Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics – High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
Scientific paper
2010-12-20
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
6 pages, 4 figures, accepted for publication in ApJL
Scientific paper
We report on the analysis of all 65 pointed Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer observations of the recently discovered soft X-ray transient MAXI J1659-152 (initially referred to as GRB 100925A). The source was studied in terms of its evolution through the hardness-intensity diagram (HID) as well as its X-ray variability properties. MAXI J1659-152 traced out an anti-clockwise loop in the HID, which is commonly seen in transient low-mass X-ray binaries. The variability properties of the source, in particular the detection of type-B and type-C low-frequency quasi-periodic oscillations, and the way they evolve along the HID track, indicate that MAXI J1659-152 is a black hole candidate. The spectral and variability properties of MAXI J1659-152 imply that the source was observed in the hard and soft intermediate states during the RXTE observations, with several transitions between these two states.
Altamirano Diego
Casella Piergiorgio
Homan Jeroen
Kalamkar Maithili
Linares Manuel
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