A highly magnetized twin-jet base pinpoints a supermassive black hole
Journal article, 2016

Supermassive black holes (SMBH) are essential for the production of jets in radio-loud active galactic nuclei (AGN). Theoretical models based on (Blandford & Znajek 1977, MNRAS, 179, 433) extract the rotational energy from a Kerr black hole, which could be the case for NGC1052, to launch these jets. This requires magnetic fields on the order of 10(3) G to 10(4) G. We imaged the vicinity of the SMBH of the AGN NGC1052 with the Global Millimetre VLBI Array and found a bright and compact central feature that is smaller than 1.9 light days (100 Schwarzschild radii) in radius. Interpreting this as a blend of the unresolved jet bases, we derive the magnetic field at 1 Schwarzschild radius to lie between 200 G and similar to 8.3 x 10(4) G consistent with Blandford & Znajek models.

magnetic fields

galaxies: magnetic fields

galaxies: jets

galaxies: active

galaxies: nuclei

Author

A. K. Baczko

Max Planck Society

University of Würzburg

University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)

R. Schulz

University of Würzburg

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)

M. Kadler

University of Würzburg

Eduardo Ros

Universitat de Valencia

Max Planck Society

M. Perucho

Universitat de Valencia

T. P. Krichbaum

Max Planck Society

M. Bock

Max Planck Society

M. Bremer

Institut de Radioastronomie Millimétrique (IRAM)

C. Grossberger

University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)

University of Würzburg

Max Planck Society

Michael Lindqvist

Chalmers, Earth and Space Sciences, Onsala Space Observatory

A. P. Lobanov

University of Hamburg

Max Planck Society

K. Mannheim

University of Würzburg

Ivan Marti-Vidal

Chalmers, Earth and Space Sciences, Onsala Space Observatory

C. Muller

University of Würzburg

Radboud University

University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)

J. Wilms

University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU)

A.J. Zensus

Max Planck Society

Astronomy and Astrophysics

0004-6361 (ISSN) 1432-0746 (eISSN)

Vol. 593 A47

Subject Categories

Astronomy, Astrophysics and Cosmology

DOI

10.1051/0004-6361/201527951

More information

Latest update

4/11/2018