The supermassive black hole at the Galactic center, Sagittarius A* has experienced periods of higher activity in the past. The reflection of these past outbursts is observed in the molecular material surrounding the black hole but reconstructing its precise lightcurve is difficult since the distribution of the clouds along the line of sight is poorly constrained.

Using Chandra high-resolution data collected from 1999 to 2011 we studied both the 6.4 keV and the 4–8 keV emission of the region located between Sgr A* and the Radio arc, characterizing its variations down to 15″ angular scale and 1-year time scale. The emission from the molecular clouds in the region varies significantly, showing either a 2-year peaked emission or 10-year linear variations. This is the first time that such fast variations are measured. Based on the cloud parameters, we conclude that these two behaviors are likely due to two distinct past outbursts of Sgr A* during which its luminosity rose to at least 1039 erg s−1.

We present the discovery of out-flow like plasma emissions with the Suzaku and ASCA data. Those plasmas have a size of ∼150 pc. Remarkably, the southern plasma is in a recombination dominant phase, which is not predicted by standard shock heating. A plausible scenario is either photoionization due to strong jet-like X-rays from Sgr A* or rapid cooling due to adiabatic expansion of a blowout plasma from the Galactic center about 105 years ago.

I discuss feeding and feedback processes observed in the inner few hundred parsecs of nearby active galaxies using integral field spectroscopy at spatial resolutions of a few to tens of parsecs. Signatures of feedback include outflows from the nucleus with velocities ranging from 200 to 1000 km s−1, with mass outflow rates between 0.5 and a few M⊙ yr−1. Signatures of feeding include the observation of gas inflows along nuclear spirals and filaments, with velocities ranging from 50 to 100 km s−1 and mass flow rates from 0.1 to ∼1 M⊙ yr−1. These rates are 2–3 orders of magnitude larger than the mass accretion rate to the supermassive black hole (SMBH). These inflows can thus lead, during less than one activity cycle, to the accumulation of enough gas in the inner few hundred parsecs, to trigger the formation of new stars, leading to the growth of the galaxy bulge. Young to intermediate age stars have indeed been found in circumnuclear rings around a number of Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN). In particular, one of these rings, with radius of ≈ 100 pc is observed in the Seyfert 2 galaxy NGC 1068, and is associated to an off-centered molecular ring, very similar to that observed in the Milky Way (MW). On the basis of an evolutionary scenario in which gas falling into the nuclear region triggers star formation followed by the triggering of nuclear activity, we speculate that, in the case of the MW, molecular gas has already accumulated within the inner ≈ 100 pc to trigger the formation of new stars, as supported by the presence of blue stars close to the galactic center. A possible increase in the star-formation rate in the nuclear region will then be followed, probably tens of millions of years later, by the triggering of nuclear activity in Sgr A*.

Based on our deep image of Sgr A using broadband data observed with the VLA† at 6 cm, we present a new perspective of the radio bright zone at the Galactic center. We further show the radio detection of the X-ray Cannonball, a candidate neutron star associated with the Galactic center SNR Sgr A East. The radio image is compared with the Chandra X-ray image to show the detailed structure of the radio counterparts of the bipolar X-ray lobes. The bipolar lobes are likely produced by the winds from the activities within Sgr A West, which could be collimated by the inertia of gas in the CND, or by the momentum driving of Sgr A*; and the poloidal magnetic fields likely play an important role in the collimation. The less-collimated SE lobe, in comparison to the NW one, is perhaps due to the fact that the Sgr A East SN might have locally reconfigured the magnetic field toward negative galactic latitudes. In agreement with the X-ray observations, the time-scale of ∼1 × 104 yr estimated for the outermost radio ring appears to be comparable to the inferred age of the Sgr A East SNR.

