arXiv subjects

P. Benaglia

Publications and source records attributed to P. Benaglia.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Enabling population studies on wind-driven Galactic binary systems

Galactic binaries driven by stellar wind shocks, such as colliding wind binaries (CWBs) and gamma-ray binaries (gBs), harbor one of the most efficient particle acceleration engines known in the Universe. Despite their potential, these sources remain relatively unexplored, particularly in the domains of low radio frequencies and very high resolution. As a result, we lack comprehensive population studies and well-characterized individual systems. Only a few of these binaries, such as the iconic gB PSR B1259$-$63 or the massive CWB WR 140, have been studied in enough detail to probe their wind dynamics and shock physics. Current observations lack the sensitivity to detect weak non-thermal synchrotron emission from low-energy particle populations and the angular resolution to resolve shock structures on sub-au scales. The Square Kilometre Array Observatory (SKAO) will mark a significant improvement in both sensitivity and resolution with its SKA-low and SKA-mid telescopes, solving these challenges. This will enable systematic studies of the winds and shock interactions in these binary systems. Additionally, SKA-VLBI will facilitate the observation of changes in shock geometry at different orbital phases, linking particle acceleration processes to the binary's orbital characteristics and stellar wind properties. SKAO will pave the way for comprehensive population studies of these energetic binary systems.

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arXiv2026

Search for radio polarization in the particle-accelerating colliding-wind binaries WR 147 and HD 167971

Particle-accelerating colliding-wind binaries (PACWBs) are multiple systems of massive stars in which strong stellar winds collide, accelerating particles to relativistic energies. This population of relativistic particles emits NT radiation, including synchrotron radiation in the radio domain. This emission is expected to be linearly polarized, but the polarization signature has not yet been detected for a PACWB. Our objective is to quantify the linear polarization of synchrotron radiation in two well-known PACWBs and to interpret our measurements within the framework of the physics of these specific NT emitters. We observed the PACWBs WR 147 and HD 167971 with the Very Large Array (VLA) radio interferometer in the frequency bands L and C (1-2 and 4-8 GHz, respectively), where synchrotron emission is expected to be more prominent. We performed polarization calibration and analyzed the resulting Stokes maps. We did not detect any polarization signature for either of the two targets in either of the two bands, even when considering narrower bands to mitigate the effect of bandpass depolarization. The most conservative upper limit on the polarization degree is on the order of 1% for both targets. The lack of linear polarization for the two targets is likely attributable to a combination of effects, including the turbulent nature of the magnetic field in the synchrotron-emitting region, and depolarization processes based on Faraday rotation that are certainly active in these sources. Their complex geometry, unresolved by the VLA at these frequencies, is most likely to lead to beam depolarization. We emphasize that, in contrast to other canonical synchrotron sources, PACWBs are also subject to thermal dilution. This is especially relevant for systems with stars whose winds are strong enough to contribute copiously to thermal emission, such as those harboring a Wolf-Rayet component.

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arXiv2025

Thackeray's globules in IC 2944: the rocket effect revisited by ALMA

The prominent Thackeray's globules are a collection of cloudlets seen in silhouette against the bright emission of the IC 2944 HII region, ionized by the Collinder 249 cluster of early-type stars (placed at 2331$\pm$30 pc, derived from a Gaia DR3 analysis of the parallaxes of 11 massive stars). Here we present the analysis of Band 3 ALMA data that reveals the cold emission (continuum and molecular) associated with the neutral gas and its kinematic behavior. Many of the globules follow a linear velocity gradient that can be explained as the result of an acceleration process due to the rocket effect, where freshly ionized material streams away from the globule, compressing and accelerating it. We identified 46 globules (12 of which are new detections), measured their kinematics, and estimated their densities and masses. At least 5 of them are associated with emission of dense molecular tracers and/or millimeter continuum sources and have indications of possible gravitational collapse. We applied a simple model for the acceleration of the globules which accounts for the observed kinematics. In this scenario only the most massive of the globules will be able to gravitationally collapse before being completely destroyed, in the process reaching speeds of tens km/s, and potentially becoming low-mass walkaway/runaway protostars.

