arXiv subjects

Ralph P. Eatough

Publications and source records attributed to Ralph P. Eatough.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Comparison of Polarized Radiative Transfer Codes used by the EHT Collaboration

Interpretation of resolved polarized images of black holes by the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) requires predictions of the polarized emission observable by an Earth-based instrument for a particular model of the black hole accretion system. Such predictions are generated by general relativistic radiative transfer (GRRT) codes, which integrate the equations of polarized radiative transfer in curved spacetime. A selection of ray-tracing GRRT codes used within the EHT collaboration is evaluated for accuracy and consistency in producing a selection of test images, demonstrating that the various methods and implementations of radiative transfer calculations are highly consistent. When imaging an analytic accretion model, we find that all codes produce images similar within a pixel-wise normalized mean squared error (NMSE) of 0.012 in the worst case. When imaging a snapshot from a cell-based magnetohydrodynamic simulation, we find all test images to be similar within NMSEs of 0.02, 0.04, 0.04, and 0.12 in Stokes I, Q, U , and V respectively. We additionally find the values of several image metrics relevant to published EHT results to be in agreement to much better precision than measurement uncertainties.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2026

Full-polarization millimeter wavelength variability of Sagittarius A* during the 2018 EHT campaign

Sagittarius A* (Srg A*), the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way, provides a unique laboratory to study accretion dynamics and plasma processes near the event horizon. We investigated the variability and polarization properties of Srg A* using ALMA observations during the 2018 Event Horizon Telescope campaign. We analyzed high-cadence full-polarization light curves from ALMA at millimeter wavelengths, performed time-series analysis, and investigated the temporal behavior during an X-ray flare observed by Chandra on 2018 April 24. The variability characteristics are compared with expectations from standard accretion flow models. We find low variability in total intensity ($σ/μ< 10\%$), but significantly higher variability in linear and circular polarization (~ 30% and ~ 50%, respectively). A time-series analysis reveals red-noise variability, with power spectral densities between -2 and -3 across all Stokes parameters. Polarized intensity shows stable intra-day timescales, while total intensity exhibits more variable timescales, suggesting distinct emission regions, with polarization likely arising from a coherent structure. On April 24, a statistically significant inter-band delay in polarized intensity coincides with a near-simultaneous X-ray and millimeter peak that deviates from the typical delayed flare scenario. This event also features enhanced millimeter variability and coherent polarization loop evolution. The observed simultaneity challenges standard models of transient synchrotron emission with cooling delays, favoring instead a scenario of continuous energy injection in an optically thin region. Our results offer new constraints on the physical mechanisms driving variability in Srg A*, and provide key observational input for refining theoretical models of accretion and plasma behavior in the vicinity of supermassive black holes.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2026

A Candidate Open Cluster Pulsar: Timing Analysis of PSR J1922+3745 in NGC 6791

PSR J1922+3745 was recently identified as a radio pulsar toward the old open cluster NGC 6791, raising the prospect of the first pulsar associated with an open cluster. We report FAST follow-up observations that yield a phase-coherent timing solution, a precise position, a measurement of the spin-down rate and the pulsar's polarization properties. PSR J1922+3745 is consistent with an isolated slow pulsar with a characteristic age of 7.8 Myr, comparable to the small population of long-period pulsars found in globular clusters. Motivated by the potential cluster association, we re-process deeper searches of the NGC 6791 field at higher sensitivity but detect no additional pulsars. We also assess whether HI absorption spectroscopy can provide a useful distance constraint and find that such measurements are unlikely to be constraining with currently available sensitivity. Consequently, existing evidence does not yet establish membership in NGC 6791. Further deep searches for additional pulsars with similar dispersion measures in the cluster field will likely be the most direct path to confirming a physical association.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2026

The FAST Discovery of a binary millisecond pulsar PSR~J1647-0156B (M12B) with a candidate cross matching algorithm

We propose a pulsar candidate cross matching algorithm to sift radio pulsar search candidates from repeated observations of the same sky location such as globular clusters, high energy sources, or supernova remnants. Our method uses both the candidate spin period ($P$) and dispersion measure (DM) value; if two or more candidates from different observations have similar spin periods to within 1\%, and dispersion measure values within 10\%, they are likely to correspond to the same candidate detection. We have demonstrated the effectiveness of our method through the discovery of the pulsar M12B with the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST). This pulsar has a spin period of 2.76\,ms and a dispersion measure of $42.70 \pm 0.05\,\mathrm{cm}^{-3}~\mathrm{pc}$. This pulsar has a profile with three peaks, being faint, showing scintillation. It is in an approximately 0.53-day orbit. Our discovery indicates that more pulsars might be effectively discovered if the algorithm is applied to the search results from other archival globular cluster observations.

