期刊
ACTA ASTRONAUTICA
卷 213, 期 -, 页码 681-693出版社
PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.actaastro.2023.09.035
关键词
VLBI; Radio interferometry; Spaceborne astrophysics; Super massive black holes; Photon rings
Recent advances in technology and observational radio astronomy methods have enabled the direct imaging of a supermassive black hole. This achievement marks the beginning of the development of next-generation astronomical instruments with higher resolution. The study proposes a preliminary mission design for a spaceborne interferometer system to detect and analyze the features of supermassive black holes.
Recent advances in technology coupled with the progress of observational radio astronomy methods resulted in achieving a major milestone of astrophysics -a direct image of the shadow of a supermassive black hole, taken by the Earth-based Event Horizon Telescope (EHT). The EHT was able to achieve a resolution of -20 gas, enabling it to resolve the shadows of the black holes in the centres of two celestial objects: the supergiant elliptical galaxy M87 and the Milky Way Galaxy. The EHT results mark the start of a new round of development of next generation Very Long Baseline Interferometers (VLBI) which will be able to operate at millimetre and sub-millimetre wavelengths. The inclusion of baselines exceeding the diameter of the Earth and observation at as short a wavelength as possible is imperative for further development of high resolution astronomical observations. This can be achieved by a spaceborne VLBI system. We consider the preliminary mission design of such a system, specifically focused on the detection and analysis of photon rings, an intrinsic feature of supermassive black holes. Optimised Earth, Sun-Earth L2 and Earth-Moon L2 orbit configurations for the space interferometer system are presented, all of which provide an order of magnitude improvement in resolution compared to the EHT. Such a space-borne interferometer would be able to conduct a comprehensive survey of supermassive black holes in active galactic nuclei and enable uniquely robust and accurate tests of strong detection of the features.
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