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arXiv2025

Foreground and internal free-free absorption in particle-accelerating colliding-wind binaries : Insights from the radio emission of WR 147

Radio emission from massive binary systems is generally of composite nature, showing both a thermal emission component from the winds and a non-thermal component from relativistic electrons accelerated in the colliding-wind region. Understanding the processes ruling their radio spectrum is essential to investigate the role of these objects in the production of non-thermal particle populations in our galaxy. Our objective is to explore how the processes at work in particle-accelerating colliding-wind binaries (PACWBs) alter their spectral energy distribution, following a simple phenomenological description. We focus mainly on the role of free-free absorption (FFA) at low frequencies. Our intention is to use WR 147 as a test case, before tentatively extrapolating to a more generic behaviour. We processed recent Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array data, optimised for spectral analysis, combined with older measurements published in the literature at other frequencies. We analysed the radio spectrum considering both a more classical foreground free-free absorption (f-FFA) model and, for the first time, an internal free--free absorption (i-FFA) model. Our results show that the f-FFA model does not reproduce the spectral energy distribution of WR 147 at low frequencies. The i-FFA model is more efficient in providing a more complete description of the SED down to 610 MHz. This model is the only one to account for a change in the spectral index at low frequencies without any exponential drop in flux, as predicted by the f-FFA model. In addition, the upper limit at 150 MHz shows that two turnovers occur in the radio spectrum of WR 147, suggesting the effect of both i-FFA and f-FFA is seen in two regions of the spectrum. (abridged)

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arXiv2025

High resolution radio analysis of the starburst galaxy NGC 4527: signatures of an AGN core

NGC 4527 is a nearby edge-on spiral galaxy with both starburst and AGN features, hosting a LINER nucleus. We present a radio study of the large-scale structure and nuclear region of this galaxy, based on new uGMRT observations at 700 and 1230 MHz. Our continuum maps reveal extended emission tracing the stellar disk, with no evidence of a radio halo. The spectral index distribution and the presence of PAHs across the disk are consistent with ongoing star formation. In the nuclear region we resolve three compact sources: one at the galactic centre and two symmetrically aligned with the major axis at $\sim400$ pc. The spectral index values and the destruction of PAHs in the central source, together with previously detected X-rays emission, suggest the presence of a low-luminosity AGN. The two off-centre sources are consistent with a star formation ring, coincident with a molecular gas ring previously reported. We explore a scenario where super-Eddington accretion onto the black hole drives a dense wind that falls back onto the disk, triggering star formation in a circumnuclear ring.

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arXiv2025

New stellar bow shocks and bubbles found around runaway stars

Runaway stars with peculiar high velocities can generate stellar bow shocks. Only a few bow shocks show clear radio emission. Our goal is to identify and characterize new stellar bow shocks around O and Be runaway stars in the infrared (IR), and to study their possible radio emission and nature. Our input data is a catalog of O and Be runaways compiled using Gaia DR3. We used WISE IR images to search for bow shocks around these runaways, Gaia DR3 data to determine the actual motion of the runaway stars corrected for interstellar medium (ISM) motion caused by Galactic rotation, and archival radio data to search for emission signatures. We finally explored the radio detectability of these sources under thermal and nonthermal scenarios. We found 9 new stellar bow shock candidates, 3 new bubble candidates, and 1 intermediate structure candidate. One of them is an in situ bow shock candidate. We also found 17 already known bow shocks in our sample, though we discarded one, and 62 miscellaneous sources showing some IR emission around the runaways. We geometrically characterized the sources in IR using the WISE-4 band and estimated the ISM density at the bow shock positions, obtaining median values of ~6 and ~4 cm$^{-3}$ using 2D and 3D peculiar velocities. Most of the new discovered bow shocks come from new runaway discoveries. Within our samples we found that ~24% of the O-type runaway stars show bow shocks, while this decreases to ~3% for Be-type runaway stars. Two bow shocks present radio emission but not as clear counterparts, and two others show hints of radio emission. The physical scenarios indicate that two sources could still be compatible with nonthermal radio emission. The new sample of O and Be runaway stars allowed us to discover both new stellar bow shocks and bubbles. Their geometrical characterization can be used to assess the physical scenario of the radio emission. (Abridged)

