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Resolving the Nucleus of Centaurus A at Mid-Infrared Wavelengths

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2013

Leonard Burtscher ,
Klaus Meisenheimer ,
Walter Jaffe ,
Konrad R. W. Tristram  and
Huub J. A. Rottgering
Leonard Burtscher*
Affiliation:
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany Fellow of the International Max Planck Research School (IMPRS) for Astronomy and Cosmic Physics, Heidelberg, Germany
Klaus Meisenheimer
Affiliation:
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Heidelberg, Germany
Walter Jaffe
Affiliation:
Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy, Bonn, Germany
Konrad R. W. Tristram
Affiliation:
Sterrewacht Leiden, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands
Huub J. A. Rottgering
Affiliation:
Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy, Bonn, Germany
*
ECorresponding author. Email: burtscher@mpia.de
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Abstract

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We have observed Centaurus A with the Mid-Infrared Interferometric Instrument (MIDI) at the Very Large Telescope Interferometer at resolutions of 7–15 mas (at 12.5 μm) and filled gaps in the (u, v) coverage in comparison to earlier measurements. We are now able to describe the nuclear emission in terms of geometric components and derive their parameters by fitting models to the interferometric data. With simple geometrical models, the best fit is achieved for an elongated disk with flat intensity profile with diameter 76 ± 9 × 35 ± 2 mas (1.41 ± 0.17 × 0.65 ± 0.03 pc) whose major axis is oriented at a position angle (PA) of 10.1 ± 2.2° east of north. A point source contributes 47 ± 11% of the nuclear emission at 12.5 μm. There is also evidence that neither such a uniform nor a Gaussian disk are good fits to the data. This indicates that we are resolving more complicated small-scale structure in active galactic nuclei with MIDI, as has been seen in Seyfert galaxies previously observed with MIDI. The PA and inferred inclination i = of the dust emission are compared with observations of gas and dust at larger scales.

Keywords

techniques: high angular resolutiongalaxies: active
Type
Research Article
Information
Publications of the Astronomical Society of Australia , Volume 27 , Special Issue 4: The Many Faces of Centaurus A , 2010 , pp. 490 - 495
Copyright
Copyright © Astronomical Society of Australia 2010

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