High-resolution imaging with the International LOFAR Telescope: Observations of the gravitational lenses MG 0751+2716 and CLASS B1600+434
Shruti Badole, Deepika Venkattu, Neal Jackson, Sarah Wallace, Jiten Dhandha, Philippa Hartley, Christopher Riddell-Rovira, Alice Townsend, Leah K. Morabito, J. P. McKean
备注：
Accepted to a special issue of A&A on sub-arcsecond imaging with LOFAR
We present Low-Frequency Array (LOFAR) telescope observations of the radio-loud gravitational lens systems MG 0751+2716 and CLASS B1600+434. These observations produce images at 300 milliarcseconds (mas) resolution at 150 MHz. In the case of MG 0751+2716, lens modelling is used to derive a size estimate of around 2 kpc for the low-frequency source, which is consistent with a previous 27.4 GHz study in the radio continuum with Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA). This consistency implies that the low-frequency radio source is cospatial with the core-jet structure that forms the radio structure at higher frequencies, and no significant lobe emission or further components associated with star formation are detected within the magnified region of the lens. CLASS B1600+434 is a two-image lens where one of the images passes through the edge-on spiral lensing galaxy, and the low radio frequency allows us to derive limits on propagation effects, namely scattering, in the lensing galaxy. The observed flux density ratio of the two lensed images is 1.19 +/- 0.04 at an observed frequency of 150 MHz. The widths of the two images give an upper limit of 0.035 kpc m^-20/3 on the integrated scattering column through the galaxy at a distance approximately 1 kpc above its plane, under the assumption that image A is not affected by scattering. This is relatively small compared to limits derived through very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) studies of differential scattering in lens systems. These observations demonstrate that LOFAR is an excellent instrument for studying gravitational lenses. We also report on the inability to calibrate three further lens observations: two from early observations that have less well determined station calibration, and a third observation impacted by phase transfer problems.
The nuclear starburst in the nearby galaxy M82 provides an excellent laboratory for understanding the physics of star formation. This galaxy has been extensively observed in the past, revealing tens of radio-bright compact objects embedded in a diffuse free-free absorbing medium. Our understanding of the structure and physics of this medium in M82 can be greatly improved by high-resolution images at low frequencies where the effects of free-free absorption are most prominent. The aims of this study are, firstly, to demonstrate imaging using international baselines of the Low Frequency Array (L…
Identifying active galactic nuclei (AGN) and isolating their contribution to a galaxy's energy budget is crucial for studying the co-evolution of AGN and their host galaxies. Brightness temperature ($T_b$) measurements from high-resolution radio observations at GHz frequencies are widely used to identify AGN. Here we investigate using new sub-arcsecond imaging at 144 MHz with the International LOFAR Telescope to identify AGN using $T_b$ in the Lockman Hole field. We use ancillary data to validate the 940 AGN identifications, finding 83 percent of sources have AGN classifications from SED fitti…
3C295 is a bright, compact steep spectrum source with a well-studied integrated radio spectral energy distribution (SED) from 132 MHz to 15 GHz. However, spatially resolved spectral studies have been limited due to a lack of high resolution images at low radio frequencies. These frequencies are crucial for measuring absorption processes, and anchoring the overall spectral modelling of the radio SED. In this paper, we use International LOFAR (LOw-Frequency ARray) Telescope (ILT) observations of 3C295 to study its spatially resolved spectral properties with sub-arcsecond resolution at 132 MHz. C…
Relatively little information is available about the Universe at ultra-low radio frequencies, i.e. below 50 MHz (ULF), although the ULF spectral window contains a wealth of unique diagnostics for studying galactic and extragalactic phenomena. Sub-arcsecond resolution imaging at these frequencies is extremely difficult, due to the long baselines (>1000 km) required and large ionospheric perturbations. We have conducted a pilot project to investigate the ULF performance and potential of the International LOFAR Telescope (ILT), a trans-European interferometric array with baselines up to ~2000 km …