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arXiv2025

Exploring the non-thermal physics behind the pulsar wind nebula PSR J2030+4415 through radio observations

PSR J2030+4415 is a gamma-ray pulsar with an X-ray pulsar wind nebula elongated along the north-south direction. The system shows a prominent X-ray filament oriented at an angle of 130{\deg} to the nebula axis. To improve our understanding of the non-thermal processes occurring in the pulsar wind nebula, we attempted to determine the possible existence of a radio counterpart, study its morphology, and obtain restrictive upper limits of the pulsar and filament emission at radio wavelengths. We performed observations of the pulsar PSR J2030+4415 and its surroundings with the upgraded Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (uGMRT) at two frequency bands, and put the results in context with findings at other wavelengths. We obtained radio images at 736 and 1274 MHz that reveal a structure trailing the pulsar, with a morphology overlapping the X-ray nebula. This radio structure is the radio counterpart of the X-ray pulsar wind nebula. The derived spectral index along this structure shows spatial variation. There are no hints of the pulsar and the filament at any of the explored radio frequencies, but we obtained restrictive upper limits. A physical scenario that combines the radio and the X-ray observations, and consistent with IR data, of the nebula and the filament is presented. We propose that particle acceleration occurs in the nebula tail due to the presence of a re-collimation shock, and the highest energy particles gradually escape from it through energy-dependent diffusion. We also find a lower limit in the energy of the particles escaping along the X-ray filament of ~GeV.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2024

Runaway O and Be stars found using Gaia DR3, new stellar bow shocks and search for binaries

A relevant fraction of massive stars are runaways, moving with a significant peculiar velocity with respect to their environment. Kicks from supernova explosions or the dynamical ejection of stars from clusters can account for the runaway genesis. We have used Gaia DR3 data to study the velocity distribution of massive O and Be stars from the GOSC and BeSS catalogs and identify runaway stars using a 2D-velocity method. We have discovered 42 new runaways from GOSC and 47 from BeSS, among a total of 106 and 69 runaways found within these catalogs, respectively. These numbers imply a percentage of runaways of ~25% for O-type stars ~5% for Be-type stars. The higher percentages and higher velocities found for O-type compared to Be-type runaways suggest that the dynamical ejection scenario is more likely than the supernova explosion scenario. We have also performed multi-wavelength studies of our runaways. We have used WISE infrared images to discover 13 new stellar bow shocks around the runaway stars. We have also conducted VLA radio observations of some of these bow shocks. Finally, our runaway stars include six X-ray binaries and one gamma-ray binary, implying that new such systems could be found by conducting detailed multi-wavelength studies. In this work we report on this ongoing project to find new runaway stars, study their interaction with the ISM and search for high-energy binary systems.

astro-ph.SR↗

arXiv2024

Insight into the occurrence of particle acceleration through the investigation of Wolf-Rayet stars using uGMRT observations

Massive stars produce strong stellar winds that consist of continuous outflows of material at speeds of thousands of km/s. These winds convey large amounts of kinetic power, especially in the case of Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars. When these winds interact with nearby material, they will likely produce shocks. Among other processes, particle acceleration is expected to occur. This is particularly well established in the case of massive binary systems, where the stellar winds collide, allowing these systems to be identified thanks to the detection of synchrotron radio emission, produced by a population of relativistic particles accelerated in the shocks. Our goal is to investigate the occurrence of particle acceleration among massive stars in their pre-supernova evolution phases. To this end, we observed a subset of five WR stars in the radio domain using the upgraded Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (uGMRT), located in India. The observations were carried out in bands 4 (550-950 MHz) and 5 (1050-1450 MHz) for all the targets. We detected radio emission for only WR 110 in bands 4 and 5. Its thermal spectrum displays a consistent index of +0.74 down to uGMRT bands. The four other targets were not detected and we derived 3$σ$ upper limits. Our upper limits in Band 4 are the first provided for these targets below 1 GHz. None of the targets was identified as a synchrotron radio emitter in these radio bands. If some synchrotron emission is produced in these systems, the non-detection with uGMRT can be most likely attributed to strong free-free absorption (FFA). This is especially relevant for WR 98a, which is catalogued as a particle accelerator based on previous measurements at higher radio frequencies. We discuss how the prominence of FFA constitutes a severe obstacle to identifying particle accelerators in the radio domain.

