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arXiv · 2608.22046

Correlation of gamma-ray and optical variability of BL~Lacertae during the period of high blazar activity

Marina S. Butuzova·Mark A. Gorbachev
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Abstract

Investigating the correlation of flux variability in blazars across multiple spectral bands provides a key tool for constraining emission mechanisms and jet physical parameters. We study the gamma-ray and optical variability correlation of BL Lacertae on timescales of about 1 day during September 2022, when the source was within the TESS field of view, and over a longer period (April 2022 - September 2023) encompassing its gamma-ray flare, which finishes the series of flares during the high-activity phase. Our analysis confirms the Synchrotron Self-Compton mechanism as the origin of the gamma-ray emission, characterized by a zero time lag. For the longer interval, the Discrete Correlation Function (DCF) reveals a second statistically significant peak at the time lag of about 12 days. We demonstrate that this peak arises due to the presence of an additional flare in one of the bands, which accompanies a gamma-ray and optical flares correlated at zero time lag. We interpret the orphan flare origin in terms of the propagation of an injected blob of high-energy electrons along a jet with a decaying magnetic field, accounting for electron radiative cooling.

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Marina S. Butuzova, Mark A. Gorbachev. 2026-08-22. Correlation of gamma-ray and optical variability of BL~Lacertae during the period of high blazar activity. https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.22046

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