TY - JOUR A1 - Archambault, S. A1 - Arlen, T. A1 - Aune, T. A1 - Behera, B. A1 - Beilicke, M. A1 - Benbow, W. A1 - Bird, R. A1 - Bouvier, A. A1 - Buckley, J. H. A1 - Bugaev, V. A1 - Byrum, K. A1 - Cesarini, A. A1 - Ciupik, L. A1 - Connolly, M. P. A1 - Cui, W. 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 - Gall, D. A1 - Gillanders, G. H. A1 - Griffin, S. 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 - Krennrich, F. A1 - Kumar, S. A1 - Lang, M. J. 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 - de Bhroithe, A. O'Faolain A1 - Ong, R. A. A1 - Otte, A. N. 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 - Richards, G. T. A1 - Roache, E. A1 - Saxon, D. B. A1 - Sembroski, G. H. A1 - Smith, A. W. A1 - Staszak, D. A1 - Telezhinsky, Igor O. A1 - Theiling, M. A1 - Varlotta, A. A1 - Vassiliev, V. V. A1 - Vincent, S. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Weekes, T. C. A1 - Weinstein, A. A1 - Welsing, R. A1 - Williams, D. A. A1 - Zitzer, B. A1 - Boettcher, Markus A1 - Fegan, S. J. A1 - Fortin, P. A1 - Halpern, J. P. A1 - Kovalev, Y. Y. A1 - Lister, M. L. A1 - Liu, J. A1 - Pushkarev, A. B. A1 - Smith, P. S. T1 - Discovery of a new tev Gamma-Ray source - VER J0521+211 JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics N2 - We report the detection of a new TeV gamma-ray source, VER J0521+211, based on observations made with the VERITAS imaging atmospheric Cherenkov Telescope Array. These observations were motivated by the discovery of a cluster of >30 GeV photons in the first year of Fermi Large Area Telescope observations. VER J0521+211 is relatively bright at TeV energies, with a mean photon flux of (1.93 +/- 0.13(stat) +/- 0.78(sys)) x 10(-11) cm(-2) s(-1) above 0.2 TeV during the period of the VERITAS observations. The source is strongly variable on a daily timescale across all wavebands, from optical to TeV, with a peak flux corresponding to similar to 0.3 times the steady Crab Nebula flux at TeV energies. Follow-up observations in the optical and X-ray bands classify the newly discovered TeV source as a BL Lac-type blazar with uncertain redshift, although recent measurements suggest z = 0.108. VER J0521+211 exhibits all the defining properties of blazars in radio, optical, X-ray, and gamma-ray wavelengths. KW - BL Lacertae objects: individual (VER J0521+211) KW - gamma rays: galaxies Y1 - 2013 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/776/2/69 SN - 0004-637X SN - 1538-4357 VL - 776 IS - 2 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Acciari, V. A. A1 - Aliu, E. A1 - Arlen, T. A1 - Aune, T. A1 - Beilicke, M. A1 - Benbow, W. 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 - Cui, W. A1 - Dickherber, R. A1 - Duke, C. A1 - Errando, M. 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 - Griffin, S. A1 - Grube, J. A1 - Guenette, R. A1 - Gyuk, G. A1 - Hanna, D. A1 - Holder, J. A1 - Hughes, J. P. A1 - Hui, C. M. A1 - Humensky, T. B. A1 - Kaaret, P. A1 - Karlsson, N. A1 - Kertzman, M. A1 - Kieda, D. A1 - Krawczynski, H. A1 - Krennrich, F. A1 - Lang, M. J. A1 - LeBohec, S. A1 - Madhavan, A. S. A1 - Maier, G. A1 - Majumdar, P. A1 - McArthur, S. A1 - McCann, A. A1 - Moriarty, P. A1 - Mukherjee, R. A1 - Ong, R. A. A1 - Orr, M. A1 - Otte, A. N. A1 - Pandel, D. A1 - Park, N. H. A1 - Perkins, J. S. A1 - Pohl, Martin A1 - Quinn, J. A1 - Ragan, K. A1 - Reyes, L. C. A1 - Reynolds, P. T. A1 - Roache, E. A1 - Rose, H. J. A1 - Saxon, D. B. A1 - Schroedter, M. A1 - Sembroski, G. H. A1 - Senturk, G. Demet A1 - Slane, P. A1 - Smith, A. W. A1 - Tesic, G. A1 - Theiling, M. A1 - Thibadeau, S. A1 - Tsurusaki, K. A1 - Varlotta, A. A1 - Vassiliev, V. V. A1 - Vincent, S. A1 - Vivier, M. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Ward, J. E. A1 - Weekes, T. C. A1 - Weinstein, A. A1 - Weisgarber, T. A1 - Williams, D. A. A1 - Wood, M. A1 - Zitzer, B. T1 - Discovery of OF TeV Gamma-Ray emission from tycho's supernova remnant JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics ; Part 2, Letters N2 - We report the discovery of TeV gamma-ray emission from the Type Ia supernova remnant (SNR) G120.1+1.4, known as Tycho's SNR. Observations performed in the period 2008-2010 with the VERITAS ground-based gamma-ray observatory reveal weak emission coming from the direction of the remnant, compatible with a point source located at 00(h)25(m)27(s).0, +64 degrees 10'50 '' (J2000). The TeV photon spectrum measured by VERITAS can be described with a power law dN/dE = C(E/3.42 TeV)(-Gamma) with Gamma = 1.95 +/- 0.51(stat) +/- 0.30(sys) and C = (1.55 +/- 0.43(stat) +/- 0.47(sys)) x 10(-14) cm(-2) s(-1) TeV-1. The integral flux above 1 TeV corresponds to similar to 0.9% of the steady Crab Nebula emission above the same energy, making it one of the weakest sources yet detected in TeV gamma rays. We present both leptonic and hadronic models that can describe the data. The lowest magnetic field allowed in these models is similar to 80 mu G, which may be interpreted as evidence for magnetic field amplification. KW - gamma rays: general KW - ISM: individual objects (G120.1+01.4, Tycho=VER J0025+641) Y1 - 2011 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1088/2041-8205/730/2/L20 SN - 2041-8205 VL - 730 IS - 2 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Aliu, E. A1 - Archambault, S. A1 - Arlen, T. A1 - Aune, T. A1 - Beilicke, M. A1 - Benbow, W. A1 - Bouvier, A. A1 - Buckley, J. H. A1 - Bugaev, V. 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, S. 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 - Hughes, G. A1 - Humensky, T. B. A1 - Kaaret, P. A1 - Kargaltsev, O. A1 - Karlsson, N. 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 - Moriarty, P. A1 - Mukherjee, R. A1 - Nelson, T. A1 - de Bhroithe, A. O&rsquo A1 - Faolain, A1 - Ong, R. A. A1 - Orr, M. A1 - Otte, A. N. A1 - Park, N. A1 - Perkins, J. S. A1 - Pohl, M. A1 - Prokoph, H. A1 - Quinn, J. A1 - Ragan, K. A1 - Reyes, L. C. A1 - Reynolds, P. T. A1 - Roache, E. A1 - Roberts, M. A1 - Saxon, D. B. A1 - Schroedter, M. A1 - Sembroski, G. H. A1 - Slane, P. A1 - Smith, A. W. A1 - Staszak, D. 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 - Vivier, M. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Weekes, T. C. A1 - Weinstein, A. A1 - Welsing, R. A1 - Williams, D. A. A1 - Zitzer, B. T1 - DISCOVERY OF TeV GAMMA-RAY EMISSION FROM CTA 1 BY VERITAS JF - ASTROPHYSICAL JOURNAL N2 - We report the discovery of TeV gamma-ray emission coincident with the shell-type radio supernova remnant (SNR) CTA 1 using the VERITAS gamma-ray observatory. The source, VER J0006+729, was detected as a 6.5 standard deviation excess over background and shows an extended morphology, approximated by a two-dimensional Gaussian of semimajor (semiminor) axis 0.degrees 30 (0.degrees 24) and a centroid 5’ from the Fermi gamma-ray pulsar PSR J0007+7303 and its X-ray pulsar wind nebula (PWN). The photon spectrum is well described by a power-law dN/dE = N-0(E/3 TeV)(-Gamma), with a differential spectral index of Gamma = 2.2 +/- 0.2(stat) +/- 0.3(sys), and normalization N-0 = (9.1 +/- 1.3(stat) +/- 