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Monitoring the Morphology of M87* in 2009-2017 with the Event Horizon Telescope

Journal Article · · Astrophys.J.
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  1. Harvard U.; Harvard-Smithsonian Ctr. Astrophys.
  2. NRAO, Charlottesville; MIT, Haystack Observ.; Natl. Astron. Observ. of Japan; Harvard U.
  3. Arizona U., Astron. Dept. - Steward Observ.
  4. Colorado U.; JILA, Boulder
  5. MIT, Haystack Observ.
  6. Nijmegen U., IMAPP
  7. Bonn, Max Planck Inst., Radioastron.
  8. Shanghai, Astron. Observ.; Bonn, Max Planck Inst., Radioastron.
  9. Illinois U., Urbana; Los Alamos
  10. Inst. Astron. Astrophys., Hilo
  11. Perimeter Inst. Theor. Phys.; Waterloo U.
  12. Princeton U., PCTS; NASA, Marshall
  13. Amsterdam U., Astron. Inst.
  14. Illinois U., Urbana; Illinois U., Urbana, Astron. Dept.
  15. Waterloo U.
  16. Natl. Astron. Observ. of Japan; Sokendai, Tsukuba
  17. Mexico U.; UNAM, Morelia, CCM; UNAM, Inst. Astron.
  18. Amsterdam U., Astron. Inst.; U. Amsterdam, GRAPPA
  19. UC, Berkeley
  20. IAA, Granada
  21. Taiwan, Natl. Taiwan U.
  22. Valencia U., Astro. Astrophys.; Valencia U., IFIC; Bonn, Max Planck Inst., Radioastron.
  23. INFN, Trieste; SISSA, Trieste; Trieste U.
  24. East Asian Observ.
  25. Leiden Observ.
  26. Harvard U.; Harvard-Smithsonian Ctr. Astrophys.; Caltech
  27. IRAM, St. Martin d'Heres
  28. KASI, DaeJeon; KAIST, Taejon
  29. Chicago U., KICP; Chicago U., Astron. Astrophys. Ctr.; Chicago U.; Chicago U., EFI
  30. Cornell U., Radio. Space Res. Ctr.
  31. Shanghai, Astron. Observ.; Key Lab. Radio Astron., Nanjing
  32. Arizona U., Astron. Dept. - Steward Observ.; Harvard-Smithsonian Ctr. Astrophys.
  33. Onsala Space Observ.
  34. Naples U.; Frankfurt U.; INFN, Naples
  35. Pretoria U.; Rhodes U.
  36. LESIA, Meudon
  37. NRAO, Charlottesville
  38. Frankfurt U.
  39. Harvard U.
  40. Nijmegen U., IMAPP; Leiden Observ.
  41. Southern Denmark U., CP3-Origins; Perimeter Inst. Theor. Phys.
  42. INAOE, Puebla; Conacyt, Mexico
  43. Shanghai, Astron. Observ.
  44. Harvard-Smithsonian Ctr. Astrophys.
  45. Groningen, KVI
  46. Peking U.; Peking U., Beijing, KIAA
  47. INAOE, Puebla
  48. Fermilab
  49. Garching, Max Planck Inst., MPE
  50. Boston U.; St. Petersburg State U.
  51. Natl. Astron. Observ. of Japan
  52. JIVE, Dwingeloo
  53. Arizona U., Astron. Dept. - Steward Observ.; Caltech
  54. KASI, DaeJeon
  55. Natl. Astron. Observ. of Japan; Kogakuin U.
  56. Taiwan, Natl. Cheng Kung U.
  57. NRAO, Tucson
  58. Beijing, Inst. High Energy Phys.
  59. Nanjing U., Dept. Astron.; Nanjing U.
  60. Bologna Observ.
  61. Yunnan Observ.; CAMS-CAS, Beijing
  62. Bologna Observ.; Bonn, Max Planck Inst., Radioastron.
  63. Boston U.
  64. Valencia U., Astro. Astrophys.; Valencia U., IFIC
  65. Princeton, Inst. Advanced Study; Arizona U., Astron. Dept. - Steward Observ.
  66. Frankfurt U.; Shanghai Jiao Tong U.
  67. MIT, Haystack Observ.; Natl. Astron. Observ. of Japan
  68. Bonn, Max Planck Inst., Radioastron.; Nijmegen U., IMAPP
  69. Amsterdam U., Astron. Inst.; Nijmegen U., IMAPP
  70. Concepcion U.
  71. Massachusetts U., Amherst
  72. Rhodes U.
  73. Natl. Astron. Observ. of Japan; Tokyo U.
  74. Perimeter Inst. Theor. Phys.; Canadian Inst. Theor. Astrophys.; U. Toronto, Dunlap Inst. Astron. Astrophys.; Canadian Inst. Advanced Res.