We analyse new observations with the International Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) telescope, and archival data from the Multi-Element Radio Linked Interferometer Network (MERLIN) and the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA). We model the spatially resolved radio spectrum of Arp 220 from 150 MHz to 33 GHz. We present an image of Arp 220 at 150 MHz with resolution $0.65''\times0.35''$, sensitivity 0.15 mJy beam$^{-1}$, and integrated flux density $394\pm59$ mJy. More than 80% of the detected flux comes from extended ($6''\approx$2.2 kpc) steep spectrum ($α=-0.7$) emission, likely from star formati…
University of Groningen（格罗宁根大学）；ASTRON, Institute for Radio Astronomy（荷兰射电天文研究所）；University of Birmingham（伯明翰大学）
We present a novel machine learning based approach for detecting galaxy-scale gravitational lenses from interferometric data, specifically those taken with the International LOFAR Telescope (ILT), which is observing the northern radio sky at a frequency of 150 MHz, an angular resolution of 350 mas and a sensitivity of 90 uJy beam-1 (1 sigma). We develop and test several Convolutional Neural Networks to determine the probability and uncertainty of a given sample being classified as a lensed or non-lensed event. By training and testing on a simulated interferometric imaging data set that include…
Radio sources with steep spectra are preferentially associated with the most distant galaxies, the $α-z$ relation, but the reason for this relation is an open question. The spatial distribution of spectra in high-z radio sources can be used to study this relation, and low-frequency observations are particularly important in understanding the particle acceleration and injection mechanisms. However, the small angular sizes of high-z sources together with the inherently low resolution of low-frequency radio telescopes until now has prevented high angular resolution low-frequency observations of d…
The Lockman Hole Project is a wide international collaboration aimed at exploiting the multi-band extensive and deep information available for the Lockman Hole region, with the aim of better characterizing the physical and evolutionary properties of the various source populations detected in deep radio fields. Recent observations with the LOw-Frequency ARray (LOFAR) extends the multi-frequency radio information currently available for the Lockman Hole (from 350 MHz up to 15 GHz) down to 150 MHz, allowing us to explore a new radio spectral window for the faint radio source population. These LOF…
The Low-Frequency Array (LOFAR) Long-Baseline Calibrator Survey (LBCS) was conducted between 2014 and 2019 in order to obtain a set of suitable calibrators for the LOFAR array. In this paper we present the complete survey, building on the preliminary analysis published in 2016 which covered approximately half the survey area. The final catalogue consists of 30006 observations of 24713 sources in the northern sky, selected for a combination of high low-frequency radio flux density and flat spectral index using existing surveys (WENSS, NVSS, VLSS, and MSSS). Approximately one calibrator per squa…
[abridged] The International LOFAR Telescope is an interferometer with stations spread across Europe. With baselines of up to ~2,000 km, LOFAR has the unique capability of achieving sub-arcsecond resolution at frequencies below 200 MHz, although this is technically and logistically challenging. Here we present a calibration strategy that builds on previous high-resolution work with LOFAR. We give an overview of the calibration strategy and discuss the special challenges inherent to enacting high-resolution imaging with LOFAR, and describe the pipeline, which is publicly available, in detail. W…
Studies of the most distant AGNs allow us to test our current understanding of the physics present in radio-jetted AGNs across a range of environments. The decrease in apparent luminosity with distance is the primary difficulty to overcome in the study of these distant AGNs, which requires highly sensitive instruments. Our goal is to employ new long wavelength radio data to better parametrise the broad-band SED of GB 1508+5714, a high-redshift (z=4.30) AGN. Its high redshift, high intrinsic luminosity, and classification as a blazar allow us to test emission models that consider the efficient …