1.7(sys)) x 10(-14) cm(-2) s(-1) TeV-1. The integral flux, F-gamma = 4.0 x 10(-12) erg cm(-2) s(-1) above 1 TeV, corresponds to 0.2% of the pulsar spin-down power at 1.4 kpc. The energetics, colocation with the SNR, and the relatively small extent of the TeV emission strongly argue for the PWN origin of the TeV photons. We consider the origin of the TeV emission in CTA 1. KW - gamma-rays: stars KW - pulsars: individual (PSR J0007+7303) KW - supernovae: individual (G119.5+10.2) KW - X-rays: individual (RX J0007.0+7303) Y1 - 2013 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/764/1/38 SN - 0004-637X VL - 764 IS - 1 PB - IOP PUBLISHING LTD CY - BRISTOL ER - 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 - Archambault, S. A1 - Archer, A. A1 - Barnacka, Anna A1 - Behera, B. A1 - Beilicke, M. A1 - Benbow, W. A1 - Berger, K. A1 - Bird, R. A1 - Böttcher, Markus A1 - Buckley, J. H. A1 - Bugaev, V. A1 - Cardenzana, J. V. A1 - Cerruti, M. A1 - Chen, Xuhui A1 - Christiansen, J. L. A1 - Ciupik, L. A1 - Collins-Hughes, E. A1 - Connolly, M. P. A1 - Cui, W. A1 - Dickinson, H. J. A1 - Dumm, J. A1 - Eisch, J. D. A1 - Errando, M. A1 - Falcone, A. A1 - Federici, Simone A1 - Feng, Q. A1 - Finley, J. P. A1 - Fleischhack, H. A1 - Fortson, L. A1 - Furniss, A. A1 - Gillanders, G. H. A1 - Godambe, S. 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 - Madhavan, A. S. A1 - Maier, G. A1 - McArthur, S. A1 - McCann, A. A1 - Meagher, K. A1 - Millis, J. A1 - Moriarty, P. A1 - Nelson, T. A1 - Nieto, D. A1 - Ong, R. A. A1 - Otte, A. N. A1 - Park, N. A1 - Perkins, J. S. A1 - Pohl, Martin 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 - Sweeney, K. A1 - Telezhinsky, Igor O. A1 - Tucci, J. V. A1 - Tyler, J. A1 - Varlotta, A. A1 - Vassiliev, V. V. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Welsing, R. A1 - Wilhelm, Alina A1 - Williams, D. A. A1 - Zitzer, B. T1 - Discovery of very high energy gamma rays from 1ES 1440+122 JF - Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society KW - BL Lacertae objects: general KW - gamma-rays: general Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stw1319 SN - 0035-8711 SN - 1365-2966 VL - 461 SP - 202 EP - 208 PB - Oxford Univ. Press CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Abeysekara, A. U. A1 - Archambault, S. A1 - Archer, A. A1 - Benbow, W. A1 - Bird, R. A1 - Brose, Robert A1 - Buchovecky, M. A1 - Buckley, J. H. A1 - Bugaev, V. A1 - Cerruti, M. A1 - Connolly, M. P. A1 - Cui, W. A1 - Falcone, A. A1 - Feng, Q. A1 - Finley, J. P. A1 - Fleischhack, H. A1 - Fortson, L. A1 - Furniss, A. A1 - Gillanders, G. H. A1 - Griffin, S. A1 - Grube, J. A1 - Huetten, M. A1 - Hanna, D. A1 - Hervet, O. A1 - Holder, J. 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 - 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 - Santander, M. A1 - Sembroski, G. H. A1 - Shahinyan, K. A1 - Staszak, D. A1 - Telezhinsky, Igor O. A1 - Tyler, J. A1 - Vassiliev, V. V. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Weiner, O. M. A1 - Weinstein, A. A1 - Wilcox, P. A1 - Wilhelm, Alina A1 - Williams, D. A. A1 - Zitzer, B. T1 - Discovery of Very-high-energy Emission from RGB J2243+203 and Derivation of Its Redshift Upper Limit JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics ; Supplement series N2 - Very-high-energy (VHE; > 100 GeV) gamma-ray emission from the blazar RGB J2243+203 was discovered with the VERITAS Cherenkov telescope array, during the period between 2014 December 21 and 24. The VERITAS energy spectrum from this source can be fitted by