Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics
Scientific paper
2008-12-08
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
5 pages, 4 figures; Publications of the Astronomical Society of Japan letter accepted
Scientific paper
We present the result of near-infrared and optical observations of the BL Lac object S5 0716$ + $714 carried out by the KANATA telescope. S5 0716$ + $714 has both a long term high-amplitude variability and a short-term variability within a night. The shortest variability (microvariability) time-scale is important for understanding the geometry of jets and magnetic field, because it provides a possible minimum size of variation sources. Here, we report the detection of 15-min variability in S5 0716$ + $714, which is one of the shortest time-scales in optical and near-infrared variations observed in blazars. The detected microvariation had an amplitude of $0.061{\pm}0.005$ mag in $V$ band and a blue color of $\Delta(V-J)=-0.025{\pm}0.011$. Furthermore, we successfully detected an unprecedented, short time-scale polarimetric variation which correlated with the brightness change. We revealed that the microvariation had a specific polarization component. The polarization degree of the variation component was higher than that of the total flux. These results suggest that the microvariability originated from a small and local region where the magnetic field is aligned.
Arai Akira
Fukazawa Yasushi
Isogai Mizuki
Kawabata Koji S.
Kino Masaru
No associations
LandOfFree
Detection of Polarimetric Variations Associated with the Shortest Time-Scale Variability in S5 0716$ + $714 does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.
If you have personal experience with Detection of Polarimetric Variations Associated with the Shortest Time-Scale Variability in S5 0716$ + $714, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Detection of Polarimetric Variations Associated with the Shortest Time-Scale Variability in S5 0716$ + $714 will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-318635