We report on the first sub-arcsecond (0.44 $\times$ 0.41 arcsec$\rm ^2$) angular resolution image at 150 MHz of the A-nucleus in the Luminous Infrared Galaxy Arp$\,$299, from International Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) Telescope observations. The most remarkable finding is that of an intriguing two-sided, filamentary structure emanating from A-nucleus, which we interpret as an outflow that extends up to at least 14 arcseconds from the A-nucleus in the N-S direction ($\approx$ 5 kpc deprojected size) and accounts for almost 40% of the extended emission of the entire galaxy system. We also discuss…
The correlation between radio spectral index and redshift has been exploited to discover high redshift radio galaxies, but its underlying cause is unclear. It is crucial to characterise the particle acceleration and loss mechanisms in high redshift radio galaxies to understand why their radio spectral indices are steeper than their local counterparts. Low frequency information on scales of $\sim$1 arcsec are necessary to determine the internal spectral index variation. In this paper we present the first spatially resolved studies at frequencies below 100 MHz of the $z = 2.4$ radio galaxy 4C 43…
We study for the first time the low-frequency ($\sim$150 MHz) radio brightness distribution of Arp~299 at subarcsecond resolution, tracing in both compact and extended emission regions the local spectral energy distribution (SED) in order to characterize the dominant emission and absorption processes. We analysed the spatially resolved emission of Arp 299 revealed by 150 MHz international baseline Low-Frequency Array (LOFAR) and 1.4, 5.0, and 8.4 GHz Very Large Array (VLA) observations. We present the first subarcsecond (0.4"$\sim$100~pc) image of the whole Arp~299 system at 150~MHz. The high …
Active galactic nuclei (AGNs) show episodic activity, evident in galaxies that exhibit restarted radio jets. These restarted jets can interact with their environment, leaving signatures on the radio spectral energy distribution. Tracing these signatures requires resolved spectral index measurements over a broad frequency range including low frequencies. We present such a study for the radio galaxy 3C 293. Using the International LOFAR telescope (ILT) we probed spatial scales as fine as ~0.2" at 144 MHz, and to constrain the spectrum we combined these data with Multi-Element Radio Linked Interf…
Revealing the intricacies of radio galaxies and filaments in the merging galaxy cluster Abell 2255. I. Insights from deep LOFAR-VLBI sub-arcsecond resolution images
Challenging the archetypal intermittent radio galaxy J0111+3906. New insights from optical GTC/OSIRIS and radio VLA and LOFAR observations
INAF - Istituto di Radioastronomia（意大利国家天体物理研究所射电天文研究所）；Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias（加那利天体物理研究所）；Universidad de La Laguna（拉古纳大学）；Hamburger Sternwarte, Universität Hamburg（汉堡天文台，汉堡大学）；European Southern Observatory（欧洲南方天文台）
Interstellar scattering is known to broaden distant objects spatially and temporally. The latter aspect is difficult to analyse, unless the signals carry their own time stamps. Pulsars are so kind to do us this favour. Typically the signature is a broadened image with little or no substructure and a similarly smooth exponential scattering tail in the temporal profile. The case of the pulsar B1508+55 is special: The profile shows additional components that are moving relative to the main pulse with time. We use low-frequency VLBI with LOFAR to test the hypothesis that these components are actua…
We report extremely faint 144 MHz radio emission from two gravitationally lensed quasars, SDSS J1004+4112 (z = 1.730) and SDSS J2222+2745 (z = 2.803), using the LOFAR Two Metre Sky Survey (LoTSS) data release 2. After correcting for the lensing magnifications, the two objects have intrinsic flux-densities of 13+/-2 and 58+/-6 uJy, respectively, corresponding to 144 MHz rest-frame luminosities of 10^(23.2+/-0.2) and 10^(24.42+/-0.05) W / Hz, respectively. In the case of SDSS J1004+4112, the intrinsic flux density is close to the confusion limit of LoTSS, making this radio source the faintest to…
