AGN-environment interplay observed at ultra-low radio frequencies

• Applicant: Professor Marcus Brüggen, Ph.D., since 1/2022
• Subject Area: Astrophysics and Astronomy
• Term: from 2019 to 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 427771150

• Final Report Year: 2024

Final Report Abstract

The aim of this proposal was to use the Low Frequency Array (LOFAR), a novel radio-telescope capable of observing at ultra-low frequencies, to study the full life-cycle of cosmic-ray electrons in a galaxy cluster environment. I took over this project from JProf. Dr. Francesco De Gasperin, when he left Hamburg for a permanent position at INAF IRA in Bologna, Italy. This proposal funded PhD student Henrik Edler, who graduated at the University of Hamburg with summa cum laude in 2024. This project also involved a Masters student, Ms Angelina Spasic, who also graduated in 2024 and will continue on a PhD position in my group. Dr. Edler is now moving to a postdoctoral position at ASTRON in the Netherlands. In this work our main collaborators were Alessandro Boselli (Marseille) and Tim Shimwell (ASTRON).

Publications

• Investigating ionospheric calibration for LOFAR 2.0 with simulated observations. Astronomy & Astrophysics, 652, A37.
  Edler, H. W.; de Gasperin, F. & Rafferty, D.
  
• The LOFAR LBA Sky Survey. Astronomy & Astrophysics, 648, A104.
  de Gasperin, F.; Williams, W. L.; Best, P.; Brüggen, M.; Brunetti, G.; Cuciti, V.; Dijkema, T. J.; Hardcastle, M. J.; Norden, M. J.; Offringa, A.; Shimwell, T.; van Weeren, R.; Bomans, D.; Bonafede, A.; Botteon, A.; Callingham, J. R.; Cassano, R.; Chyży, K. T.; Emig, K. L. ... & Röttgering, H.
  
• The ultra-steep diffuse radio emission observed in the cool-core cluster RX J1720.1+2638 with LOFAR at 54 MHz. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 508(3), 3995-4007.
  Biava, N.; de Gasperin, F.; Bonafede, A.; Edler, H. W.; Giacintucci, S.; Mazzotta, P.; Brunetti, G.; Botteon, A.; Brüggen, M.; Cassano, R.; Drabent, A.; Edge, A. C.; Enßlin, T.; Gastaldello, F.; Riseley, C. J.; Rossetti, M.; Rottgering, H. J. A.; Shimwell, T. W.; Tasse, C. & van Weeren, R. J.
  
• Abell 1033: Radio halo and gently reenergized tail at 54 MHz. Astronomy & Astrophysics, 666, A3.
  Edler, H. W.; de Gasperin, F.; Brunetti, G.; Botteon, A.; Cuciti, V.; van Weeren, R. J.; Cassano, R.; Shimwell, T. W.; Brüggen, M. & Drabent, A.
  
• Galaxy clusters enveloped by vast volumes of relativistic electrons. Nature, 609(7929), 911-914.
  Cuciti, V.; de Gasperin, F.; Brüggen, M.; Vazza, F.; Brunetti, G.; Shimwell, T. W.; Edler, H. W.; van Weeren, R. J.; Botteon, A.; Cassano, R.; Di Gennaro, G. ; Gastaldello, F.; Drabent, A.; Röttgering, H. J. A. & Tasse, C.
  
• Particle re-acceleration and diffuse radio sources in the galaxy cluster Abell 1550. Astronomy & Astrophysics, 663, A105.
  Pasini, T.; Edler, H. W.; Brüggen, M.; de Gasperin, F.; Botteon, A.; Rajpurohit, K.; van Weeren, R. J.; Gastaldello, F.; Gaspari, M.; Brunetti, G.; Cuciti, V.; Nanci, C.; Di Gennaro, G. ; Rossetti, M.; Dallacasa, D.; Hoang, D. N. & Riseley, C. J.
  
• The LOFAR Two-metre Sky Survey. Astronomy & Astrophysics, 659, A1.
  Shimwell, T. W.; Hardcastle, M. J.; Tasse, C.; Best, P. N.; Röttgering, H. J. A.; Williams, W. L.; Botteon, A.; Drabent, A.; Mechev, A.; Shulevski, A.; van Weeren, R. J.; Bester, L.; Brüggen, M.; Brunetti, G.; Callingham, J. R.; Chyży, K. T.; Conway, J. E.; Dijkema, T. J.; Duncan, K. ... & Zheng, J.
  
• Re-energization of AGN head–tail radio galaxies in the galaxy cluster ZwCl 0634.1+47474. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 528(1), 141-159.
  Lusetti, G.; de Gasperin, F.; Cuciti, V.; Brüggen, M.; Spinelli, C.; Edler, H.; Brunetti, G.; van Weeren, R. J.; Botteon, A.; Di Gennaro, G.; Cassano, R.; Tasse, C. & Shimwell, T. W.
  
• The LOFAR LBA Sky Survey. Astronomy & Astrophysics, 673, A165.
  de Gasperin, F.; Edler, H. W.; Williams, W. L.; Callingham, J. R.; Asabere, B.; Brüggen, M.; Brunetti, G.; Dijkema, T. J.; Hardcastle, M. J.; Iacobelli, M.; Offringa, A.; Norden, M. J.; Röttgering, H. J. A.; Shimwell, T.; van Weeren, R. J.; Tasse, C.; Bomans, D. J.; Bonafede, A.; Botteon, A. ... & Zarka, P.
  
• ViCTORIA project: MeerKAT H I observations of the ram pressure stripped galaxy NGC 4523. Astronomy & Astrophysics, 676, A92.
  Boselli, A.; Serra, P.; de Gasperin, F.; Vollmer, B.; Amram, P.; Edler, H. W.; Fossati, M.; Consolandi, G.; Côté, P.; Cuillandre, J. C.; Ferrarese, L.; Gwyn, S.; Postma, J.; Boquien, M.; Braine, J.; Combes, F.; Gavazzi, G.; Hensler, G.; Miville-Deschenes, M. A. ... & Zabel, N.
  
• VICTORIA project: The LOFAR HBA Virgo Cluster Survey. Astronomy & Astrophysics, 676, A24.
  Edler, H. W.; de Gasperin F.; Shimwell, T. W.; Hardcastle, M. J.; Boselli, A.; Heesen, V.; McCall, H.; Bomans, D. J.; Brüggen, M.; Bulbul, E.; Chyży, K. T.; Ignesti, A.; Merloni, A.; Pacaud, F.; Reiprich, T. H.; Roberts, I. D.; Rottgering, H. J. A. & van Weeren, R. J.
  
• Nearby galaxies in the LOFAR Two-metre Sky Survey. Astronomy & Astrophysics, 682, A83.
  Heesen, V.; Schulz, S.; Brüggen, M.; Edler, H. W.; Stein, M.; Paladino, R.; Boselli, A.; Ignesti, A.; Fossati, M. & Dettmar, R.-J.
  
• ViCTORIA project: The LOFAR view of environmental effects in Virgo cluster star-forming galaxies. Astronomy & Astrophysics, 683, A149.
  Edler, H. W.; Roberts, I. D.; Boselli, A.; de Gasperin, F.; Heesen, V.; Brüggen, M.; Ignesti, A. & Gajović, L.