we also identify additional inner small density discontinuities both on and off the merger axis. Temperature measurements on both sides of the discontinuities do not allow us to undoubtedly determine their nature, although a shock front interpretation seems more likely. We speculate that if the inner density discontinuities are indeed shock fronts, then they are the consequence of violent relaxation of the dark matter cores of the clusters involved in the merger.

Description: We present the results of high-resolution VLBI (very long baseline interferometry) observations at 1.6 and 4.9 GHz of the radio-loud Seyfert galaxy, Mrk 6. These observations are able to detect a compact radio core in this galaxy for the first time. The core has an inverted spectral index ($\alpha ^{1.6}_{4.9}$ = +1.0 ± 0.2) and a brightness temperature of 1 10 8  K. Three distinct radio components, which resemble jet elements and/or hotspots, are also detected. The position angles of these elongated jet elements point not only to a curved jet in Mrk 6, but also towards a connection between the AGN and the kpc-scale radio lobes/bubbles in this galaxy. Firmer constraints on the star formation rate provided by new Herschel observations (SFR 〈 0.8 M  yr –1 ) make the starburst-wind-powered bubble scenario implausible. From plasma speeds, obtained via prior Chandra X-ray observations, and ram pressure balance arguments for the interstellar medium and radio bubbles, the north–south bubbles are expected to take 7.5 10 6 yr to form, and the east–west bubbles 1.4 10 6  yr. We suggest that the jet axis has changed at least once in Mrk 6 within the last 10 7 yr. A comparison of the nuclear radio-loudness of Mrk 6 and a small sample of Seyfert galaxies with a subset of low-luminosity FR I radio galaxies reveals a continuum in radio properties.

Description: Due to their steep spectra, low-frequency observations of Fanaroff–Riley type II (FR II) radio galaxies potentially provide key insights in to the morphology, energetics and spectrum of these powerful radio sources. However, limitations imposed by the previous generation of radio interferometers at metre wavelengths have meant that this region of parameter space remains largely unexplored. In this paper, the first in a series examining FR IIs at low frequencies, we use LOFAR (LOw Frequency ARray) observations between 50 and 160 MHz, along with complementary archival radio and X-ray data, to explore the properties of two FR II sources, 3C 452 and 3C 223. We find that the morphology of 3C 452 is that of a standard FR II rather than of a double-double radio galaxy as had previously been suggested, with no remnant emission being observed beyond the active lobes. We find that the low-frequency integrated spectra of both sources are much steeper than expected based on traditional assumptions and, using synchrotron/inverse-Compton model fitting, show that the total energy content of the lobes is greater than previous estimates by a factor of around 5 for 3C 452 and 2 for 3C 223. We go on to discuss possible causes of these steeper-than-expected spectra and provide revised estimates of the internal pressures and magnetic field strengths for the intrinsically steep case. We find that the ratio between the equipartition magnetic field strengths and those derived through synchrotron/inverse-Compton model fitting remains consistent with previous findings and show that the observed departure from equipartition may in some cases provide a solution to the spectral versus dynamical age disparity.