a power law with a photon index of 4.6 +/- 0.5, and a flux normalization at 0.15 TeV of (6.3 +/- 1.1) x 10(-10) cm(-2) s(-1) TeV-1. The integrated Fermi-LAT flux from 1 to 100 GeV during the VERITAS detection is (4.1 +/- 0.8) x 10(-8) cm(-2) s(-1), which is an order of magnitude larger than the four-year-averaged flux in the same energy range reported in the 3FGL catalog, (4.0 +/- 0.1 x 10(-9) cm(-2) s(-1)). The detection with VERITAS triggered observations in the X-ray band with the Swift-XRT. However, due to scheduling constraints Swift-XRT observations were performed 67 hr after the VERITAS detection, rather than simultaneously with the VERITAS observations. The observed X-ray energy spectrum between 2 and 10 keV can be fitted with a power law with a spectral index of 2.7 +/- 0.2, and the integrated photon flux in the same energy band is (3.6 +/- 0.6) x 10(-13) cm(-2) s(-1). EBL-model-dependent upper limits of the blazar redshift have been derived. Depending on the EBL model used, the upper limit varies in the range from z < 0.9 to z < 1.1. KW - galaxies: individual (RGB J2243+203) Y1 - 2017 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4365/aa8d76 SN - 0067-0049 SN - 1538-4365 VL - 233 SP - 1188 EP - 1204 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Archambault, S. A1 - Archer, A. A1 - Aune, T. A1 - Barnacka, Anna A1 - Benbow, W. A1 - Bird, R. A1 - Buchovecky, M. A1 - Buckley, J. H. A1 - Bugaev, V. A1 - Byrum, K. A1 - Cardenzana, J. V. A1 - Cerruti, M. A1 - Chen, Xuhui A1 - Ciupik, L. A1 - Collins-Hughes, E. 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 - Flinders, A. A1 - Fortin, P. A1 - Fortson, L. A1 - Furniss, A. A1 - Gillanders, G. H. A1 - Griffin, S. A1 - Grube, J. A1 - Gyuk, G. A1 - Huetten, M. A1 - Hakansson, Nils A1 - Hanna, D. A1 - Holder, J. A1 - Humensky, T. B. A1 - Johnson, C. A. A1 - Kaaret, P. A1 - Kar, P. A1 - Kelley-Hoskins, N. A1 - Kertzman, M. A1 - Khassen, Y. A1 - Kieda, D. A1 - Krause, M. A1 - Krennrich, F. A1 - Kumar, S. A1 - Lang, M. J. A1 - Maier, G. A1 - McArthur, S. A1 - McCann, A. A1 - Meagher, K. A1 - Millis, J. A1 - Moriarty, P. A1 - Mukherjee, R. A1 - Nieto, D. A1 - Ong, R. A. A1 - Otte, A. N. A1 - Pandel, D. A1 - Park, N. A1 - Pelassa, V. 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 - Rousselle, J. A1 - Rulten, C. A1 - Santander, M. 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 - Vincent, S. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Weiner, O. M. A1 - Weinstein, A. A1 - Wilhelm, Alina A1 - Williams, D. A. A1 - Zitzer, B. T1 - EXCEPTIONALLY BRIGHT TEV FLARES FROM THE BINARY LS I+61 degrees 303 JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics ; Part 2, Letters N2 - The TeV binary system LS I +61 degrees 303 is known for its regular, non-thermal emission pattern that traces the orbital period of the compact object in its 26.5 day orbit around its B0 Ve star companion. The system typically presents elevated TeV emission around apastron passage with flux levels between 5% and 15% of the steady flux from the Crab Nebula (> 300 GeV). In this article, VERITAS observations of LS I + 61 degrees. 