The high-redshift radio galaxy 3C 294 at low frequencies: radio detection of the X-ray Ghost
Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge（剑桥大学卡文迪许实验室）；Kavli Institute for Cosmology, University of Cambridge（剑桥大学卡弗里宇宙学研究所）；Centre for Extragalactic Astronomy, Department of Physics, Durham University（杜伦大学物理系河外天文中心）；Institute for Computational Cosmology, Department of Physics, Durham University（杜伦大学物理系计算宇宙学研究所）；Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge（剑桥大学天文学研究所）
The sub-arcsecond ILT view of the Boötes Deep Field: A link between low-frequency kiloparsec radio morphology and AGN driven ionised outflows
Durham University（杜伦大学）；CSIRO（澳大利亚联邦科学与工业研究组织）；Newcastle University（纽卡斯尔大学）；Leiden University（莱顿大学）；ASTRON, The Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy（荷兰射电天文研究所）；University of Bristol（布里斯托大学）；INAF-IRA（意大利国家天体物理研究所罗马分所）
The four persistent radio sources in the northern sky with the highest flux density at metre wavelengths are Cassiopeia A, Cygnus A, Taurus A, and Virgo A; collectively they are called the A-team. Their flux densities at ultra-low frequencies (<100 MHz) can reach several thousands of janskys, and they often contaminate observations of the low-frequency sky by interfering with image processing. Furthermore, these sources are foreground objects for all-sky observations hampering the study of faint signals, such as the cosmological 21 cm line from the epoch of reionisation. We aim to produce robu…
The prominent radio source Hercules A features complex structures in its radio lobes. Although it is one of the most comprehensively studied sources in the radio sky, the origin of the ring structures in the Hercules A radio lobes remains an open question. We present the first sub-arcsecond angular resolution images at low frequencies (<300 MHz) of Hercules A, made with the International LOFAR Telescope. With the addition of data from the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array, we mapped the structure of the lobes from 144 MHz to 7 GHz. We explore the origin of the rings within the lobes of Hercules …
LoTSS of dual AGN: enhanced detectability and prospects for a systematic search
INAF - Istituto di Astrofisica e Planetologia Spaziali（意大利国家天体物理研究所）；INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri（意大利国家天体物理研究所阿切特里天文台）；University of Hamburg（汉堡大学）；INAF - Istituto di Radioastronomia（意大利国家天体物理研究所射电天文台）；Department of Astronomy, University of Cape Town（开普敦大学天文学系）；University of Trento（特伦托大学）；Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia, Università di Firenze（佛罗伦萨大学物理与天文学系）；Institute of Astronomy, Faculty of Physics, Astronomy and Informatics, NCU（尼古拉·哥白尼大学物理、天文与信息学院天体物理研究所）；Center for Theoretical Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences（波兰科学院理论物理中心）
Euclid: Quick Data Release (Q1) -- Optical hotspots in powerful radio galaxies
University of Hertfordshire（赫特福德大学）；INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova（意大利国家天体物理研究所帕多瓦天文台）；INAF, Istituto di Radioastronomia（意大利国家天体物理研究所射电天文研究所）；INAF-Istituto di Astrofisica e Planetologia Spaziali（意大利国家天体物理研究所天体物理学与行星科学研究所）；Durham University（杜伦大学）；Leiden University（莱顿大学）；Roma Tre University（罗马三大）；INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Roma（意大利国家天体物理研究所罗马天文台）；University of Oslo（奥斯陆大学）
The magnetic mayhem in Abell 2199: discovery of synchrotron threads and homogeneous diffuse radio lobes
Durham University（杜伦大学）；University of Minnesota（明尼苏达大学）；INAF - Instituto di Radioastronomia（意大利国家天体物理研究所射电天文研究所）；National Centre for Radio Astrophysics, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research（塔塔基础研究院国家射电天体物理学中心）
High quality low-frequency radio surveys have the promise of advancing our understanding of many important topics in astrophysics, including the life cycle of active galactic nuclei (AGN), particle acceleration processes in jets, the history of star formation, and exoplanet magnetospheres. Currently leading low-frequency surveys reach an angular resolution of a few arcseconds. However, this resolution is not yet sufficient to study the more compact and distant sources in detail. Sub-arcsecond resolution is therefore the next milestone in advancing these fields. The biggest challenge at low rad…
