Browsing by Author "Bernal, S."

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    AT 2021hdr: A candidate tidal disruption of a gas cloud by a binary super massive black hole system
    (EDP Sciences, 2024) Hernández-García, L.; Muñoz-Arancibia, A. M.; Lira, P.; Bruni, G.; Cuadra, J.; Arévalo, P.; Sánchez-Sáez, P.; Bernal, S.; Bauer, Franz Erik; Catelan, Márcio; Panessa, F.; Pávez-Herrera, M.; Ricci, C.; Reyes-Jainaga, I.; Ailawadhi, B.; Chavushyan, V.; Dastidar, R.; Deconto-Machado, A.; Forster, F.; Gangopadhyay, A.; García-Pérez, A.; Márquez, I.; Masegosa, J.; Misra, K.; Patiño-Alvarez, V. M.; Puig-Subira, M.; Rodi, J.; Singh, M.
    With a growing number of facilities able to monitor the entire sky and produce light curves with a cadence of days, in recent years there has been an increased rate of detection of sources whose variability deviates from standard behavior, revealing a variety of exotic nuclear transients. The aim of the present study is to disentangle the nature of the transient AT 2021hdr, whose optical light curve used to be consistent with a classic Seyfert 1 nucleus, which was also confirmed by its optical spectrum and high-energy properties. From late 2021, AT 2021hdr started to present sudden brightening episodes in the form of oscillating peaks in the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) alert stream, and the same shape is observed in X-rays and UV from Swift data. The oscillations occur every ≈60-90 days with amplitudes of ≈0.2 mag in the g and r bands. Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) observations show no radio emission at milliarcseconds scale. It is argued that these findings are inconsistent with a standard tidal disruption event (TDE), a binary supermassive black hole (BSMBH), or a changing-look active galactic nucleus (AGN); neither does this object resemble previous observed AGN flares, and disk or jet instabilities are an unlikely scenario. Here, we propose that the behavior of AT 2021hdr might be due to the tidal disruption of a gas cloud by a BSMBH. In this scenario, we estimate that the putative binary has a separation of ≈0.83 mpc and would merge in ≈7 × 104 years. This galaxy is located at 9 kpc from a companion galaxy, and in this work we report this merger for the first time. The oscillations are not related to the companion galaxy.
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    Comparison of the Etest and microdilution method for antifungal susceptibility testing of Cryptococcus neoformans to four antifungal agents
    (2000) Aller, A.I.; Martin-Mazuelos, E.; Gutierrez, M.J.; Bernal, S.; Chavez, N.; Recio Cortés, Francisco Javier
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    SDSS1335+0728: The awakening of a ∼106 M⊙ black hole
    (2024) Sanchez-Saez, P.; Hernandez-Garcia, L.; Bernal, S.; Bayo, A.; Calistro Rivera, G.; Bauer, F. E.; Ricci, C.; Merloni, A.; Graham, M. J.; Cartier, R.; Arevalo, P.; Assef, R. J.; Concas, A.; Homan, D.; Krumpe, M.; Lira, P.; Malyali, A.; Martinez-Aldama, M. L.; Arancibia, A. M. Munoz; Rau, A.; Bruni, G.; Foerster, F.; Pavez-Herrera, M.; Tubin-Arenas, D.; Brightman, M.
    Context. The early-type galaxy SDSS J133519.91+072807.4 (hereafter SDSS1335+0728), which had exhibited no prior optical variations during the preceding two decades, began showing significant nuclear variability in the Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) alert stream from December 2019 (as ZTF19acnskyy). This variability behaviour, coupled with the host-galaxy properties, suggests that SDSS1335+0728 hosts a similar to 106 M-circle dot black hole (BH) that is currently in the process of "turning on". Aims. We present a multi-wavelength photometric analysis and spectroscopic follow-up performed with the aim of better understanding the origin of the nuclear variations detected in SDSS1335+0728. Methods. We used archival photometry (from WISE, 2MASS, SDSS, GALEX, eROSITA) and spectroscopic data (from SDSS and LAMOST) to study the state of SDSS1335+0728 prior to December 2019, and new observations from Swift, SOAR/Goodman, VLT/X-shooter, and Keck/LRIS taken after its turn-on to characterise its current state. We analysed the variability of SDSS1335+0728 in the X-ray/UV/optical/mid-infrared range, modelled its spectral energy distribution prior to and after December 2019, and studied the evolution of its UV/optical spectra. Results. From our multi-wavelength photometric analysis, we find that: (a) since 2021, the UV flux (from Swift/UVOT observations) is four times brighter than the flux reported by GALEX in 2004; (b) since June 2022, the mid-infrared flux has risen more than two times, and the W1 - W2 WISE colour has become redder; and (c) since February 2024, the source has begun showing X-ray emission. From our spectroscopic follow-up, we see that (i) the narrow emission line ratios are now consistent with a more energetic ionising continuum; (ii) broad emission lines are not detected; and (iii) the [OIII] line increased its flux similar to 3.6 years after the first ZTF alert, which implies a relatively compact narrow-line-emitting region. Conclusions. We conclude that the variations observed in SDSS1335+0728 could be either explained by a similar to 106 M-circle dot AGN that is just turning on or by an exotic tidal disruption event (TDE). If the former is true, SDSS1335+0728 is one of the strongest cases of an AGN observed in the process of activating. If the latter were found to be the case, it would correspond to the longest and faintest TDE ever observed (or another class of still unknown nuclear transient). Future observations of SDSS1335+0728 are crucial to further understand its behaviour.