Changes in the angular separation of the lensed images PKS 1830-211 NE & SW

Abstract

We present 8 epochs of 7 mm dual-polarization VLBA observations of the gravitational lens system PKS 1830-211 made over the course of 14 weeks. Clear changes in the relative positions of the cores of up to $80 μ$arcseconds ($μ$as) were observed between epochs (each separated by $\approx 2$ weeks). A comparison with previous 7 mm VLBA maps shows that the separation of the cores has changed by almost $280 μ$as over 12 months. This leads us to conclude that changes in the brightness distribution of the mm-VLBI core of the background source must be occurring rapidly. This is the first clear observation of significant radio source evolution in a gravitational lens system. It is also the first time that changes in source structure have been detected in a distant extra-galactic source on such short time-scales. This is partly accounted for by the magnification provided by the lens system.