By analyzing the info from numerous space telescopes, astronomers have carried out an in depth examine of an ultraluminous X-ray supply often called NGC 2403 XMM4. Outcomes of the examine, published January 5 within the Month-to-month Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society journal, point out that this supply is a neutron star accreting at super-Eddington charges.
Ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) are level sources within the sky with typical X-ray luminosities at a stage of 1.0 duodecillion erg/s. They’re much less luminous than active galactic nuclei (AGN), however extra persistently luminous than any identified stellar course of. Though quite a few research of ULXs have been performed, the fundamental nature of those sources nonetheless stays unsolved.
NGC 2403 XMM4 is a ULX within the spiral galaxy NGC 2403 positioned some 13.7 million light years away. Earlier research have discovered that it’s a low-luminosity ULX and prompt that it could be a sub-Eddington intermediate mass black hole.
To be able to shed extra gentle on the properties of NGC 2403 XMM4, which might unveil its true nature, Wasutep Luangtip of the Srinakharinwirot College in Bangkok, Thailand, and Timothy P. Roberts of Durham College in Durham, UK, have combed by way of the archival X-ray information. They analyzed 20 years of observational information from XMM-Newton, Chandra, Swift and NuSTAR space telescopes.
“Provided that NGC 2403 has been noticed a number of instances by numerous observatories for the reason that starting of this century, together with a number of observations within the present decade, there may be now enough archival information to supply us with the chance to investigate this supply intimately,” the researchers defined.
By investigating the 20-year gentle curve of NGC 2403 XMM4, Luangtip and Roberts discovered that more often than not its X-ray luminosity is beneath 1.0 duodecillion erg/s. Nonetheless, on condition that NGC 2403 XMM4 is above the luminosity threshold for ultraluminous X-ray sources, its spectral habits does seem distinctly ULX-like.
Based on the authors of the paper, these findings point out that NGC 2403 XMM4 is accreting at super-Eddington charges. This speculation can be supported by broadband spectroscopic information showcasing the presence of a steep excessive power tail.
The time averaged X-ray luminosity of NGC 2403 XMM4 was estimated to be about 0.5 duodecillion erg/s and the emission from the supply was discovered to be isotropic. Primarily based on this, the astronomers estimate that the article has a mass decrease than 3.8 solar masses, which means that it’s a neutron star, accreting at a fee of 1.3–3.2 instances Eddington.
Summing up the outcomes, the astronomers famous that regardless of not making the ULX threshold, NGC 2403 XMM4 displays many behaviors and traits according to super-Eddington accretion.
All in all, the collected information level to the presence of a neutron star that’s an accreting object on this system. That is due to this fact the third super-Eddington neutron star detected in NGC 2403.
Extra info:
Wasutep Luangtip et al, NGC 2403 XMM4: proof for a super-Eddington neutron star with a attainable transient pulsation, Month-to-month Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society (2024). DOI: 10.1093/mnras/stae023. On arXiv: DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2401.02177
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NGC 2403 XMM4 is a super-Eddington neutron star, examine finds (2024, January 11)
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