Deep imaging of the Sgr A complex at 6 cm wavelength with the B and C configurations of the Karl G. Jansky VLA† has revealed a new population of faint radio filaments. Like their brighter counterparts that have been observed throughout the Galactic center on larger scales, these filaments can extend up to ∼10 parsecs, and in most cases are strikingly uniform in brightness and curvature. Comparison with a survey of Paschen-α emission reveals that some of the filaments are emitting thermally, but most of these structures are nonthermal: local magnetic flux tubes illuminated by synchrotron emission. The new image reveals considerable filamentary substructure in previously known nonthermal filaments (NTFs). Unlike NTFs previously observed on larger scales, which tend to show a predominant orientation roughly perpendicular to the Galactic plane, the NTFs in the vicinity of the Sgr A complex are relatively randomly oriented. Two well-known radio sources to the south of Sgr A – sources E and F – consist of numerous quasi-parallel filaments that now appear to be particularly bright portions of a much larger, strongly curved, continuous, nonthermal radio structure that we refer to as the “Southern Curl”. It is therefore unlikely that sources E and F are Hii regions or pulsar wind nebulae. The Southern Curl has a smaller counterpart on the opposite side of the Galactic center – the Northern Curl – that, except for its smaller scale and smaller distance from the center, is roughly point-reflection symmetric with respect to the Southern Curl. The curl features indicate that some field lines are strongly distorted, presumably by mass flows. The point symmetry about the center then suggests that the flows originate near the center and are somewhat collimated.

Over the last decade, X-ray observations of Sgr A* have revealed a black hole in a deep sleep, punctuated roughly once per day by brief flares. The extreme X-ray faintness of this supermassive black hole has been a long-standing puzzle in black hole accretion. To study the accretion processes in the Galactic center, Chandra (in concert with numerous ground- and space-based observatories) undertook a 3 Ms campaign on Sgr A* in 2012. With its excellent observing cadence, sensitivity, and spectral resolution, this Chandra X-ray Visionary Project (XVP) provides an unprecedented opportunity to study the behavior of the closest supermassive black hole. We present a progress report from our ongoing study of X-ray flares, including the brightest flare ever seen from Sgr A*. Focusing on the statistics of the flares and the quiescent emission, we discuss the physical implications of X-ray variability in the Galactic center.

We show that the observed time lag between starburst and AGN activity can be explained by a viscous time lag the gas needs to flow through the AGN's accretion disk before reaching the central black hole. Our calculations reproduce the observed time lag and are in agreement with the observed correlation between black hole mass and stellar velocity dispersion.

We have been monitoring the flux density of Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*) at 22 GHz since DOY=42 (11 Feb. 2013) with a sub-array of the Japanese VLBI Network in order to search the increase of 22-GHz emission from Sgr A* induced by the interaction of the G2 cloud with the accretion disk. The flux densities observed until DOY=322 (18 Nov. 2013) are consistent with the previously observed values before the approaching of the cloud. We have detected no large flare during this period.

We present the analysis of flux variations of Sgr A* at millimeter wavelengths based on the long-term monitoring project spanning over a decade using the Nobeyama Millimeter Array. We investigate basic characteristics of the flux variability using some standard parameterizations of the data. Such basic properties of the flux variations in the mm-regime can provide valuable information not only for its underlying mechanisms in general but also for understanding observed radio/mm flux measurements during an accretion event.

We present new Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) Hi absorption and Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) continuum observations of the active galactic nucleus (AGN)-driven molecular outflow candidate NGC 1266. Although other well-known systems with molecular outflows may be driven by star formation in a central molecular disk, the molecular mass outflow rate reported in Alatalo et al. (2011) in NGC 1266 of 13 M⊙ year−1 exceeds star formation rate estimates from a variety of tracers. This suggests that an additional energy source, such as an AGN, may play a significant role in powering the outflow. Our high spatial resolution Hi absorption data reveal compact absorption against the radio continuum core co-located with the putative AGN, and the presence of a blueshifted spectral component re-affirms that gas is indeed flowing out of the system. Our VLBA observations at 1.65 GHz reveal one continuum source within the densest portion of the molecular gas, with a diameter d < 8 mas (1.2 pc), a radio power Prad = 1.48 × 1020 W Hz−1, and a brightness temperature Tb > 1.5 × 107 K that is most consistent with an AGN origin. The radio continuum energetics implied by the compact VLBA source, as well as archival VLA continuum observations at lower spatial resolution, further support the possibility that the AGN in NGC 1266 could be driving the molecular outflow. These findings suggest that even low-level AGNs, with supermassive black hole masses similar to Sgr A*, may be able to launch massive outflows in their host galaxies.

