THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN X-RAY LUMINOSITY AND MAJOR FLARE LAUNCHING IN GRS 1915+105
- 1415 Granvia Altamira, Palos Verdes Estates, CA 90274 (United States)
- Laboratoire AIM, CEA/DSM-CNRS-Universite Paris Diderot, IRFU SAp, F-91191 Gif-sur-Yvette (France)
We perform the most detailed analysis to date of the X-ray state of the Galactic black hole candidate GRS 1915+105 just prior to (0-4 hr) and during the brief (1-7 hr) ejection of major (superluminal) radio flares. A very strong model independent correlation is found between the 1.2 keV-12 keV X-ray flux 0-4 hr before flare ejections with the peak optically thin 2.3 GHz emission of the flares. This suggests a direct physical connection between the energy in the ejection and the luminosity of the accretion flow preceding the ejection. In order to quantify this concept, we develop techniques to estimate the intrinsic (unabsorbed) X-ray luminosity, L {sub intrinsic}, from RXTE All Sky Monitor data and to implement known methods to estimate the time-averaged power required to launch the radio emitting plasmoids, Q (sometimes called jet power). We find that the distribution of intrinsic luminosity from 1.2 keV-50 keV, L {sub intrinsic} (1.2-50), is systematically elevated just before ejections compared to arbitrary times when there are no major ejections. The estimated Q is strongly correlated with L {sub intrinsic} (1.2-50) 0-4 hr before the ejection, the increase in L {sub intrinsic} (1.2-50) in the hours preceding the ejection and the time-averaged L {sub intrinsic} (1.2-50) during the flare rise. Furthermore, the total time-averaged power during the ejection (Q + the time average of L {sub intrinsic} (1.2-50) during ejection) is strongly correlated with L {sub intrinsic} (1.2-50) just before launch with near equality if the distance to the source is Almost-Equal-To 10.5 kpc.
- OSTI ID:
- 22167692
- Journal Information:
- Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 764, Issue 2; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0004-637X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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