TY - JOUR A1 - tAliu, E. A1 - Archambault, S. A1 - Arlen, T. A1 - Aune, T. A1 - Beilicke, M. A1 - Benbow, W. A1 - Bird, R. A1 - Bouvier, A. A1 - Bradbury, S. M. A1 - Buckley, J. H. A1 - Bugaev, V. A1 - Byrum, K. A1 - Cannon, A. A1 - Cesarini, A. A1 - Ciupik, L. A1 - Collins-Hughes, E. A1 - Connolly, M. P. A1 - Cui, W. A1 - Dickherber, R. A1 - Duke, C. A1 - Dumm, J. A1 - Dwarkadas, Vikram V. A1 - Errando, M. A1 - Falcone, A. A1 - Federici, Simone A1 - Feng, Q. A1 - Finley, J. P. A1 - Finnegan, G. A1 - Fortson, L. A1 - Furniss, A. A1 - Galante, N. A1 - Gall, D. A1 - Gillanders, G. H. A1 - Godambe, S. A1 - Gotthelf, E. V. A1 - Griffin, S. A1 - Grube, J. A1 - Gyuk, G. A1 - Hanna, D. A1 - Holder, J. A1 - Huan, H. A1 - Hughes, G. A1 - Humensky, T. B. A1 - Kaaret, P. A1 - Karlsson, N. A1 - Kertzman, M. A1 - Khassen, Y. A1 - Kieda, D. A1 - Krawczynski, H. A1 - Krennrich, F. A1 - Lang, M. J. A1 - Lee, K. A1 - Madhavan, A. S. A1 - Maier, G. A1 - Majumdar, P. A1 - McArthur, S. A1 - McCann, A. A1 - Millis, J. A1 - Moriarty, P. A1 - Mukherjee, R. A1 - Nelson, T. A1 - de Bhroithe, A. O'Faolain A1 - Ong, R. A. A1 - Orr, M. A1 - Otte, A. N. A1 - Pandel, D. A1 - Park, N. A1 - Perkins, J. S. A1 - Pohl, Martin A1 - Popkow, A. A1 - Prokoph, H. A1 - Quinn, J. A1 - Ragan, K. A1 - Reyes, L. C. A1 - Reynolds, P. T. A1 - Roache, E. A1 - Rose, H. J. A1 - Ruppel, Jens A1 - Saxon, D. B. A1 - Schroedter, M. A1 - Sembroski, G. H. A1 - Sentuerk, G. D. A1 - Skole, C. A1 - Telezhinsky, Igor O. A1 - Tesic, G. A1 - Theiling, M. A1 - Thibadeau, S. A1 - Tsurusaki, K. A1 - Tyler, J. A1 - Varlotta, A. A1 - Vassiliev, V. V. A1 - Vincent, S. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Ward, J. E. A1 - Weekes, T. C. A1 - Weinstein, A. A1 - Weisgarber, T. A1 - Welsing, R. A1 - Williams, D. A. A1 - Zitzer, B. T1 - Discovery of TeV Gamma-Ray emission toward supernova remnant SNR G78.2+2.1 JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics N2 - We report the discovery of an unidentified, extended source of very-high-energy gamma-ray emission, VER J2019+407, within the radio shell of the supernova remnant SNR G78.2+2.1, using 21.4 hr of data taken by the VERITAS gamma-ray observatory in 2009. These data confirm the preliminary indications of gamma-ray emission previously seen in a two-year (2007-2009) blind survey of the Cygnus region by VERITAS. VER J2019+407, which is detected at a post-trials significance of 7.5 standard deviations in the 2009 data, is localized to the northwestern rim of the remnant in a region of enhanced radio and X-ray emission. It has an intrinsic extent of 0 degrees.23 +/- 0 degrees.03(stat-0 degrees.02sys)(+0 degrees.04) and its spectrum is well-characterized by a differential power law (dN/dE = N-0 x (E/TeV)-Gamma) with a photon index of Gamma = 2.37 +/- 0.14(stat) +/- 0.20(sys) and a flux normalization of N-0 = 1.5 +/- 0.2(stat) +/- 0.4(sys) x 10(-12) photon TeV-1 cm(-2) s(-1). This yields an integral flux of 5.2 +/- 0.8(stat) +/- 1.4(sys) x 10(-12) photon cm(-2) s(-1) above 320 GeV, corresponding to 3.7% of the Crab Nebula flux. We consider the relationship of the TeV gamma-ray emission with the GeV gamma-ray emission seen from SNR G78.2+2.1 as well as that seen from a nearby cocoon of freshly accelerated cosmic rays. Multiple scenarios are considered as possible origins for the TeV gamma-ray emission, including hadronic particle acceleration at the SNR shock. KW - acceleration of particles KW - cosmic rays KW - gamma rays: general KW - ISM: supernova remnants Y1 - 2013 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/770/2/93 SN - 0004-637X VL - 770 IS - 2 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Furniss, A. A1 - Noda, K. A1 - Boggs, S. A1 - Chiang, J. A1 - Christensen, F. A1 - Craig, W. A1 - Giommi, P. A1 - Hailey, C. A1 - Harisson, F. A1 - Madejski, G. A1 - Nalewajko, K. A1 - Perri, M. A1 - Stern, D. A1 - Urry, M. A1 - Verrecchia, F. A1 - Zhang, W. A1 - Ahnen, M. L. A1 - Ansoldi, S. A1 - Antonelli, L. A. A1 - Antoranz, P. A1 - Babic, A. A1 - Banerjee, B. A1 - Bangale, P. A1 - de Almeida, U. Barres A1 - Barrio, J. A. A1 - Becerra Gonzalez, J. A1 - Bednarek, W. A1 - Bernardini, E. A1 - Biasuzzi, B. A1 - Biland, A. A1 - Blanch Bigas, O. A1 - Bonnefoy, S. A1 - Bonnoli, G. A1 - Borracci, F. A1 - Bretz, T. A1 - Carmona, E. A1 - Carosi, A. A1 - Chatterjee, A. A1 - Clavero, R. A1 - Colin, P. A1 - Colombo, E. A1 - Contreras, J. L. A1 - Cortina, J. A1 - Covino, S. A1 - Da Vela, P. A1 - Dazzi, F. A1 - De Angelis, A. A1 - De Caneva, G. A1 - De Lotto, B. A1 - de Ona Wilhelmi, E. A1 - Delgado Mendez, C. A1 - Di Pierro, F. A1 - Prester, Dijana Dominis A1 - Dorner, D. A1 - Doro, M. A1 - Einecke, S. A1 - Eisenacher Glawion, D. A1 - Elsaesser, D. A1 - Fernandez-Barral, A. A1 - Fidalgo, D. A1 - Fonseca, M. V. A1 - Font, L. A1 - Frantzen, K. A1 - Fruck, C. A1 - Galindo, D. A1 - Garcia Lopez, R. J. A1 - Garczarczyk, M. A1 - Garrido Terrats, D. A1 - Gaug, M. A1 - Giammaria, P. A1 - Godinovic, N. A1 - Gonzalez Munoz, A. A1 - Guberman, D. A1 - Hanabata, Y. A1 - Hayashida, M. A1 - Herrera, J. A1 - Hose, J. A1 - Hrupec, D. A1 - Hughes, G. A1 - Idec, W. A1 - Kellermann, H. A1 - Kodani, K. A1 - Konno, Y. A1 - Kubo, H. A1 - Kushida, J. A1 - La Barbera, A. A1 - Lelas, D. A1 - Lewandowska, N. A1 - Lindfors, E. A1 - Lombardi, S. A1 - Longo, F. A1 - Lopez, M. A1 - Lopez-Coto, R. A1 - Lopez-Oramas, A. A1 - Lorenz, E. A1 - Majumdar, P. A1 - Makariev, M. A1 - Mallot, K. A1 - Maneva, G. A1 - Manganaro, M. A1 - Mannheim, K. A1 - Maraschi, L. A1 - Marcote, B. A1 - Mariotti, M. A1 - Martinez, M. A1 - Mazin, D. A1 - Menzel, U. A1 - Miranda, J. M. A1 - Mirzoyan, R. A1 - Moralejo, A. A1 - Nakajima, D. A1 - Neustroev, V. A1 - Niedzwiecki, A. A1 - Nievas Rosillo, M. A1 - Nilsson, K. A1 - Nishijima, K. A1 - Orito, R. A1 - Overkemping, A. A1 - Paiano, S. A1 - Palacio, J. A1 - Palatiello, M. A1 - Paneque, D. A1 - Paoletti, R. A1 - Paredes, J. M. A1 - Paredes-Fortuny, X. A1 - Persic, M. A1 - Poutanen, J. A1 - Moroni, P. G. Prada A1 - Prandini, E. A1 - Puljak, I. A1 - Reinthal, R. A1 - Rhode, W. A1 - Ribo, M. A1 - Rico, J. A1 - Garcia, J. Rodriguez A1 - Saito, T. A1 - Saito, K. A1 - Satalecka, K. A1 - Scapin, V. A1 - Schultz, C. A1 - Schweizer, T. A1 - Shore, S. N. A1 - Sillanpaa, A. A1 - Sitarek, J. A1 - Snidaric, I. A1 - Sobczynska, D. A1 - Stamerra, A. A1 - Steinbring, T. A1 - Strzys, M. A1 - Takalo, L. A1 - Takami, H. A1 - Tavecchio, F. A1 - Temnikov, P. A1 - Terzic, T. A1 - Tescaro, D. A1 - Teshima, M. A1 - Thaele, J. A1 - Torres, D. F. A1 - Toyama, T. A1 - Treves, A. A1 - Verguilov, V. A1 - Vovk, I. A1 - Will, M. A1 - Zanin, R. A1 - Archer, A. A1 - Benbow, W. A1 - Bird, R. A1 - Biteau, Jonathan A1 - Bugaev, V. A1 - Cardenzana, J. V. A1 - Cerruti, M. A1 - Chen, Xuhui A1 - Ciupik, L. A1 - Connolly, M. P. A1 - Cui, W. A1 - Dickinson, H. J. A1 - Dumm, J. A1 - Eisch, J. D. A1 - Falcone, A. A1 - Feng, Q. A1 - Finley, J. P. A1 - Fleischhack, H. A1 - Fortin, P. A1 - Fortson, L. A1 - Gerard, L. A1 - Gillanders, G. H. A1 - Griffin, S. A1 - Griffiths, S. T. A1 - Grube, J. A1 - Gyuk, G. A1 - Hakansson, Nils A1 - Holder, J. A1 - Humensky, T. B. A1 - Johnson, C. A. A1 - Kaaret, P. A1 - Kertzman, M. A1 - Kieda, D. A1 - Krause, M. A1 - Krennrich, F. A1 - Lang, M. J. A1 - Lin, T. T. Y. A1 - Maier, G. A1 - McArthur, S. A1 - McCann, A. A1 - Meagher, K. A1 - Moriarty, P. A1 - Mukherjee, R. A1 - Nieto, D. A1 - Ong, R. A. A1 - Park, N. A1 - Petry, D. A1 - Pohl, Martin A1 - Popkow, A. A1 - Ragan, K. A1 - Ratliff, G. A1 - Reyes, L. C. A1 - Reynolds, P. T. A1 - Richards, G. T. A1 - Roache, E. A1 - Santander, M. A1 - Sembroski, G. H. A1 - Shahinyan, K. A1 - Staszak, D. A1 - Telezhinsky, Igor O. A1 - Tucci, J. V. A1 - Tyler, J. A1 - Vassiliev, V. V. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Weiner, O. M. A1 - Weinstein, A. A1 - Wilhelm, Alina A1 - Williams, D. A. A1 - Zitzer, B. A1 - Vince, O. A1 - Fuhrmann, L. A1 - Angelakis, E. A1 - Karamanavis, V. A1 - Myserlis, I. A1 - Krichbaum, T. P. A1 - Zensus, J. A. A1 - Ungerechts, H. A1 - Sievers, A. A1 - Bachev, R. A1 - Boettcher, Markus A1 - Chen, W. P. A1 - Damljanovic, G. A1 - Eswaraiah, C. A1 - Guver, T. A1 - Hovatta, T. A1 - Hughes, Z. A1 - Ibryamov, S. I. A1 - Joner, M. D. A1 - Jordan, B. A1 - Jorstad, S. G. A1 - Joshi, M. A1 - Kataoka, J. A1 - Kurtanidze, O. M. A1 - Kurtanidze, S. O. A1 - Lahteenmaki, A. A1 - Latev, G. A1 - Lin, H. C. A1 - Larionov, V. M. A1 - Mokrushina, A. A. A1 - Morozova, D. A. A1 - Nikolashvili, M. G. A1 - Raiteri, C. M. A1 - Ramakrishnan, V. A1 - Readhead, A. C. R. A1 - Sadun, A. C. A1 - Sigua, L. A. A1 - Semkov, E. H. A1 - Strigachev, A. A1 - Tammi, J. A1 - Tornikoski, M. A1 - Troitskaya, Y. V. A1 - Troitsky, I. S. A1 - Villata, M. T1 - First NuSTAR observations of MRK 501 within a radio to TeV multi-instrument campaign JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics N2 - We report on simultaneous broadband observations of the TeV-emitting blazar Markarian 501 between 2013 April 1 and August 10, including the first detailed characterization of the synchrotron peak with Swift and NuSTAR. During the campaign, the nearby BL Lac object was observed in both a quiescent and an elevated state. The broadband campaign includes observations with NuSTAR, MAGIC, VERITAS, the Fermi Large Area Telescope, Swift X-ray Telescope and UV Optical Telescope, various ground-based optical instruments, including the GASP-WEBT program, as well as radio observations by OVRO, Metsahovi, and the F-Gamma consortium. Some of the MAGIC observations were affected by a sand layer from the Saharan desert, and had to be corrected using event-by-event corrections derived with a Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) facility. This is the first time that LIDAR information is used to produce a physics result with Cherenkov Telescope data taken during adverse atmospheric conditions, and hence sets a precedent for the current and future ground-based gamma-ray instruments. The NuSTAR instrument provides unprecedented sensitivity in hard X-rays, showing the source to display a spectral energy distribution (SED) between 3 and 79 keV consistent with a log-parabolic spectrum and hard X-ray variability on hour timescales. None (of the four extended NuSTAR observations) show evidence of the onset of inverse-Compton emission at hard X-ray energies. We apply a single-zone equilibrium synchrotron self-Compton (SSC) model to five simultaneous broadband SEDs. We find that the SSC model can reproduce the observed broadband states through a decrease in the magnetic field strength coinciding with an increase in the luminosity and hardness of the relativistic leptons responsible for the high-energy emission. KW - BL Lacertae objects: general KW - galaxies: individual (Markarian 501) KW - X-rays: galaxies Y1 - 2015 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/812/1/65 SN - 0004-637X SN - 1538-4357 VL - 812 IS - 1 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Benbow, W. A1 - Bird, R. A1 - Brill, A. A1 - Brose, Robert A1 - Chromey, A. J. A1 - Daniel, M. K. A1 - Feng, Q. A1 - Finley, J. P. A1 - Fortson, L. A1 - Furniss, A. A1 - Gillanders, G. H. A1 - Giuri, C. A1 - Gueta, O. A1 - Hanna, D. A1 - Halpern, J. P. A1 - Hassan, Tarek A1 - Holder, J. A1 - Hughes, G. A1 - Humensky, T. B. A1 - Joyce, Amy M. A1 - Kaaret, P. A1 - Kar, P. A1 - Kelley-Hoskins, N. A1 - Kertzman, M. A1 - Kieda, D. A1 - Krause, M. A1 - Lang, M. J. A1 - Lin, T. T. Y. A1 - Maier, Gernot A1 - Matthews, N. A1 - Moriarty, P. A1 - Mukherjee, R. A1 - Nieto, D. A1 - Nievas-Rosillos, M. A1 - Ong, R. A. A1 - Park, N. A1 - Petrashyk, A. A1 - Pohl, Martin A1 - Pueschel, Elisa A1 - Quinn, John A1 - Ragan, K. A1 - Reynolds, P. T. A1 - Richards, G. T. A1 - Roache, E. A1 - Rulten, C. A1 - Sadeh, Iftach A1 - Santander, M. A1 - Sembroski, G. H. A1 - Shahinyan, K. A1 - Sushch, Iurii A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Wells, R. M. A1 - Wilcox, P. A1 - Wilhelm, Alina A1 - Williams, David A. A1 - Williamson, T. J. T1 - Direct measurement of stellar angular diameters by the VERITAS Cherenkov telescopes JF - Nature astronomy N2 - The angular size of a star is a critical factor in determining its basic properties1. Direct measurement of stellar angular diameters is difficult: at interstellar distances stars are generally too small to resolve by any individual imaging telescope. This fundamental limitation can be overcome by studying the diffraction pattern in the shadow cast when an asteroid occults a star2, but only when the photometric uncertainty is smaller than the noise added by atmospheric scintillation3. Atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes used for particle astrophysics observations have not generally been exploited for optical astronomy due to the modest optical quality of the mirror surface. However, their