303 taken in late 2014 are presented, during which bright TeV flares around apastron at flux levels peaking above 30% of the Crab Nebula flux were detected. This is the brightest such activity from this source ever seen in the TeV regime. The strong outbursts have rise and fall times of less than a day. The short timescale of the flares, in conjunction with the observation of 10 TeV photons from LS I + 61 degrees 303 during the flares, provides constraints on the properties of the accelerator in the source. KW - binaries: general KW - gamma-rays: general KW - stars: individual (LS I+61 degrees 303, VER J0240+612) KW - X-rays: binaries Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3847/2041-8205/817/1/L7 SN - 2041-8205 SN - 2041-8213 VL - 817 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Ahnen, M. L. A1 - Ansoldi, S. A1 - Antonelli, L. A. A1 - Arcaro, C. A1 - Babic, A. A1 - Banerjee, B. A1 - Bangale, P. A1 - Barres de Almeida, U. A1 - Barrio, J. A. A1 - Gonzalez, J. Becerra A1 - Bednarek, W. A1 - Bernardini, E. A1 - Berti, A. A1 - Bhattacharyya, W. A1 - Blanch, O. A1 - Bonnoli, G. A1 - Carosi, R. A1 - Carosi, A. A1 - Chatterjee, A. A1 - Colak, S. M. A1 - Colin, P. A1 - Colombo, E. A1 - Contreras, J. L. A1 - Cortina, J. A1 - Covino, S. A1 - Cumani, P. A1 - Da Vela, P. A1 - Dazzi, F. A1 - De Angelis, A. A1 - De Lotto, B. A1 - Delfino, M. A1 - Delgado, Jose Miguel Martins A1 - Di Pierro, F. A1 - Doert, M. A1 - Dominguez, A. A1 - Prester, D. Dominis A1 - Doro, M. A1 - Glawion, D. Eisenacher A1 - Engelkemeier, M. A1 - Ramazani, V. Fallah A1 - Fernandez-Barral, A. A1 - Fidalgo, D. A1 - Fonseca, M. V. A1 - Font, L. A1 - Fruck, C. A1 - Galindo, D. A1 - Lopez, R. J. Garcia A1 - Garczarczyk, M. A1 - Gaug, M. A1 - Giammaria, P. A1 - Godinovic, N. A1 - Gora, D. A1 - Guberman, D. A1 - Hadasch, D. A1 - Hahn, A. A1 - Hassan, T. A1 - Hayashida, M. A1 - Herrera, J. A1 - Hose, J. A1 - Hrupec, D. A1 - Ishio, K. A1 - Konno, Y. A1 - Kubo, H. A1 - Kushida, J. A1 - Kuvezdic, D. A1 - Lelas, D. A1 - Lindfors, E. A1 - Lombardi, S. A1 - Longo, F. A1 - Lopez, M. A1 - Maggio, C. A1 - Majumdar, P. A1 - Makariev, M. A1 - Maneva, G. A1 - Manganaro, M. A1 - Maraschi, L. A1 - Mariotti, M. A1 - Martinez, M. A1 - Mazin, D. A1 - Menzel, U. A1 - Minev, M. A1 - Miranda, J. M. A1 - Mirzoyan, R. A1 - Moralejo, A. A1 - Moreno, V. A1 - Moretti, E. A1 - Nagayoshi, T. A1 - Neustroev, V. A1 - Niedzwiecki, A. A1 - Nievas Rosillo, M. A1 - Nigro, C. A1 - Nilsson, K. A1 - Ninci, D. A1 - Nishijima, K. A1 - Noda, K. A1 - Nogues, L. A1 - Paiano, S. A1 - Palacio, J. A1 - Paneque, D. A1 - Paoletti, R. A1 - Paredes, J. M. A1 - Pedaletti, G. A1 - Peresano, M. A1 - Perri, L. A1 - Persic, M. A1 - Moroni, P. G. Prada A1 - Prandini, E. A1 - Puljak, I. A1 - Garcia, J. R. A1 - Reichardt, I. A1 - Ribo, M. A1 - Rico, J. A1 - Righi, C. A1 - Rugliancich, A. A1 - Saito, T. A1 - Satalecka, K. A1 - Schroeder, S. A1 - Schweizer, T. A1 - Shore, S. N. A1 - Sitarek, J. A1 - Snidaric, I. A1 - Sobczynska, D. A1 - Stamerra, A. A1 - Strzys, M. A1 - Suric, T. A1 - Takalo, L. A1 - Tavecchio, F. A1 - Temnikov, P. A1 - Terzic, T. A1 - Teshima, M. A1 - Torres-Alba, N. A1 - Treves, A. A1 - Tsujimoto, S. A1 - Vanzo, G. A1 - Vazquez Acosta, M. A1 - Vovk, I. A1 - Ward, J. E. A1 - Will, M. A1 - Zaric, D. A1 - Arbet-Engels, A. A1 - Baack, D. A1 - Balbo, M. A1 - Biland, A. A1 - Blank, M. A1 - Bretz, T. A1 - Bruegge, K. A1 - Bulinski, M. A1 - Buss, J. A1 - Dmytriiev, A. A1 - Dorner, D. A1 - Einecke, S. A1 - Elsaesser, D. A1 - Herbst, T. A1 - Hildebrand, D. A1 - Kortmann, L. A1 - Linhoff, L. A1 - Mahlke, M. A1 - Mannheim, K. A1 - Mueller, S. A. A1 - Neise, D. A1 - Neronov, A. A1 - Noethe, M. A1 - Oberkirch, J. A1 - Paravac, A. A1 - Rhode, W. A1 - Schleicher, B. A1 - Schulz, F. A1 - Sedlaczek, K. A1 - Shukla, A. A1 - Sliusar, V. A1 - Walter, R. A1 - Archer, A. A1 - Benbow, W. A1 - Bird, R. A1 - Brose, Robert A1 - Buckley, J. H. A1 - Bugaev, V. A1 - Christiansen, J. L. A1 - Cui, W. A1 - Daniel, M. K. A1 - Falcone, A. A1 - Feng, Q. A1 - Finley, J. P. A1 - Gillanders, G. H. A1 - Gueta, O. A1 - Hanna, D. A1 - Hervet, O. A1 - Holder, J. A1 - Hughes, G. A1 - Huetten, M. 