  75. Amsterdam U., Astron. Inst.; Frankfurt U.
  76. Illinois U., Urbana
  77. Perimeter Inst. Theor. Phys.
  78. Perimeter Inst. Theor. Phys.; Taiwan, Natl. Normal U.; Taiwan, Natl. Taiwan U.
  79. Frankfurt U.; Trinity Coll., Dublin
  80. Princeton U., Astrophys. Sci. Dept.; Flatiron Inst., New York
  81. Los Alamos
  82. IRAM, Granada
  83. Natl. Astron. Observ. of Japan; Hiroshima U., HASC
  84. Aalto U.; Bonn, Max Planck Inst., Radioastron.
  85. Bonn, Max Planck Inst., Radioastron.; Peking U., Beijing, KIAA
  86. KASI, DaeJeon; KAIST, Taejon; Yonsei U.
  87. Nijmegen U., IMAPP; Leiden Observ.; NWO, The Hague; Nikhef, Amsterdam; Arizona U., Astron. Dept. - Steward Observ.
  88. Tohoku U., IIAIR; Tohoku U., Astron. Inst.
  89. Bonn, Max Planck Inst., Radioastron.; IRAM, Granada
  90. Seoul Natl. U., Dept. Phys. Astron.
  91. JIVE, Dwingeloo; Leiden Observ.
  92. Brandeis U.
  93. Central Lancashire U.
  94. Hua-Zhong U. Sci. Tech.
  95. Mullard Space Sci. Lab.; Frankfurt U.
  96. Shanghai, Astron. Observ.; Beijing, GUCAS
  97. Hefei, CUST
  98. Nijmegen U., IMAPP; Nanjing U., Dept. Astron.
+ Show Author Affiliations
The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) has recently delivered the first resolved images of M87*, the supermassive black hole in the center of the M87 galaxy. These images were produced using 230 GHz observations performed in 2017 April. Additional observations are required to investigate the persistence of the primary image feature—a ring with azimuthal brightness asymmetry—and to quantify the image variability on event horizon scales. To address this need, we analyze M87* data collected with prototype EHT arrays in 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2013. While these observations do not contain enough information to produce images, they are sufficient to constrain simple geometric models. We develop a modeling approach based on the framework utilized for the 2017 EHT data analysis and validate our procedures using synthetic data. Applying the same approach to the observational data sets, we find the M87* morphology in 2009–2017 to be consistent with a persistent asymmetric ring of ∼40 μas diameter. The position angle of the peak intensity varies in time. In particular, we find a significant difference between the position angle measured in 2013 and 2017. These variations are in broad agreement with predictions of a subset of general relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations. We show that quantifying the variability across multiple observational epochs has the potential to constrain the physical properties of the source, such as the accretion state or the black hole spin.
Research Organization:
UC, Berkeley; Peking U.; MIT, Haystack Observ.; Natl. Astron. Observ. of Japan; SISSA, Trieste; Illinois U., Urbana; IRAM, St. Martin d'Heres; Shanghai, Astron. Observ.; Princeton U., Astrophys. Sci. Dept.; Brandeis U.; Boston U.; Taiwan, Natl. Cheng Kung U.; Flatiron Inst., New York; Nanjing U.; Nijmegen U., IMAPP; Valencia U., IFIC; Trinity Coll., Dublin; Groningen, KVI; Waterloo U.; Taiwan, Natl. Normal U.; INFN, Trieste; Onsala Space Observ.; IRAM, Granada; Beijing, Inst. High Energy Phys.; Peking U., Beijing, KIAA; East Asian Observ.; Mexico U.; Taiwan, Natl. Taiwan U.; Chicago U., Astron. Astrophys. Ctr.; Tokyo U.; Cornell U., Radio. Space Res. Ctr.; NWO, The Hague; Beijing, GUCAS; Yonsei U.; Pretoria U.; Naples U.; LESIA, Meudon; Bologna Observ.; Valencia U., Astro. Astrophys.; CAMS-CAS, Beijing; Chicago U., KICP; Inst. Astron. Astrophys., Hilo; Concepcion U.; Yunnan Observ.; Chicago U.; NRAO, Charlottesville; NRAO, Tucson; U. Toronto, Dunlap Inst. Astron. Astrophys.; INAOE, Puebla; Sokendai, Tsukuba; Leiden Observ.; INFN, Naples; Trieste U.; JILA, Boulder; Harvard U.; Hefei, CUST; KAIST, Taejon; JIVE, Dwingeloo; Arizona U., Astron. Dept. - Steward Observ.; Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (FNAL), Batavia, IL (United States); St. Petersburg State U.; KASI, DaeJeon; Southern Denmark U., CP3-Origins; Perimeter Inst. Theor. Phys.; Garching, Max Planck Inst., MPE; Kogakuin U.; Conacyt, Mexico; Seoul Natl. U., Dept. Phys. Astron.; Massachusetts U., Amherst; Chicago U., EFI; Frankfurt U.; Central Lancashire U.; Key Lab. Radio Astron., Nanjing; Canadian Inst. Theor. Astrophys.; Rhodes U.; Caltech; NASA, Marshall; Shanghai Jiao Tong U.; Mullard Space Sci. Lab.; Bonn, Max Planck Inst., Radioastron.; Hua-Zhong U. Sci. Tech.; IAA, Granada; Harvard-Smithsonian Ctr. Astrophys.; Hiroshima U., HASC; Princeton U., PCTS; Amsterdam U., Astron. Inst.; Nikhef, Amsterdam; U. Amsterdam, GRAPPA; UNAM, Inst. Astron.; Tohoku U., Astron. Inst.; Princeton, Inst. Advanced Study; Colorado U.; UNAM, Morelia, CCM; Illinois U., Urbana, Astron. Dept.; Canadian Inst. Advanced Res.; Aalto U.; Nanjing U., Dept. Astron.; Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States); Tohoku U., IIAIR
Sponsoring Organization:
US Department of Energy
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-07CH11359
OSTI ID:
1674987
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 2426556
OSTI ID: 23031328
Report Number(s):
FERMILAB-PUB-20-534-V; oai:inspirehep.net:1818905; arXiv:2009.11842
Journal Information:
Astrophys.J., Journal Name: Astrophys.J. Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 901
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS
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