Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics – Cosmology and Extragalactic Astrophysics
Scientific paper
2010-10-27
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
Cosmology and Extragalactic Astrophysics
5 pages, 3 figures, Accepted for publication in ApJL
Scientific paper
A sublimation process governs the innermost region of the dusty torus of active galactic nuclei. However, the observed inner radius of the torus is systematically smaller than the expected radius by a factor of ~ 1/3. We show that the anisotropy of the emission from accretion disks resolves this conflict naturally and quantitatively. An accretion disk emits lesser radiation in the direction closer to its equatorial plane (i.e., to the torus). We find that the anisotropy makes the torus inner region closer to the central black hole and concave. Moreover, the innermost edge of the torus may connect with the outermost edge of the disk continuously. Considering the anisotropic emission of each clump in the torus, we calculate the near-infrared flux variation in response to a UV flash. For an observer at the polar angle theta_obs = 25 deg, the centroid of the time delay is found to be 37% of the delay expected in the case of isotropic illumination, which explains the observed systematic deviation.
Kawaguchi Toshihiro
Mori Masao
No associations
LandOfFree
Orientation Effects on the Inner Region of Dusty Torus of Active Galactic Nuclei does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.
If you have personal experience with Orientation Effects on the Inner Region of Dusty Torus of Active Galactic Nuclei, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Orientation Effects on the Inner Region of Dusty Torus of Active Galactic Nuclei will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-582457