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arXiv2026

Locating the missing large-scale emission in the jet of M87* with short EHT baselines

In Very-Long Baseline Interferometric arrays, nearly co-located stations probe the largest scales and typically cannot resolve the observed source. In the absence of large-scale structure, closure phases constructed with these stations are zero and, since they are independent of station-based errors, they can be used to probe data issues. Here, we show with an expansion about co-located stations, how these trivial closure phases become non-zero with brightness distribution on smaller scales than their short baseline would suggest. When applied to sources that are made up of a bright compact and large-scale diffuse component, the trivial closure phases directly measure the centroid relative to the compact source and higher-order image moments. We present a technique to measure these image moments with minimal model assumptions and validate it on synthetic Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) data. We then apply this technique to 2017 and 2018 EHT observations of M87* and find a weak preference for extended emission in the direction of the large-scale jet. We also apply it to 2021 EHT data and measure the source centroid about 1 mas northwest of the compact ring, consistent with the jet observed at lower frequencies.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2025

Probing jet base emission of M87* with the 2021 Event Horizon Telescope observations

We investigate the presence and spatial characteristics of the jet base emission in M87* at 230 GHz, enabled by the enhanced uv coverage in the 2021 Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) observations. The addition of the 12-m Kitt Peak Telescope and NOEMA provides two key intermediate-length baselines to SMT and the IRAM 30-m, giving sensitivity to emission structures at scales of $\sim250~μ$as and $\sim2500~μ$as (0.02 pc and 0.2 pc). Without these baselines, earlier EHT observations lacked the capability to constrain emission on large scales, where a "missing flux" of order $\sim1$ Jy is expected. To probe these scales, we analyzed closure phases, robust against station-based gain errors, and modeled the jet base emission using a simple Gaussian offset from the compact ring emission at separations $>100~μ$as. Our analysis reveals a Gaussian feature centered at ($Δ$RA $\approx320~μ$as, $Δ$Dec $\approx60~μ$as), a projected separation of $\approx5500$ AU, with a flux density of only $\sim60$ mJy, implying that most of the missing flux in previous studies must arise from larger scales. Brighter emission at these scales is ruled out, and the data do not favor more complex models. This component aligns with the inferred direction of the large-scale jet and is consistent with emission from the jet base. While our findings indicate detectable jet base emission at 230 GHz, coverage from only two intermediate baselines limits reconstruction of its morphology. We therefore treat the recovered Gaussian as an upper limit on the jet base flux density. Future EHT observations with expanded intermediate-baseline coverage will be essential to constrain the structure and nature of this component.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2025

The FAST Globular Cluster Pulsar Survey (GC FANS)

By January 2025, 60 pulsars were discovered by the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope globular cluster (GC) pulsar survey (GC FANS), with spin periods spanning 1.98 ms to 3960.72 ms. Of these, 55 are millisecond pulsars (MSPs; $P<30$ ms), while 34 are binaries with orbital periods spanning 0.12 days to 466.47 days. This paper describes GC FANS, a deep, thorough search for pulsars in 41 GCs in the FAST sky ($-14^\circ < δ< 65^\circ$) and describes new discoveries in 14 of them. We present updated timing solutions for M92A, NGC 6712A, M71A, and M71E, all of which are ``spider'' pulsars with short orbital periods. We present new timing solutions for M71B, C, and D. With orbital periods of $\sim$466 and 378 days, M71B and M71C are the widest known GC binaries; these systems resemble the normal wide MSP-He WD systems in the Galactic disk. With a spin period of 101 ms, M71D is in an eccentric ($e\sim$0.63) orbit with an 11-day period and a massive companion; the system has a total mass of $2.63 \pm 0.08 \, M_{\odot}$. These features and its large characteristic age suggest it is a double neutron star system (DNS) formed via massive binary evolution early in the cluster's history, akin to Galactic disk DNSs--unlike other candidate GC DNSs, which typically form dynamically. A comparative analysis of GC pulsar populations within FAST's sky reveals that most clusters (10 of 14) resemble the Galactic disk MSP population, likely due to lower stellar densities.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2025

