X-ray binaries, powered by accretion onto black holes, neutron stars, or white dwarfs from companion stars, are among the brightest non-explosive beacons in galaxies, outshining the Sun by millions. Typical X-ray binaries emit primarily above 0.3 keV, whereas cooler sources, peaking in the extreme ultraviolet (EUV), remain challenging to detect due to a long-standing observational blind spot. Here, we report the discovery of a remarkable class of luminous, point-like, non-nuclear X-ray objects--hypersoft X-ray sources--that have largely been missed by previous surveys. Detected primarily or exclusively below 0.3 keV, the most luminous examples radiate near 1E38 erg/s in the narrow X-ray band, with spectral models suggesting even higher bolometric luminosities, most of which emerge in the EUV. They rank among the most energetic sources in galaxies, yet their EUV-peaking spectra evaded earlier detections. We propose that hypersoft sources represent X-ray binaries spanning multiple physical classes, including accreting white dwarfs or post-nova systems--potential progenitors of Type Ia supernovae--and systems hosting accreting black holes. Beyond their elusive nature, they may play a crucial role in ionizing gas within galaxies.
Despite recent progress in understanding Lyman-alpha (Lya) emitters (LAEs), relatively little is known regarding their typical black hole activity across cosmic time. Here, we study the X-ray and radio properties of ~4000 LAEs at 2.2<z<6 from the SC4K survey in the COSMOS field. We detect 254 (6.8+-0.4%) of the LAEs individually in the X-rays (S/N>3) and find an average luminosity of 10^{44.31+-0.01} erg/s and an average black hole accretion rate (BHAR) of 0.72+-0.01 Msun/yr, consistent with moderate to high accreting AGN. We detect 120 sources in deep radio data (radio AGN fraction of 3.2%+-0…
Discovery of crested quasi-periodic eruptions following the most luminous SRG/eROSITA tidal disruption event
Max-Planck-Institut für extraterrestrische Physik（马克斯·普朗克地外物理研究所）；Excellence Cluster ORIGINS（ORIGINS 卓越集群）；School of Physics and Astronomy, Tel Aviv University（特拉维夫大学物理与天文学学院）；Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology（麻省理工学院卡弗里天体物理学与空间研究研究所）；Centro de Astrobiologia (CAB), CSIC-INTA（CSIC-INTA 天体生物学中心）；European Southern Observatory（欧洲南方天文台）
Periodic pulsations have been found in emission from the ultra-luminous X-ray source (ULX) M82 X-2, strongly suggesting that the emitter is a rotating neutron star rather than a black hole. However, the radiation mechanisms and accretion mode involved have not yet been clearly established. In this paper, we examine the applicability to this object of standard accretion modes for high mass X-ray binaries (HMXBs). We find that spherical wind accretion, which drives OB-type HMXBs, cannot apply here but that there is a natural explanation in terms of an extension of the picture for standard Be-typ…
Challenging the AGN scenario for JWST/NIRSpec LRD and non-LRD broad H$α$ emitters in light of non-detection of NIRCam photometric variability and X-ray
Context: Recent XMM-Newton observations have revealed that IRAS 17020+4544 is a very unusual example of black hole wind-produced feedback by a moderately luminous AGN in a spiral galaxy. Aims: Since the source is known for being a radio emitter, we investigated about the presence and the properties of a non-thermal component. Methods: We observed IRAS 17020+4544 with the Very Long Baseline Array at 5, 8, 15, and 24 GHz within a month of the 2014 XMM-Newton observations. We further analysed archival data taken in 2000 and 2012. Results: We detect the source at 5 GHz and on short baselines at 8 …
KM3NeT/ARCA stacking search for high-energy neutrino point sources: the case of ultra-luminous infrared galaxies and blazars
Università di Firenze（佛罗伦萨大学）；INFN, Sezione di Firenze（意大利国家核物理研究所佛罗伦萨分部）；Université de Strasbourg（斯特拉斯堡大学）；CNRS（法国国家科学研究中心）；Université de Haute Alsace（上阿尔萨斯大学）；Khalifa University of Science and Technology（哈利法科学技术大学）；INFN, Sezione di Napoli（意大利国家核物理研究所那不勒斯分部）；Università di Napoli “Federico II”（那不勒斯费德里科二世大学）；INFN, Sezione di Roma（意大利国家核物理研究所罗马分部）；IFIC - Instituto de Física Corpuscular (CSIC - Universitat de València)（粒子物理研究所（瓦伦西亚大学与西班牙高等科学研究理事会联合））；Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya（加泰罗尼亚理工大学）
ASPIRE: The Environments and Dark Matter Halos of Luminous Quasars in the Epoch of Reionization