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 - Park, N. A1 - Petrashyk, A. A1 - Pichel, A. A1 - Pohl, Martin A1 - Quinn, J. A1 - Ragan, K. A1 - Reynolds, P. T. A1 - Richards, G. T. A1 - Roache, E. A1 - Rovero, A. C. A1 - Rulten, C. A1 - Sadeh, I. A1 - Santander, M. A1 - Sembroski, G. H. A1 - Shahinyan, K. A1 - Sushch, Iurii A1 - Tyler, J. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Weinstein, A. A1 - Wells, R. M. A1 - Wilcox, P. A1 - Wilhel, A. A1 - Williams, D. A. A1 - Williamson, T. J. A1 - Zitzer, B. A1 - Perri, M. A1 - Verrecchia, F. A1 - Leto, C. A1 - Villata, M. A1 - Raiteri, C. M. A1 - Jorstad, S. G. A1 - Larionov, V. M. A1 - Blinov, D. A. A1 - Grishina, T. S. A1 - Kopatskaya, E. N. A1 - Larionova, E. G. A1 - Nikiforova, A. A. A1 - Morozova, D. A. A1 - Troitskaya, Yu. V. A1 - Troitsky, I. S. A1 - Kurtanidze, O. M. A1 - Nikolashvili, M. G. A1 - Kurtanidze, S. O. A1 - Kimeridze, G. N. A1 - Chigladze, R. A. A1 - Strigachev, A. A1 - Sadun, A. C. T1 - Extreme HBL behavior of Markarian 501 during 2012 JF - Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal / European Southern Observatory (ESO) N2 - Aims. We aim to characterize the multiwavelength emission from Markarian 501 (Mrk 501), quantify the energy-dependent variability, study the potential multiband correlations, and describe the temporal evolution of the broadband emission within leptonic theoretical scenarios. Methods. We organized a multiwavelength campaign to take place between March and July of 2012. Excellent temporal coverage was obtained with more than 25 instruments, including the MAGIC, FACT and VERITAS Cherenkov telescopes, the instruments on board the Swift and Fermi spacecraft, and the telescopes operated by the GASP-WEBT collaboration. Results. Mrk 501 showed a very high energy (VHE) gamma-ray flux above 0.2 TeV of similar to 0.5 times the Crab Nebula flux (CU) for most of the campaign. The highest activity occurred on 2012 June 9, when the VHE flux was similar to 3 CU, and the peak of the high-energy spectral component was found to be at similar to 2 TeV. Both the X-ray and VHE gamma-ray spectral slopes were measured to be extremely hard, with spectral indices <2 during most of the observing campaign, regardless of the X-ray and VHE flux. This study reports the hardest Mrk 501 VHE spectra measured to date. The fractional variability was found to increase with energy, with the highest variability occurring at VHE. Using the complete data set, we found correlation between the X-ray and VHE bands; however, if the June 9 flare is excluded, the correlation disappears (significance <3 sigma) despite the existence of substantial variability in the X-ray and VHE bands throughout the campaign. Conclusions. The unprecedentedly hard X-ray and VHE spectra measured imply that their low- and high-energy components peaked above 5 keV and 0.5 TeV, respectively, during a large fraction of the observing campaign, and hence that Mrk 501 behaved like an extreme high-frequency-peaked blazar (EHBL) throughout the 2012 observing season. This suggests that being an EHBL may not be a permanent characteristic of a blazar, but rather a state which may change over time. The data set acquired shows that the broadband spectral energy distribution (SED) of Mrk 501, and its transient evolution, is very complex, requiring, within the framework of synchrotron self-Compton (SSC) models, various emission regions for a satisfactory description. Nevertheless the one-zone SSC scenario can successfully describe the segments of the SED where most energy is emitted, with a significant correlation between the electron energy density and the VHE gamma-ray activity, suggesting that most of the variability may be explained by the injection of high-energy electrons. The one-zone SSC scenario used reproduces the behavior seen between the measured X-ray and VHE gamma-ray fluxes, and predicts that the correlation becomes stronger with increasing energy of the X-rays. KW - astroparticle physics KW - acceleration of particles KW - radiation mechanisms: non-thermal KW - BL Lacertae objects: general KW - BL Lacertae objects: individual: Mrk501 Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201833704 SN - 1432-0746 VL - 620 PB - EDP Sciences CY - Les Ulis 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 - Archambault, S. A1 - Archer, A. A1 - Benbow, W. A1 - Bird, Ralph A1 - Bourbeau, E. A1 - Bouvier, A. A1 - Buchovecky, M. A1 - Bugaev, V. A1 - Cardenzana, J. V. A1 - Cerruti, M. A1 - Ciupik, L. A1 - Connolly, M. P. A1 - Cui, W. A1 - Daniel, M. K. A1 - Errando, M. A1 - Falcone, A. A1 - Feng, Q. A1 - Finley, J. P. A1 - Fleischhack, H. A1 - Fortson, L. A1 - Furniss, A. A1 - Gillanders, G. H. A1 - Griffin, S. 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 - Kar, P. A1 - Kertzman, M. A1 - Kieda, D. A1 - Krause, M. A1 - Lang, M. J. A1 - Lin, T. T. Y. 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 - 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 - Sembroski, G. H. A1 - Shahinyan, K. A1 - Staszak, D. A1 - Telezhinsky, Igor O. A1 - Trepanier, S. A1 - Wakely, S. P. A1 - Weinstein, A. A1 - Wilcox, P. A1 - Williams, D. A. A1 - Zitzer, B. T1 - Gamma-ray observations under bright moonlight with VERITAS JF - Astroparticle physics N2 - Imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes (IACTs) are equipped with sensitive photomultiplier tube (PMT) cameras. Exposure to high levels of background illumination degrades the efficiency of and potentially destroys these photo-detectors over time, so IACTs cannot be operated in the same configuration in the presence of bright moonlight as under dark skies. Since September 2012, observations have been carried out with the VERITAS IACTs under bright moonlight (defined as about three times the night-sky-background (NSB) of a dark extragalactic field, typically occurring when Moon illumination > 35%) in two observing modes, firstly by reducing the voltage applied to the PMTs and, secondly, with the addition of ultra-violet (UV) bandpass filters to the cameras. This has allowed observations at up to about 30 times previous NSB levels (around 80% Moon illumination), resulting in 30% more observing time between the two modes over the course of a year. These additional observations have already allowed for the detection of a flare from the 1ES 1727 + 502 and for an observing program targeting a measurement of the cosmic-ray positron fraction. We provide details of these new observing modes and their performance relative to the standard VERITAS observations. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. KW - Instrumentation KW - Moonlight KW - Observing methods KW - VERITAS KW - IACT Y1 - 2017 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.astropartphys.2017.03.001 SN - 0927-6505 SN - 1873-2852 VL - 91 SP - 34 EP - 43 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam ER -