Long-Term Astrometric Monitoring of the Galactic Center Magnetar PSR J1745--2900

We present new astrometric observations of the Galactic Center magnetar, PSR J1745-2900, with the Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA). Combined with previously published measurements in 10 epochs that spanned 477 days, the complete data set consists of 25 epochs and 41 independent measurements that span 1984 days. These data constrain the proper motion to an accuracy of $\lesssim 2\%$ and set an upper limit on the absolute value of the magnetar's acceleration of $\lesssim (0.4, 0.2)\, {\rm mas\,y^{-2}}$ in the two celestial coordinates, consistent with the maximum value of $\sim 0.03\,{\rm mas\,y^{-2}}$ expected for an orbit around Sgr A*. Future measurements have the potential to detect the acceleration of PSR J1745-2900 due to Sgr A* should PSR J1745-2900 re-brighten. We consider several potential sources of systematic variations in the astrometric residuals after fitting for standard parameters, including refractive wander, changes in the structure of Sgr A*, and the presence of an unseen binary companion. While a stellar companion model can be fit to the astrometric data, pulse period measurements are inconsistent with that model. No changes in the apparent image size of the magnetar were detected over the duration of these observations, indicating a lack of change in the properties of the line-of-sight scattering during this period. We also show that the upper limit to the mean core shift of Sgr A* is consistent with expectations for a compact jet or symmetric accretion flow.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2025

Origin of the ring ellipticity in the black hole images of M87*

We investigate the origin of the elliptical ring structure observed in the images of the supermassive black hole M87*, aiming to disentangle contributions from gravitational, astrophysical, and imaging effects. Leveraging the enhanced capabilities of the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) 2018 array, including improved $(u,v)$-coverage from the Greenland Telescope, we measure the ring's ellipticity using five independent imaging methods, obtaining a consistent average value of $τ= 0.08_{-0.02}^{+0.03}$ with a position angle $ξ= 50.1_{-7.6}^{+6.2}$ degrees. To interpret this measurement, we compare against General Relativistic Magnetohydrodynamic (GRMHD) simulations spanning a wide range of physical parameters including thermal or non-thermal electron distribution function, spins, and ion-to-electron temperature ratios in both low and high-density regions. We find no statistically significant correlation between spin and ellipticity in GRMHD images. Instead, we identify a correlation between ellipticity and the fraction of non-ring emission, particularly in non-thermal models and models with higher jet emission. These results indicate that the ellipticity measured from the \m87 emission structure is consistent with that expected from simulations of turbulent accretion flows around black holes, where it is dominated by astrophysical effects rather than gravitational ones. Future high-resolution imaging, including space very long baseline interferometry and long-term monitoring, will be essential to isolate gravitational signatures from astrophysical effects.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2025

Searching for pulsars in Globular Clusters with the Fast Fold Algorithm and a new pulsar discovered in M13

We employed the Fast Folding Algorithm (FFA) on L-Band Globular Cluster (GC) observations taken with Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST) to search for new pulsars, especially those with a long rotational period. We conducted a search across 16 GCs that collectively host 93 known pulsars, as well as 14 GCs that do not contain any known pulsars. The majority of these known pulsars were successfully re-detected in our survey. The few non-detections could be attributed to the high accelerations of these pulsars. Additionally, we have discovered a new binary millisecond pulsar, namely M13I (or PSR J1641+3627I) in GC M13 (or NGC 6205), and obtained its phase-coherent timing solution using observations spanning 6 years. M13I has a spin period of 6.37 ms, and an orbital period of 18.23 days. The eccentricity of the binary orbit is 0.064, with a companion mass range of approximately 0.45 to 1.37 M$_{\odot}$. The orbital properties of M13I are remarkably different from those of the other known pulsars in M13, indicating that this pulsar has undergone a different evolutionary path compared to the rest.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2025

PSR J1922+37: a 1.9-second pulsar discovered in the direction of the old open cluster NGC 6791

More than 300 pulsars have been discovered in Galactic globular clusters; however, none have been found in open clusters. Here we present results from 20-hour pulsar searching observations in seven open clusters with the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST). Our first discovery is a 1.9-second pulsar (J1922+37) found in the direction of the old open cluster NGC 6791. The measured dispersion measure (DM) implies a distance of 4.79 kpc and 8.92 kpc based on the NE2001 and YMW16 electron density models, respectively. Given the large uncertainty of DM distance estimates, it is likely that PSR J1922+37 is indeed a member of NGC 6791, for which the distance is $4.19\pm0.02$ kpc based on Gaia Data Release 3. If confirmed, PSR J1922+37 will be the first pulsar found in Galactic open clusters. We outline future observations that can confirm this pulsar-open cluster association and discuss the general prospects of finding pulsars in open clusters.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2025