The Fermi γ-ray telescope discovered a pair of bubbles at the Galactic center. These structures are spatially-correlated with the microwave emission detected by the WMAP and Planck satellites. These bubbles were likely inflated by a jet launched from the vicinity of a supermassive black hole in the Galactic center. Using MHD simulations, which self-consistently include interactions between cosmic rays and magnetic fields, we build models of the supersonic jet propagation, cosmic ray transport, and the magnetic field amplification within the Fermi bubbles. Our key findings are that: (1) the synthetic Fermi γ-ray and WMAP microwave spectra based on our simulations are consistent with the observations, suggesting that a single population of cosmic ray leptons may simultaneously explain the emission across a range of photon energies; (2) the model fits the observed centrally-peaked microwave emission if a second, more recent, pair of jets embedded in the Fermi bubbles is included in the model. This is consistent with the observationally-based suggestion made by Su & Finkbeiner (2012); (3) the radio emission from the bubbles is expected to be strongly polarized due to the relatively high level of field ordering caused by elongated turbulent vortices. This effect is caused by the interaction of the shocks driven by the jets with the preexisting interstellar medium turbulence; (4) a layer of enhanced rotation measure in the shock-compressed region could exist in the bubble vicinity but the level of this enhancement depends on the details of the magnetic topology.

The Galactic center central molecular zone (GCCMZ) bears similarities with extragalactic starburst regions, including a high supernova (SN) rate density. As in other starbursts like M82, the frequent SNe can heat the ISM until it is filled with a hot (∼ 4 × 107 K) superwind. Furthermore, the random forcing from SNe stirs up the wind, powering Mach 1 turbulence. I argue that a turbulent dynamo explains the strong magnetic fields in starbursts, and I predict an average B ∼70 μG in the GCCMZ. I demonstrate how the SN driving of the ISM leads to equipartition between various pressure components in the ISM. The SN-heated wind escapes the center, but I show that it may be stopped in the Galactic halo. I propose that the Fermi bubbles are the wind's termination shock.

The discovery of the two giant γ-ray lobes (Fermi bubbles) in the Galactic center (see Dobler et al. 2010 and Su et al. 2010) was one of the most impressive events of the last few years in astrophysics. However, some indications on giant structures in the Galactic center (GC) were observed several years before by WMAP in the radio frequency range between 23 and 33 MHz (Finkbeiner 2004), and by ROSAT in hard X-rays (Bland-Hawthorn & Cohen 2003). Recent observations performed by the Planck Collaboration (Ade et al. 2012) found also lobes in the microwave range which spatially coincided the Fermi bubbles that indicated on the common origin of these phenomena.

In addition to boasting the highest density of baryonic matter in our galaxy, the center of the Milky Way is also believed to contain an extremely high density of dark matter particles. While dark matter is expected to be gravitationally subdominant to baryons near the Galactic center, many models allow for the annihilation of dark matter into standard model particles, a phenomenon which could be a significant source of high energy radiation in the Galactic center region. In fact, standard models of the dark matter density distribution and annihilation spectrum predict that dark matter at the Galactic center would (1) produce the brightest flux from dark matter annihilation of any region in the sky, and (2) contribute a significant portion of the total γ-ray luminosity observed within several degrees of the Galactic center by the Fermi/LAT. This makes the effort to understand and differentiate the morphologies and spectral features of dark matter and astrophysical γ-ray emission at the Galactic center potentially rewarding. Here, I will summarize the recent developments in indirect searches for dark matter annihilation at the Galactic center, and discuss several of the difficulties in producing accurate models of the high energy astrophysical emission. Finally, I will comment on current efforts to produce multi-wavelength models which better constrain or indicate a dark matter signal at the Galactic center.

Employing Fermi/LAT γ-ray observations, several independent groups have found excess extended γ-ray emission at the Galactic center (GC). Both, annihilating dark matter (DM) or a population of ~ 103 unresolved millisecond pulsars (MSPs) are regarded as well motivated possible explanations. However, there is significant uncertainties in the diffuse Galactic background at the GC. We have performed a revaluation of these two models for the extended γ-ray source at the GC by accounting for the systematic uncertainties of the Galactic diffuse emission model. We also marginalize over point source and diffuse background parameters in the region of interest. We show that the excess emission is significantly more extended than a point source. We find that the DM (or pulsar population) signal is larger than the systematic errors and therefore proceed to determine the sectors of parameter space that provide an acceptable fit to the data. We found that a population of several thousand MSPs with parameters consistent with the average spectral shape of Fermi/LAT measured MSPs was able to fit the GC excess emission. For DM, we found that a pure τ+τ− annihilation channel is not a good fit to the data. But a mixture of τ+τ− and bb with a 〈σ v〉 of order the thermal relic value and a DM mass of around 20 to 60 GeV provides an adequate fit.

