PKS 2131-021-Discovery of Strong Coherent Sinusoidal Variations from Radio to Optical Frequencies: Compelling Evidence for a Blazar Supermassive Black Hole Binary

Kiehlmann, S.; de la Parra, P. V.; Sullivan, A. G.; Synani, A.; Liodakis, I.; Mroz, P.; Naess, S. K.; Readhead, A. C. S.; Begelman, M. C.; Blandford, R. D.; Chatziioannou, K.; Ding, Y.; Graham, M. J.; Harrison, F.; Homan, D. C.; Hovatta, T.; Kulkarni, S. R.; Lister, M. L.; Maiolino, R.; Max-Moerbeck, W.; Molina, B.; O'Dea, C. P.; Pavlidou, V.; Pearson, T. J.; Aller, M. F.; Lawrence, C. R.; Lazio, T. J. W.; O'Neill, S.; Prince, T. A.; Ravi, V.; Reeves, R. A.; Tassis, K.; Vallisneri, M.; Zensus, J. A.
PKS 2131-021-Discovery of Strong Coherent Sinusoidal Variations from Radio to Optical Frequencies: Compelling Evidence for a Blazar Supermassive Black Hole Binary

Kiehlmann, S.
de la Parra, P. V.
Sullivan, A. G.
Synani, A.
Liodakis, I.
Mroz, P.
Naess, S. K.
Readhead, A. C. S.
Begelman, M. C.
Blandford, R. D.
Chatziioannou, K.
Ding, Y.
Graham, M. J.
Harrison, F.
Homan, D. C.
Hovatta, T.
Kulkarni, S. R.
Lister, M. L.
Maiolino, R.
Max-Moerbeck, W.
Molina, B.
O'Dea, C. P.
Pavlidou, V.
Pearson, T. J.
Aller, M. F.
Lawrence, C. R.
Lazio, T. J. W.
O'Neill, S.
Prince, T. A.
Ravi, V.
Reeves, R. A.
Tassis, K.
Vallisneri, M.
Zensus, J. A.
Katso/Avaa
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IOP Publishing Ltd
doi:10.3847/1538-4357/adc567
URI
https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/adc567
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Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on:
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi-fe2025082789709
Tiivistelmä
Haystack and Owens Valley Radio Observatory observations recently revealed strong, intermittent, sinusoidal total flux-density variations that maintained their coherence between 1975 and 2021 in the blazar PKS 2131-021 (z = 1.283). This was interpreted as possible evidence of a supermassive black hole binary (SMBHB). Extended observations through 2023 show a coherence over 47.9 yr, with an observed period P-15 GHz = (1739.8 +/- 17.4) days. We reject, with p-value = 2.09 x 10(-7), the hypothesis that the variations are due to random fluctuations in the red noise tail of the power spectral density. There is clearly a physical phenomenon in PKS 2131-021 producing coherent sinusoidal flux-density variations. We find the coherent sinusoidal intensity variations extend from below 2.7 GHz to optical frequencies, from which we derive an observed period P-optical = (1764 +/- 36) days. Across this broad frequency range, there is a smoothly varying monotonic phase shift in the sinusoidal variations with frequency. Hints of periodic variations are also observed at gamma-ray energies. The importance of well-vetted SMBHB candidates to searches for gravitational waves is pointed out. We estimate the fraction of blazars that are SMBHB candidates to be >1 in 100. Thus, monitoring programs covering tens of thousands of blazars could discover hundreds of SMBHB candidates.
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