The putative center in NGC 1052

Many active galaxies harbor powerful relativistic jets, however, the detailed mechanisms of their formation and acceleration remain poorly understood. To investigate the area of jet acceleration and collimation with the highest available angular resolution, we study the innermost region of the bipolar jet in the nearby low-ionization nuclear emission-line region (LINER) galaxy NGC 1052. We combined observations of NGC 1052 taken with VLBA, GMVA, and EHT over one week in the spring of 2017. For the first time, NGC 1052 was detected with the EHT, providing a size of the central region in-between both jet bases of 250 RS (Schwarzschild radii) perpendicular to the jet axes. This size estimate supports previous studies of the jets expansion profile which suggest two breaks of the profile at around 300 RS and 10000 RS distances to the core. Furthermore, we estimated the magnetic field to be 1.25 Gauss at a distance of 22 μas from the central engine by fitting a synchrotron-self absorption spectrum to the innermost emission feature, which shows a spectral turn-over at about 130 GHz. Assuming a purely poloidal magnetic field, this implies an upper limit on the magnetic field strength at the event horizon of 26000 Gauss, which is consistent with previous measurements. The complex, low-brightness, double-sided jet structure in NGC 1052 makes it a challenge to detect the source at millimeter (mm) wavelengths. However, our first EHT observations have demonstrated that detection is possible up to at least 230 GHz. This study offers a glimpse through the dense surrounding torus and into the innermost central region, where the jets are formed. This has enabled us to finally resolve this region and provide improved constraints on its expansion and magnetic field strength.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2025

A multi-frequency study of sub-parsec jets with the Event Horizon Telescope

The 2017 observing campaign of the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) delivered the first very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) images at the observing frequency of 230 GHz, leading to a number of unique studies on black holes and relativistic jets from active galactic nuclei (AGN). In total, eighteen sources were observed: the main science targets, Sgr A* and M87 along with various calibrators. We investigated the morphology of the sixteen AGN in the EHT 2017 data set, focusing on the properties of the VLBI cores: size, flux density, and brightness temperature. We studied their dependence on the observing frequency in order to compare it with the Blandford-Königl (BK) jet model. We modeled the source structure of seven AGN in the EHT 2017 data set using linearly polarized circular Gaussian components and collected results for the other nine AGN from dedicated EHT publications, complemented by lower frequency data in the 2-86 GHz range. Then, we studied the dependences of the VLBI core flux density, size, and brightness temperature on the frequency measured in the AGN host frame. We compared the observations with the BK jet model and estimated the magnetic field strength dependence on the distance from the central black hole. Our results indicate a deviation from the standard BK model, particularly in the decrease of the brightness temperature with the observing frequency. Either bulk acceleration of the jet material, energy transfer from the magnetic field to the particles, or both are required to explain the observations.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2024

First Very Long Baseline Interferometry Detections at 870μm

The first very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) detections at 870$μ$m wavelength (345$\,$GHz frequency) are reported, achieving the highest diffraction-limited angular resolution yet obtained from the surface of the Earth, and the highest-frequency example of the VLBI technique to date. These include strong detections for multiple sources observed on inter-continental baselines between telescopes in Chile, Hawaii, and Spain, obtained during observations in October 2018. The longest-baseline detections approach 11$\,$G$λ$ corresponding to an angular resolution, or fringe spacing, of 19$μ$as. The Allan deviation of the visibility phase at 870$μ$m is comparable to that at 1.3$\,$mm on the relevant integration time scales between 2 and 100$\,$s. The detections confirm that the sensitivity and signal chain stability of stations in the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) array are suitable for VLBI observations at 870$μ$m. Operation at this short wavelength, combined with anticipated enhancements of the EHT, will lead to a unique high angular resolution instrument for black hole studies, capable of resolving the event horizons of supermassive black holes in both space and time.

astro-ph.IM↗

arXiv2024

Timing and Scintillation Studies of Pulsars in Globular Cluster M3 (NGC 5272) with FAST