University of Michigan（密歇根大学）；Steward Observatory, University of Arizona（亚利桑那大学斯图尔德天文台）；Space Telescope Science Institute（太空望远镜科学研究所）；University of California, Santa Barbara（加州大学圣塔芭芭拉分校）；Leiden Observatory, Leiden University（莱顿大学莱顿天文台）；Newcastle University（纽卡斯尔大学）；INAF–Osservatorio di Astrofisica e Scienza dello Spazio（意大利国家天体物理研究所空间科学与天体物理观测站）；Department of Astronomy, University of Geneva（日内瓦大学天文学系）
The Radio Properties of Extreme Coronal Line Emitters: Constraints on the Sub-parsec Environment
University of Arizona（亚利桑那大学）；University of Utah（犹他大学）；Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie（马克斯·普朗克射电天文研究所）；University of California, Berkeley（加利福尼亚大学伯克利分校）；Stanford University（斯坦福大学）
Star-forming galaxies produce gamma-rays primarily via pion production, resulting from inelastic collisions between cosmic ray protons and the interstellar medium (ISM). The dense ISM and high star formation rates of luminous and ultra-luminous infrared galaxies (LIRGs and ULIRGs) imply that they should be strong gamma-ray emitters, but so far only two LIRGs have been detected. Theoretical models for their emission depend on the unknown fraction of cosmic ray protons that escape these galaxies before interacting. We analyze Fermi-LAT data for 82 of the brightest IRAS LIRGs and ULIRGs. We exami…
The current generation of Cherenkov telescopes, together with Fermi-LAT, have greatly increased our knowledge of $γ$-ray blazars. Among them, the high-frequency-peaked BL Lacertae object (HBL) PKS1424+240 (z $\simeq$ 0.6) is the farthest persistent emitter of very-high-energy (VHE; E $\geq$ 100 GeV) $γ$-ray photons. Current emission models can satisfactorily reproduce typical blazar emission assuming that the dominant emission process is synchrotron-self-Compton (SSC) in HBLs; and external-inverse-Compton (EIC) in LBLs and FSRQs. Hadronic models are also able to correctly reproduce the $γ$-ray…
The uncharted territory of the high-redshift ($z\gtrsim3$) Universe holds the key to understand the evolution of quasars. In an attempt to identify the most extreme members of the quasar population, i.e., blazars, we have carried out a multi-wavelength study of a large sample of radio-loud quasars beyond $z=3$. Our sample consists of 9 $γ$-ray detected blazars and 133 candidate blazars selected based on the flatness of their soft X-ray spectra (0.3$-$10 keV photon index $\leq1.75$), including 15 with NuSTAR observations. The application of the likelihood profile stacking technique reveals that…
We study a large sample of dwarf galaxies using archival Chandra X-ray observations, with the aim of detecting accreting intermediate-mass black holes (IMBHs). IMBHs are expected to inhabit dwarf galaxies and to produce specific signatures in terms of luminosity and X-ray spectra. We report the discovery of an X-ray source associated with an Abell 85 dwarf galaxy that fits the IMBH description. The stellar mass of the host galaxy is estimated to be 2 $\times$ 10$^8$ $M_\odot$, which makes it one of the least massive galaxies to potentially host an accreting black hole. The source is detected i…
Our Galaxy hosts the annihilation of a few $\times 10^{43}$ low-energy positrons every second. Radioactive isotopes capable of supplying such positrons are synthesised in stars, stellar remnants, and supernovae. For decades, however, there has been no positive identification of a main stellar positron source leading to suggestions that many positrons originate from exotic sources like the Galaxy's central super-massive black hole or dark matter annihilation. %, but such sources would not explain the recently-detected positron signal from the extended Galactic disk. Here we show that a single t…
Colliding-wind binaries (CWBs) constitute an emerging class of $γ$-ray sources powered by strong, dense winds in massive stellar systems. The most powerful of them are those binaries hosting a Wolf-Rayet (WR) star. Following the recent discovery of Apep -- the closest known Galactic WR--WR binary -- we discuss the non-detection of its putative high-energy emission by the Fermi Large Area Telescope (Fermi-LAT) in this Letter. The limits reported in the GeV regime can be used to set a lower limit on the magnetic field pressure density within the shocked wind-collision region (WCR), and to exclud…