Black holes orbiting the supermassive black hole (SMBH) Sgr A* in the Galactic center (GC) of the Milky Way generate gravitational waves (GW). The resulting spectrum, due to stars and black holes (BHs), is continuous below 40 nHz while individual BHs within about 200 AU of the central SMBH stick out in the spectrum at higher frequencies. The GWs can be detected by timing radio pulsars within a few parsecs of this region. Future observations with the Square Kilometer Array of such pulsars with sufficient timing accuracy may be sensitive to signals from intermediate mass BHs (IMBH) in a 3 year observation baseline. The recent detection of radio pulsations from the magnetar SGR J1745–29 very near the GC opens up the possibilities of detecting millisecond pulsars (which can be used as probes of the GWs) through lines of sight with only moderate pulse and angular broadening due to scattering.

Runaway instability operates in accretion tori around black holes, where it affects systems close to the critical (cusp overflowing) configuration. The runaway effect depends on the radial profile l(R) of the angular momentum distribution of the fluid, on the dimension-less spin a of the central black hole (|a| ≤ 1), and other factors, such as self-gravity. Here we discuss the role of runaway instability within a framework of an axially symmetric model of perfect fluid endowed with a purely toroidal magnetic field.

Supermassive black holes (106–109 M⊙) are now known to be present at the centers of most galaxies, but they are also found to have a close correlation with the host galaxy they live in. The masses of the supermasssive black holes (SMBHs) have been rigorously calculated using stellar dynamics (e.g., Gillessen et al. 2009) for the Milky Way, gas dynamics (e.g., Davis et al. 2013) for NGC 4526, water maser emissions, reverberation mapping, etc. In comparison, the mass of the SMBH seems to be tightly correlated with the galactic bulge it resides in. The tight correlation between the mass of the BH and the velocity dispersion of the stars in the bulge, known as the M-σ relation, (Ferrarese & Merritt, 2000; Tremaine et al. 2002), and the 2:1000 mass of BH - mass of bulge ratio suggests some sort of co-evolution process. A feedback driven coevolution process would suggest that the BH directly controls galaxy properties via energy and momentum feedback (Kormendy & Ho, 2013). However, since correlation does not necessarily imply causation, the evolution may be a non-causal process that occurs in tandem, where the BH and bulge grow independently. In such a process, star formation in the bulge and growth of SMBH occur in separate periods and are self regulating (Cen, 2012).

Cosmic rays represent a unique crossing point of high-energy astrophysics and astrochemistry. The cosmic ray ionization rate of molecular hydrogen (ζ2) measured by H3+ spectroscopy in the central parsec of the Galaxy is 2 orders of magnitude higher than that in the dense clouds outside the Galactic center. However, it is still too short, by the factor of 10,000, to agree with an extremely high ζ2 that accommodates the new γ-ray observations of Sgr A* and its environment.

The Galactic center (GC) molecular cloud G0.13–0.13 exhibits a shell morphology in CS J = (1 − 0), with ∼ 105 solar masses and expansion speed ∼ 20 km s−1, yielding a total kinetic energy ∼ 1051 erg. Its morphology is also suggestive of an interaction with the nonthermal filaments of the GC arc. 74 MHz emission indicates the presence of a substantial population of low energy electrons permeating the cloud, which could either be produced by the interaction with the arc or accelerated in the shock waves responsible for the cloud's expansion. These scenarios are explored using time dependent diffusion models.

With these diffusion models, we determine the penetration of low-energy cosmic-ray electrons accelerated into G0.13–0.13 and calculate the spatial distribution of the cosmic-ray ionization and heating rates. We show that the 6.4 keV Fe Kα line emission associated with the electron population provides an observational diagnostic to distinguish these two acceleration scenarios.

We discuss the implications of our results for understanding the distinct character of clouds in the central molecular zone compared to clouds in the Galactic disk, and how GC nonthermal filaments interact with molecular clouds.