We present the phase-connected timing solutions of all the five pulsars in globular cluster (GC) M3 (NGC 5272), namely PSRs M3A to F (PSRs J1342+2822A to F), with the exception of PSR M3C, from FAST archival data. In these timing solutions, those of PSRs M3E, and F are obtained for the first time. We find that PSRs M3E and F have low mass companions, and are in circular orbits with periods of 7.1 and 3.0 days, respectively. For PSR M3C, we have not detected it in all the 41 observations. We found no X-ray counterparts for these pulsars in archival Chandra images in the band of 0.2-20 keV. We noticed that the pulsars in M3 seem to be native. From the Auto-Correlation Function (ACF) analysis of the M3A's and M3B's dynamic spectra, the scintillation timescale ranges from $7.0\pm0.3$ min to $60.0\pm0.6$ min, and the scintillation bandwidth ranges from $4.6\pm0.2$ MHz to $57.1\pm1.1$ MHz. The measured scintillation bandwidths from the dynamic spectra indicate strong scintillation, and the scattering medium is anisotropic. From the secondary spectra, we captured a scintillation arc only for PSR M3B with a curvature of $649\pm23 {\rm m}^{-1} {\rm mHz}^{-2}$.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2024

FAST Discovery of Eight Isolated Millisecond Pulsars in NGC 6517

We present the discovery of 8 isolated millisecond pulsars in Globular Cluster (GC) NGC 6517 using the Five-Hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST). The spin periods of those pulsars (namely PSR J1801-0857K to R, or, NGC 6517K to R) are all shorter than 10 ms. With these discoveries, NGC 6517 is currently the GC with the most known pulsars in the FAST sky. The largest difference in dispersion measure of the pulsars in NGC 6517 is 11.2 cm$^{-3}$ pc, the second among all GCs. The fraction of isolated pulsars in this GC (16 of 17, 94$\%$) is consistent with previous studies indicating an overabundance of isolated pulsars in the densest GCs, especially in those undergoing cluster core collapse. Considering the FAST GC pulsar discoveries, we modeled the GC pulsar population using the empirical Bayesian method described by Turk and Lorimer with the recent counts. Using this approach, we find that the expected number of potential pulsars in GCs seems to be correlated with the central escape velocity, hence, the GCs Liller 1, NGC 6441, M54 (NGC 6715), and $ω$-Cen (NGC 5139) are expected to host the largest numbers of pulsars.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2023

A search for pulsars around Sgr A* in the first Event Horizon Telescope dataset

The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) observed in 2017 the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way, Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*), at a frequency of 228.1 GHz ($λ$=1.3 mm). The fundamental physics tests that even a single pulsar orbiting Sgr A* would enable motivate searching for pulsars in EHT datasets. The high observing frequency means that pulsars - which typically exhibit steep emission spectra - are expected to be very faint. However, it also negates pulse scattering, an effect that could hinder pulsar detections in the Galactic Center. Additionally, magnetars or a secondary inverse Compton emission could be stronger at millimeter wavelengths than at lower frequencies. We present a search for pulsars close to Sgr A* using the data from the three most-sensitive stations in the EHT 2017 campaign: the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array, the Large Millimeter Telescope and the IRAM 30 m Telescope. We apply three detection methods based on Fourier-domain analysis, the Fast-Folding-Algorithm and single pulse search targeting both pulsars and burst-like transient emission; using the simultaneity of the observations to confirm potential candidates. No new pulsars or significant bursts were found. Being the first pulsar search ever carried out at such high radio frequencies, we detail our analysis methods and give a detailed estimation of the sensitivity of the search. We conclude that the EHT 2017 observations are only sensitive to a small fraction ($\lesssim$2.2%) of the pulsars that may exist close to Sgr A*, motivating further searches for fainter pulsars in the region.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2023

BlackHoleCam -- Testing general relativity with pulsars orbiting Sagittarius A*

BlackHoleCam is a project funded by a European Research Council Synergy Grant to build a complete astrophysical description of nearby supermassive black holes by using a combination of radio imaging, pulsar observations, stellar astrometry and general relativistic magneto-hydrodynamic models. BlackHoleCam scientists are active partners of the Event Horizon Telescope Consortium. In this talk I will discuss the use of pulsars orbiting Sagittarius A* for tests of General Relativity, the current difficulties in detecting such sources, recent results from the Galactic Centre magnetar PSR J1745-2900 and how BlackHoleCam aims to search for undiscovered pulsars in the Galactic Centre.

astro-ph.HE↗