large mirror area makes them well suited for such high-time-resolution precision photometry measurements4. Here we report two occultations of stars observed by the Very Energetic Radiation Imaging Telescope Array System (VERITAS)5 Cherenkov telescopes with millisecond sampling, from which we are able to provide a direct measurement of the occulted stars’ angular diameter at the ≤0.1 mas scale. This is a resolution never achieved before with optical measurements and represents an order of magnitude improvement over the equivalent lunar occultation method6. We compare the resulting stellar radius with empirically derived estimates from temperature and brightness measurements, confirming the latter can be biased for stars with ambiguous stellar classifications. Y1 - 2019 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-019-0741-z SN - 2397-3366 VL - 3 IS - 6 SP - 511 EP - 516 PB - Nature Publ. Group CY - London ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Arlen, T. A1 - Aune, T. A1 - Beilicke, M. A1 - Benbow, W. A1 - Bouvier, A. A1 - Buckley, J. H. A1 - Bugaev, V. A1 - Byrum, K. A1 - Cannon, A. A1 - Cesarini, A. A1 - Ciupik, L. A1 - Collins-Hughes, E. A1 - Connolly, M. P. A1 - Cui, W. A1 - Dickherber, R. A1 - Dumm, J. A1 - Falcone, A. A1 - Federici, S. A1 - Feng, Q. A1 - Finley, J. P. A1 - Finnegan, G. A1 - Fortson, L. A1 - Furniss, A. A1 - Galante, N. A1 - Gall, D. A1 - Godambe, S. A1 - Griffin, S. A1 - Grube, J. A1 - Gyuk, G. A1 - Holder, J. A1 - Huan, H. A1 - Hughes, G. A1 - Humensky, T. B. A1 - Imran, A. A1 - Kaaret, P. A1 - Karlsson, N. A1 - Kertzman, M. A1 - Khassen, Y. A1 - Kieda, D. A1 - Krawczynski, H. A1 - Krennrich, F. A1 - Lee, K. A1 - Madhavan, A. S. A1 - Maier, G. A1 - Majumdar, P. A1 - McArthur, S. A1 - McCann, A. A1 - Moriarty, P. A1 - Mukherjee, R. A1 - Nelson, T. A1 - de Bhroithe, A. O'Faolain A1 - Ong, R. A. A1 - Orr, M. A1 - Otte, A. N. A1 - Park, N. A1 - Perkins, J. S. A1 - Pohl, Martin A1 - Prokoph, H. A1 - Quinn, J. A1 - Ragan, K. A1 - Reyes, L. C. A1 - Reynolds, P. T. A1 - Roache, E. A1 - Ruppel, J. A1 - Saxon, D. B. A1 - Schroedter, M. A1 - Sembroski, G. H. A1 - Skole, C. A1 - Smith, A. W. A1 - Telezhinsky, Igor O. A1 - Tesic, G. A1 - Theiling, M. A1 - Thibadeau, S. A1 - Tsurusaki, K. A1 - Varlotta, A. A1 - Vivier, M. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Ward, J. E. A1 - Weinstein, A. A1 - Welsing, R. A1 - Williams, D. A. A1 - Zitzer, B. A1 - Pfrommer, C. A1 - Pinzke, A. T1 - Constraints on cosmic rays, magnetic fields, and dark matter fromgamma-ray observations of the coma cluster of galaxies with veritas and fermi JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics N2 - Observations of radio halos and relics in galaxy clusters indicate efficient electron acceleration. Protons should likewise be accelerated and, on account of weak energy losses, can accumulate, suggesting that clusters may also be sources of very high energy (VHE; E > 100 GeV) gamma-ray emission. We report here on VHE gamma-ray observations of the Coma galaxy cluster with the VERITAS array of imaging Cerenkov telescopes, with complementing Fermi Large Area Telescope observations at GeV energies. No significant gamma-ray emission from the Coma Cluster was detected. Integral flux upper limits at the 99% confidence level were measured to be on the order of (2-5) x 10(-8) photonsm(-2) s(-1) (VERITAS, >220 GeV) and similar to 2 x 10(-6) photonsm(-2) s(-1) (Fermi, 1-3GeV), respectively. We use the gamma-ray upper limits to constrain cosmic rays (CRs) and magnetic fields in Coma. Using an analytical approach, the CR-to-thermal pressure ratio is constrained to be < 16% from VERITAS data and <1.7% from Fermi data (averaged within the virial radius). These upper limits are starting to constrain the CR physics in self-consistent cosmological cluster simulations and cap the maximum CR acceleration efficiency at structure formation shocks to be <50%. Alternatively, this may argue for non-negligible CR transport processes such as CR streaming and diffusion into the outer cluster regions. Assuming that the radio-emitting electrons of the Coma halo result from hadronic CR interactions, the observations imply a lower limit on the central magnetic field in Coma of similar to(2-5.5) mu G, depending on