Fermi LAT detection of Increased Flux from new gamma-ray blazar PKS 0250-225
Abstract
The Large Area Telescope (LAT), one of the two instruments on the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope (formerly GLAST, launched June 11, 2008), has observed an increasing gamma-ray flux from a source positionally consistent with PKS 0250-225 (RA: 02h52m47.9s, Dec:-22d19m25s, J2000). Preliminary analysis indicates that PKS 0250-225 (z=1.427 ; as CGRaBS J0252-2219 in Healey S. et al. 2007, ApJS, 175, 97) has been in a high state since Feb 17 with a gamma-ray flux (E>100MeV) of (0.5 +/- 0.1) x 10-6 ph cm-2 s-1, which represents a > 3-fold increase in flux with respect to the average preliminary flux observed during the first 6 months of data of the Fermi mission and about an 8-fold increase with respect to the first 3 months, suggesting thus a long-term trend of increasing flux.
- Publication:
-
The Astronomer's Telegram
- Pub Date:
- February 2009
- Bibcode:
- 2009ATel.1933....1C
- Keywords:
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- Gamma Ray;
- >GeV;
- Transients