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arXiv2024

Search for extraplanar radio emission in a sample of edge-on starburst galaxies

The intense star formation in starburst galaxies results in the formation of intense winds that sweep matter up to several kpc out of the galactic plane. These winds can be detected in many bands of the electromagnetic spectrum. In this opportunity, we present our project to study three edge-on galaxies, candidates to show extraplanar emission at radio wavelengths. We will describe the criteria followed in selecting the sample and the software developed to detect the presence of the wind. Besides, we will discuss the next steps of this project.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2024

Search for radio halos in starburst galaxies

Starburst galaxies are undergoing intense episodes of star formation. In these galaxies, gas is ejected into the surrounding environment through winds created by the effect of hot stars and supernova explosions. When interacting with the intergalactic medium, these winds can produce strong shocks capable of accelerating cosmic rays. The radiation from these cosmic rays mainly occurs in radio and gamma rays. The radio halo can be characterized using the scale height. We searched for the presence of radio halos in a sample of edge-on starburst galaxies gathered from the MeerKAT 1.28 GHz Atlas of Southern Sources in the IRAS Revised Bright Galaxy Sample. We selected a sample of 25 edge-on galaxies from the original sample and modeled their disk and halo contributions. We have detected and characterized 11 radio halos, seven of which are reported here for the first time. We found that the halo scale heights increase linearly with the radio diameters and this relation does not depend on the star formation rate. All galaxies in our sample follow the radio-infrared relation with a q parameter value of $2.5\pm0.1$. The dependence of the halo luminosity on the star formation rate and the infrared luminosity supports the hypothesis that the radio halos are the result of synchrotron radiation produced by relativistic electrons and points toward the fact that the star formation activity plays a crucial role in halo creation. The average scale height of 1 kpc implies a dynamical range of 4 Myr, several orders of magnitude greater than the synchrotron losses for electrons of 10 TeV. This suggests that some process must exist to reaccelerate cosmic rays in the halo if gamma-ray emission of a leptonic origin is detected from the halo. According to the relation between the radio and gamma-ray luminosities, we found that NGC 4666 is a potential gamma-ray source for future observations.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2024

High resolution radio imaging of the two Particle-Accelerating Colliding-Wind Binaries HD167971 and HD168112

The colliding-wind region in binary systems made of massive stars allows us to investigate various aspects of shock physics, including particle acceleration. Particle accelerators of this kind are tagged as Particle-Accelerating Colliding-Wind Binaries, and are mainly identified thanks to their synchrotron radio emission. Our objective is first to validate the idea that obtaining snapshot high-resolution radio images of massive binaries constitutes a relevant approach to unambiguously identify particle accelerators. Second, we intend to exploit these images to characterize the synchrotron emission of two specific targets, HD167971 and HD168112, known as particle accelerators. We traced the radio emission from the two targets at 1.6 GHz with the European Very Long Baseline Interferometry Network, with an angular resolution of a few milli-arcseconds. Our measurements allowed us to obtain images for both targets. For HD167971, our observation occurs close to apastron, at an orbital phase where the synchrotron emission is minimum. For HD168112, we resolved for the very first time the synchrotron emission region. The emission region appears slightly elongated, in agreement with expectation for a colliding-wind region. In both cases the measured emission is significantly stronger than the expected thermal emission from the stellar winds, lending strong support for a non-thermal nature. Our study brings a significant contribution to the still poorly addressed question of high angular resolution radio imaging of colliding-wind binaries. We show that snapshot Very Long Baseline Interferometry measurements constitute an efficient approach to investigate these objects, with promising results in terms of identification of additional particle accelerators, on top of being promising as well to reveal long period binaries.

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arXiv2023

LLAMA Millimeter and Submillimeter Observatory. Update on its Science Opportunities

The Large Latin American Millimeter Array (LLAMA for short) is a joint scientific and technological undertaking of Argentina and Brazil whose goal is to install and to operate an observing facility capable of performing observations of the Universe at millimeter and sub-millimeter wavelengths. It will consist of a 12m ALMA-like antenna with the addition of two Nasmyth cabins. LLAMA is located at 4850m above sea level in the Puna Saltenia, in the northwest region of Argentina. When completed, LLAMA will be equipped with six ALMA receivers covering Bands 1, 2+3, 5, 6, 7, and 9, which will populate the two Nasmyth cabins. We summarize here the main ideas related with the Science that LLAMA could accomplish on different astronomical topics, gathered from the experience of a group of international experts on each field.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2023

The Multipurpose Interferometric Array and the development of its technological demonstrator

We present a proposal for the construction and development of a new instrument for radio astronomical observations based on interferometric techniques, that will provide high angular resolution in the 21 cm band, with the intention of improving and extending the current performance of the instruments used at the Argentine Institute of Radio Astronomy. This will allow internationally competitive scientific research and the acquisition of cutting-edge scientific and technological know-how in the aforementioned techniques, enabling interferometric measurements and the development of very long baseline or VLBI techniques. This project is called MIA, an acronym for "Multipurpose Interferometric Array".

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2023

Evidence for non-thermal X-ray emission from the double WR colliding-wind binary Apep

Context: Massive colliding-wind binaries (CWBs) can be non-thermal sources. The emission produced in their wind-collision region (WCR) encodes information of both the shocks properties and the relativistic electrons accelerated in them. The recently discovered system Apep, a unique massive system hosting two Wolf-Rayet stars, is the most powerful synchrotron radio emitter among the known CWBs, being an exciting candidate to investigate the non-thermal processes associated with stellar wind shocks. Aims: We intend to break the degeneracy between the relativistic particle population and the magnetic field strength in the WCR of Apep by probing its hard X-ray spectrum, where inverse-Compton (IC) emission is expected to dominate. Methods: We observe Apep with NuSTAR for 60 ks and combine this with a re-analysis of a deep archival XMM-Newton observation to better constrain the X-ray spectrum. We use a non-thermal emission model to derive physical parameters from the results. Results: We detect hard X-ray emission consistent with a power-law component. This is compatible with IC emission produced in the WCR for a magnetic field of 100-160 mG and a fraction of ~1.5e-4 of the total wind kinetic power being converted into relativistic electron acceleration. Conclusions: This is the first time that the non-thermal emission from a CWB is detected both in radio and high energies. This allows us to derive the most robust constraints of the particle acceleration efficiency and magnetic field intensity in a CWB so far, reducing the typical uncertainty of a few orders of magnitude to just within a factor of two. This constitutes an important step forward in our characterisation of the physical properties of CWBs.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2022

Disentangling the nature of the prototype radio weak BL Lac: Contemporaneous multifrequency observations of WISE J141046.00 + 740511.2

Context. The gamma-ray emitting source WISE J141046.00+740511.2 has been associated with a Fermi-LAT detection by crossmatching with Swift/XRT data. It has shown all the canonical observational characteristics of a BL Lac source, including a power-law, featureless optical spectrum. However, it was only recently detected at radio frequencies and its radio flux is significantly low. Aims. Given that a radio detection is fundamental to associate lower-energy counterparts to Fermi-LAT sources, we aim to unambiguously classify this source by performing a multiwavelength analysis based on contemporaneous data. Methods. By using multifrequency observations at the Jansky Very Large Array, Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope, Gran Telescopio Canarias, Gemini, William Herschel Telescope and Liverpool observatories, together with Fermi-LAT and Swift data, we carried out two kinds of analyses. On one hand, we studied several known parameters that account for the radio loudness or weakness characterization and their application to blazars (in general) and to our source (in particular). And, on the other hand, we built and analyzed the observed spectral energy distribution (SED) of this source to try to explain its peculiar characteristics. Results. The multiwavelength analysis indicates that WISE J141046.00+740511.2 is a blazar of the high-frequency peaked (HBL) type that emits highly polarized light and that is likely located at a low redshift. In addition, the one-zone model parameters that best fit its SED are those of an extreme HBL (EHBL); this blazar type has been extensively predicted in theory to be lacking in the radio emission that is otherwise typical of canonical gamma-ray blazars. Conclusions. We confirm that WISE J141046.00+740511.2 is indeed a highly polarized BL Lac of the HBL type. Further studies will be conducted to explain the atypical low radio flux detected for this source.

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arXiv2021

The non-thermal emission from the colliding-wind binary Apep

The recently discovered massive binary system Apep is the most powerful synchrotron emitter among the known Galactic colliding-wind binaries. This makes this particular system of great interest to investigate stellar winds and the non-thermal processes associated with their shocks. This source was detected at various radio bands, and in addition the wind-collision region was resolved by means of very-long baseline interferometric observations. We use a non-thermal emission model for colliding-wind binaries to derive physical properties of this system. The observed morphology in the resolved maps allows us to estimate the system projection angle on the sky to be $ψ\approx 85^\circ$. The observed radio flux densities also allow us to characterise both the intrinsic synchrotron spectrum of the source and its modifications due to free--free absorption in the stellar winds at low frequencies; from this we derive mass-loss rates of the stars of $\dot{M}_\mathrm{WN} \approx 4\times10^{-5}$ $\mathrm{M}_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$ and $\dot{M}_\mathrm{WC} \approx 2.9\times10^{-5}$ $\mathrm{M}_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$. Finally, the broadband spectral energy distribution is calculated for different combinations of the remaining free parameters, namely the intensity of the magnetic field and the injected power in non-thermal particles. We show that the degeneracy of these two parameters can be solved with observations in the high-energy domain, most likely in the hard X-rays but also possibly in $γ$-rays under favourable conditions.

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arXiv2021

Exploring the physics behind the non-thermal emission from star-forming galaxies detected in gamma rays

Star-forming galaxies (SFGs) emit non-thermal radiation from radio to gamma-rays. We aim to investigate the main mechanisms of global CR transport and cooling in SFGs. The way they contribute in shaping the relations between non-thermal luminosities and SFR could shed light onto their nature. We develop a model to compute the CR populations of SFGs, taking into account their production, transport, and cooling. The model is parameterised only through global galaxy properties, and describes the non-thermal emission in both radio and gamma-rays. We focus on the role of diffusive and advective transport by galactic winds, either driven by turbulent or thermal instabilities. We compare model predictions to observations, for which we compile a homogeneous set of luminosities in these radio bands, and update those available in gamma-rays. Our model reproduces reasonably well the observed relations between the gamma-ray or 1.4 GHz radio luminosities and the SFR, assuming a single power-law scaling of the magnetic field with the latter with index beta=0.3, and winds blowing either at Alfvenic speeds or typical starburst wind velocities. Escape of CR is negligible for > 30 Mo/yr. A constant ionisation fraction of the interstellar medium fails to reproduce the 150 MHz radio luminosity throughout the whole SFR range. Our results reinforce the idea that galaxies with high SFR are CR calorimeters, and that the main mechanism driving proton escape is diffusion, whereas electron escape also proceeds via wind advection. They also suggest that these winds should be CR or thermally-driven at low and intermediate SFR, respectively. Our results globally support that magnetohydrodynamic turbulence is responsible for the dependence of the magnetic field strength on the SFR and that the ionisation fraction is strongly disfavoured to be constant throughout the whole SFR range.

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