the radial magnetic field profile and on the gamma-ray spectral index. Since these values are below those inferred by Faraday rotation measurements in Coma (for most of the parameter space), this renders the hadronic model a very plausible explanation of the Coma radio halo. Finally, since galaxy clusters are dark matter (DM) dominated, the VERITAS upper limits have been used to place constraints on the thermally averaged product of the total self-annihilation cross section and the relative velocity of the DM particles, . KW - cosmic rays KW - dark matter KW - galaxies: clusters: general KW - galaxies: clusters: individual (Coma (ACO 1656)) KW - gamma rays: galaxies: clusters KW - magnetic fields Y1 - 2012 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/757/2/123 SN - 0004-637X VL - 757 IS - 2 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Archer, A. A1 - Benbow, Wystan A1 - Bird, Ralph A1 - Brose, Robert A1 - Buchovecky, M. A1 - Bugaev, V A1 - Cui, Wei A1 - Danie, M. K. A1 - Falcone, A. A1 - Feng, Qi A1 - Finley, John P. A1 - Flinders, A. A1 - Fortson, L. A1 - Furniss, Amy A1 - Gillanders, Gerard H. A1 - Huttens, M. A1 - Hanna, David A1 - Hervet, O. A1 - Holder, J. A1 - Hughes, G. A1 - Humensky, T. B. A1 - Johnson, Caitlin A. A1 - Kaaret, Philip A1 - Kar, P. A1 - Kelley-Hoskins, N. A1 - Kieda, David A1 - Krause, Maria A1 - Krennrich, F. A1 - Kumar, S. A1 - Lang, M. J. A1 - Lin, T. T. Y. A1 - McArthur, S. A1 - Moriarty, P. A1 - Mukherjee, Reshmi A1 - Nieto, Daniel A1 - Ong, R. A. A1 - Otte, A. N. A1 - Park, Nahee A1 - Petrashyk, A. A1 - Pohl, Martin A1 - Popkow, Alexis A1 - Pueschel, Elisa A1 - Quinn, J. A1 - Ragan, K. A1 - Reynold, P. T. A1 - Richards, Gregory T. A1 - Roache, E. A1 - Rulten, C. A1 - Sadeh, I A1 - Sembroski, G. H. A1 - Shahinyan, Karlen A1 - Tyler, J. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Weiner, O. M. A1 - Weinstein, A. A1 - Wells, R. M. A1 - Wilcox, P. A1 - Wilhelm, Alina A1 - Williams, David A. A1 - Brisken, W. F. A1 - Pontrelli, P. T1 - HESS J1943+213 BT - An extreme blazar shining through the galactic plane JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics N2 - HESS J1943+213 is a very high energy (VHE; > 100 GeV) gamma-ray source in the direction of the Galactic plane. Studies exploring the classification of the source are converging toward its identification as an extreme synchrotron BL Lac object. Here we present 38 hr of VERITAS observations of HESS J1943+213 taken over 2 yr. The source is detected with a significance of similar to 20 standard deviations, showing a remarkably stable flux and spectrum in VHE gamma-rays. Multifrequency Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) observations of the source confirm the extended, jet-like structure previously found in the 1.6 GHz band with the European VLBI Network and detect this component in the 4.6 and 7.3 GHz bands. The radio spectral indices of the core and the jet and the level of polarization derived from the VLBA observations are in a range typical for blazars. Data from VERITAS, Fermi-LAT, Swift-XRT, the FLWO 48 ' telescope, and archival infrared and hard X-ray observations are used to construct and model the spectral energy distribution (SED) of the source with a synchrotron self-Compton model. The well-measured gamma-ray peak of the SED with VERITAS and Fermi-LAT provides constraining upper limits on the source redshift. Possible contribution of secondary gamma-rays from ultra-high-energy cosmic-ray-initiated electromagnetic cascades to the gamma-ray emission is explored, finding that only a segment of the VHE spectrum can be accommodated with this process. A variability search is performed across X-ray and gamma-ray bands. No statistically significant flux or spectral variability is detected. KW - astroparticle physics KW - BL Lacertae objects: individual (HESS J1943+213, VER J1943+213) KW - galaxies: active KW - galaxies: jets KW - galaxies: nuclei KW - gamma rays: galaxies Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/aacbd0 SN - 0004-637X SN - 1538-4357 VL - 862 IS - 1 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Archer, A. A1 - Benbow, Wystan A1 - Bird, Ralph A1 - Brose, Robert A1 - Buchovecky, M. A1 - Buckley, J. H. A1 - Chromey, A. J. A1 - Cui, Wei A1 - Falcone, A. A1 - Feng, Qi A1 - Finley, J. P. A1 - Fortson, Lucy A1 - Furniss, Amy A1 - Gent, A. A1 - Gueta, O. A1 - Hanna, David A1 - Hassan, T. A1 - Hervet, Olivier A1 - Holder, J. A1 - Hughes, G. A1 - Humensky, T. B. A1 - Johnson, Caitlin A. A1 - Kaaret, Philip A1 - Kar, P. A1 - Kelley-Hoskins, N. A1 - Kertzman, M. A1 - Kieda, David A1 - Krennrich, F. A1 - Kumar, S. A1 - Lang, M. J. A1 - Lin, T. T. Y. A1 - McCann, A. A1 - Moriarty, P. A1 - Mukherjee, Reshmi A1 - Ong, R. A. A1 - Otte, Adam Nepomuk A1 - Pandel, D. A1 - Park, N. A1 - Petrashyk, A. A1 - Pohl, Martin A1 - Pueschel, Elisa A1 - Quinn, J. A1 - Ragan, K. A1 - Richards, Gregory T. A1 - Roache, E. A1 - Sadeh, I A1 - Santander, Marcos A1 - Scott, S. S. A1 - Sembroski, G. H. A1 - Shahinyan, Karlen A1 - Sushch, Iurii A1 - Tyler, J. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Weinstein, A. A1 - Wells, R. M. A1 - Wilcox, P. A1 - Wilhelm, Alina A1 - Williams, D. A. A1 - Williamson, T. J. A1 - Zitzer, B. T1 - A Search for Pulsed Very High-energy Gamma-Rays from 13 Young Pulsars in Archival VERITAS Data JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics N2 - We conduct a search for periodic emission in the very high-energy (VHE) gamma-ray band (E > 100 GeV) from a total of 13 pulsars in an archival VERITAS data set with a total exposure of over 450 hr. The set of pulsars includes many of the brightest young gamma-ray pulsars visible in the Northern Hemisphere. The data analysis resulted in nondetections of pulsed VHE gamma-rays from each pulsar. Upper limits on a potential VHE gamma-ray flux are derived at the 95% confidence level above three energy thresholds using two methods. These are the first such searches for pulsed VHE emission from each of the pulsars, and the obtained limits constrain a possible flux component manifesting at VHEs as is seen for the Crab pulsar. KW - gamma rays: general KW - pulsars: general KW - stars: neutron Y1 - 2019 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ab14f4 SN - 0004-637X SN - 1538-4357 VL - 876 IS - 2 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Archer, A. A1 - Benbow, W. A1 - Bird, R. A1 - Brose, Robert A1 - Buchovecky, M. A1 - Bugaev, V. A1 - Connolly, M. P. A1 - Cui, W. A1 - Daniel, M. K. A1 - Falcone, A. A1 - Feng, Q. A1 - Finley, J. P. A1 - Fleischhack, H. A1 - Fortson, L. A1 - Furniss, A. A1 - Hanna, D. A1 - Hervet, O. A1 - Holder, J. A1 - Hughes, G. A1 - Humensky, T. B. A1 - Hutten, M. A1 - Johnson, C. A. A1 - Kaaret, P. A1 - Kelley-Hoskins, N. A1 - Kieda, D. A1 - Krause, M. A1 - Krennrich, F. A1 - Kumar, S. A1 - Lang, M. J. A1 - Maier, G. A1 - McArthur, S. A1 - Moriarty, P. A1 - Mukherjee, R. A1 - Nieto, D. A1 - Ong, R. A. A1 - Otte, A. N. A1 - Park, N. A1 - Petrashyk, A. A1 - Pohl, Martin A1 - Popkow, A. A1 - Pueschel, Elisa A1 - Quinn, J. A1 - Ragan, K. A1 - Reynolds, P. T. A1 - Richards, G. T. A1 - Roache, E. A1 - Rulten, C. A1 - Sadeh, I. A1 - Tyler, J. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Weiner, O. M. A1 - Wilcox, P. A1 - Wilhelm, Alina A1 - Williams, D. A. A1 - Wissel, S. A. A1 - Zitzer, B. T1 - Measurement of the iron spectrum in cosmic rays by VERITAS JF - Physical review : D, Particles, fields, gravitation, and cosmology N2 - We present a new measurement of the energy spectrum of iron nuclei in cosmic rays from 20 TeV to 500 TeV; The measurement makes use of a template-based analysis method, which, for the first time, is applied to the energy reconstruction of iron-induced air showers recorded by the VERITAS array of imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes. The event selection makes use of the direct Cherenkov light which is emitted by charged particles before the first interaction, as well as other parameters related to the shape of the recorded air shower images. The measured spectrum is well described by a power law dF/dE = f(0) center dot (E/E-0)(-gamma) over the full energy range, with gamma = 2.82 +/- 0.30(stat)(-0.27)(+0.24)(syst) and f(0) = (4.82 +/- 0.98(stat)(-2.70)(+2.12)(syst)) x 10(-7) m(-2) s(-1) TeV-1 sr(-1) at E-0 = 50 TeV, with no indication of a cutoff or spectral break. The measured differential flux is compatible with previous results, with improved statistical uncertainty at the highest energies. Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.98.022009 SN - 2470-0010 SN - 2470-0029 VL - 98 IS - 2 PB - American Physical Society CY - College Park ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Archer, A. A1 - Benbow, W. A1 - Bird, R. A1 - Brose, Robert A1 - Buchovecky, M. A1 - Buckley, J. H. A1 - Bugaev, V. A1 - Connolly, M. P. A1 - Cui, W. A1 - Daniel, M. K. A1 - Feng, Q. A1 - Finley, J. P. A1 - Fortson, L. A1 - Furniss, A. A1 - Gillanders, G. A1 - Huetten, M. A1 - Hanna, D. A1 - Hervet, O. A1 - Holder, J. A1 - Hughes, G. A1 - Humensky, T. B. A1 - Johnson, C. A. A1 - Kaaret, P. A1 - Kar, P. A1 - Kelley-Hoskins, N. A1 - Kertzman, M. A1 - Kieda, D. A1 - Krause, M. A1 - Krennrich, F. A1 - Kumar, S. A1 - Lang, M. J. A1 - Lin, T. T. Y. A1 - Maier, G. A1 - McArthur, S. A1 - Moriarty, P. A1 - Mukherjee, R. A1 - Ong, R. A. A1 - Otte, A. N. A1 - Petrashyk, A. A1 - Pohl, M. A1 - Pueschel, Elisa A1 - Quinn, J. A1 - Ragan, K. A1 - Reynolds, P. T. A1 - Richards, G. T. A1 - Roache, E. A1 - Rulten, C. A1 - Sadeh, I. A1 - Santander, M. A1 - Sembroski, G. H. A1 - Staszak, D. A1 - Sushch, I. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Wells, R. M. A1 - Wilcox, P. A1 - Wilhelm, Alina A1 - Williams, D. A. A1 - Williamson, T. J. A1 - Zitzer, B. T1 - Measurement of cosmic-ray electrons at TeV energies by VERITAS JF - Physical review : D, Particles, fields, gravitation, and cosmology N2 - Cosmic-ray electrons and positrons (CREs) at GeV-TeV energies are a unique probe of our local Galactic neighborhood. CREs lose energy rapidly via synchrotron radiation and inverse-Compton scattering processes while propagating within the Galaxy, and these losses limit their propagation distance. For electrons with TeV energies, the limit is on the order of a kiloparsec. Within that distance, there are only a few known astrophysical objects capable of accelerating electrons to such high energies. It is also possible that the CREs are the products of the annihilation or decay of heavy dark matter (DM) particles. VERITAS, an array of imaging air Cherenkov telescopes in southern Arizona, is primarily utilized for gamma-ray astronomy but also simultaneously collects CREs during all observations. We describe our methods of identifying CREs in VERITAS data and present an energy spectrum, extending from 300 GeV to 5 TeV, obtained from approximately 300 hours of observations. A single power-law fit is ruled out in VERITAS data. We find that the spectrum of CREs is consistent with a broken power law, with a break energy at 710 +/- 40(stat) +/- 140(syst) GeV. Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.98.062004 SN - 2470-0010 SN - 2470-0029 VL - 98 IS - 6 PB - American Physical Society CY - College Park ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Archer, A. A1 - Barnacka, Anna A1 - Beilicke, M. A1 - Benbow, W. A1 - Berger, K. A1 - Bird, R. A1 - Biteau, Jonathan A1 - Buckley, J. H. A1 - Bugaev, V. A1 - Byrum, K. A1 - Cardenzana, J. V. A1 - Cerruti, M. A1 - Chen, W. A1 - Chen, Xiaoming A1 - Ciupik, L. A1 - Connolly, M. P. A1 - Cui, W. A1 - Dickinson, H. J. A1 - Dumm, J. A1 - Eisch, J. D. A1 - Falcone, A. A1 - Federici, Simone A1 - Feng, Q. A1 - Finley, J. P. A1 - Fleischhack, H. A1 - Fortson, L. A1 - Furniss, A. A1 - Galante, N. A1 - Griffin, S. A1 - Griffiths, S. T. A1 - Grube, J. A1 - Gyuk, G. A1 - Hakansson, Nils A1 - Hanna, D. A1 - Holder, J. A1 - Hughes, G. A1 - Johnson, C. A. A1 - Kaaret, P. A1 - Kar, P. A1 - Kertzman, M. A1 - Khassen, Y. A1 - Kieda, D. A1 - Krawczynski, H. A1 - Kumar, S. A1 - Lang, M. J. A1 - Maier, G. A1 - McArthur, S. A1 - McCann, A. A1 - Meagher, K. A1 - Moriarty, P. A1 - Mukherjee, R. A1 - Nieto, D. A1 - Ong, R. A. A1 - Otte, A. N. A1 - Park, N. A1 - Perkins, J. S. A1 - Pohl, Manuela A1 - Popkow, A. A1 - Prokoph, H. A1 - Pueschel, Elisa A1 - Quinn, J. A1 - Ragan, K. A1 - Rajotte, J. A1 - Reyes, L. C. A1 - Reynolds, P. T. A1 - Richards, G. T. A1 - Roache, E. A1 - Sembroski, G. H. A1 - Shahinyan, K. A1 - Smith, A. W. A1 - Staszak, D. A1 - Telezhinsky, Igor O. A1 - Tucci, J. V. A1 - Tyler, J. A1 - Varlotta, A. A1 - Vincent, S. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Weinstein, A. A1 - Welsing, R. A1 - Wilhelm, Alina A1 - Williams, D. A. A1 - Zajczyk, A. A1 - Zitzer, B. T1 - Very-high energy observations of the galactic center region by veritas IN 2010-2012 JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics N2 - The Galactic center is an interesting region for high-energy (0.1-100 GeV) and very-high-energy (E > 100 GeV) gamma-ray observations. Potential sources of GeV/TeV gamma-ray emission have been suggested, e.g., the accretion of matter onto the supermassive black hole, cosmic rays from a nearby supernova remnant (e.g., Sgr A East), particle acceleration in a plerion, or the annihilation of dark matter particles. The Galactic center has been detected by EGRET and by Fermi/LAT in the MeV/GeV energy band. At TeV energies, the Galactic center was detected with moderate significance by the CANGAROO and Whipple 10 m telescopes and with high significance by H.E.S.S., MAGIC, and VERITAS. We present the results from three years of VERITAS observations conducted at large zenith angles resulting in a detection of the Galactic center on the level of 18 standard deviations at energies above similar to 2.5 TeV. The energy spectrum is derived and is found to be compatible with hadronic, leptonic, and hybrid emission models discussed in the literature. Future, more detailed measurements of the high-energy cutoff and better constraints on the high-energy flux variability will help to refine and/or disentangle the individual models. KW - astroparticle physics KW - black hole physics KW - Galaxy: center KW - gamma rays: galaxies KW - methods: data analysis KW - radiation mechanisms: non-thermal Y1 - 2014 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/790/2/149 SN - 0004-637X SN - 1538-4357 VL - 790 IS - 2 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Archambault, S. A1 - Beilicke, M. A1 - Benbow, W. A1 - Berger, K. A1 - Bird, R. A1 - Bouvier, A. A1 - Buckley, J. H. A1 - Bugaev, V. A1 - Byrum, K. A1 - Cerruti, M. A1 - Chen, Xuhui A1 - Ciupik, L. A1 - Connolly, M. P. A1 - Cui, W. A1 - Duke, C. A1 - Dumm, J. A1 - Errando, M. A1 - Falcone, A. A1 - Federici, Simone A1 - Feng, Q. A1 - Finley, J. P. A1 - Fortson, L. A1 - Furniss, A. A1 - Galante, N. A1 - Gillanders, G. H. A1 - Griffin, S. A1 - Griffiths, S. T. A1 - Grube, J. A1 - Gyuk, G. A1 - Hanna, D. A1 - Holder, J. A1 - Hughes, G. A1 - Humensky, T. B. A1 - Kaaret, P. A1 - Kertzman, M. A1 - Khassen, Y. A1 - Kieda, D. A1 - Krawczynski, H. A1 - Lang, M. J. A1 - Madhavan, A. S. A1 - Maier, G. A1 - Majumdar, P. A1 - McArthur, S. A1 - McCann, A. A1 - Moriarty, P. A1 - Mukherjee, R. A1 - Nieto, D. A1 - de Bhroithe, A. O'Faolain A1 - Ong, R. A. A1 - Otte, A. N. A1 - Pandel, D. A1 - Park, N. A1 - Perkins, J. S. A1 - Pohl, Martin A1 - Popkow, A. A1 - Prokoph, H. A1 - Quinn, J. A1 - Ragan, K. A1 - Rajotte, J. A1 - Reyes, L. C. A1 - Reynolds, P. T. A1 - Richards, G. T. A1 - Roache, E. A1 - Sembroski, G. H. A1 - Sheidaei, F. A1 - Smith, A. W. A1 - Staszak, D. A1 - Telezhinsky, Igor O. A1 - Theiling, M. A1 - Tucci, J. V. A1 - Tyler, J. A1 - Varlotta, A. A1 - Vincent, S. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Weekes, T. C. A1 - Weinstein, A. A1 - Williams, D. A. A1 - Zitzer, B. A1 - McCollough, M. L. T1 - Veritas observatons of the microquasar cygnus X-3 JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics N2 - We report results from TeV gamma-ray observations of the microquasar Cygnus X-3. The observations were made with the Very Energetic Radiation Imaging Telescope Array System (VERITAS) over a time period from 2007 June 11 to 2011 November 28. VERITAS is most sensitive to gamma rays at energies between 85 GeV and 30 TeV. The effective exposure time amounts to a total of about 44 hr, with the observations covering six distinct radio/X-ray states of the object. No significant TeV gamma-ray emission was detected in any of the states, nor with all observations combined. The lack of a positive signal, especially in the states where GeV gamma rays were detected, places constraints on TeV gamma-ray production in Cygnus X-3. We discuss the implications of the results. KW - acceleration of particles KW - binaries: close KW - gamma rays: stars KW - X-rays: individual (Cygnus X-3) Y1 - 2013 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/779/2/150 SN - 0004-637X SN - 1538-4357 VL - 779 IS - 2 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER -