Multiwavelength temporal variability of the blazar 3C 454.3 during 2014 activity phase
Abstract
We present a multiwavelength temporal analysis of the blazar 3C 454.3 during the high γ-ray active period from May to December, 2014. Except for X-rays, the period is well sampled at near-infrared (NIR)-optical by the Small and Moderate Aperture Research Telescope System (SMARTS) facility, and the source is detected continuously on daily time-scale in the Fermi-Large Area Telescope γ-ray band. The source exhibits diverse levels of variability with many flaring/active states in the continuously sampled γ-ray light curve which are also reflected in the NIR-optical light curves and the sparsely sampled X-ray light curve by the Swift-XRT. Multiband correlation analysis of this continuous segment during different activity periods shows a change of state from no lags between IR and γ-ray, optical and γ-ray, and IR and optical to a state where γ-ray lags the IR/optical by ∼3 d. The results are consistent with the previous studies of the same during various γ-ray flaring and active episodes of the source. This consistency, in turn, suggests an extended localized emission region with almost similar conditions during various γ-ray activity states. On the other hand, the delay of γ-ray with respect to IR/optical and a trend similar to IR/optical in X-rays along with strong broad-band correlations favour magnetic field related origin with X-ray and γ-ray being inverse Comptonization of IR/optical photons and external radiation field, respectively.
- Publication:
-
Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
- Pub Date:
- January 2017
- DOI:
- 10.1093/mnras/stw2440
- arXiv:
- arXiv:1609.06952
- Bibcode:
- 2017MNRAS.464.2046K
- Keywords:
-
- radiation mechanisms: non-thermal;
- galaxies: active;
- galaxies: jets;
- quasars: individual: 3C 454.3;
- X-rays: galaxies;
- Astrophysics - High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena;
- Astrophysics - Astrophysics of Galaxies
- E-Print:
- 15 pages, 5 figures, 1 table, MNRAS accepted