The Energy Spectrum of the Blazar Markarian 421 Above 130 GeV

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dc.creatorCarson, J. E.
dc.creatorKildea, J.
dc.creatorOng, R. A.
dc.creatorBall, J.
dc.creatorBramel, D. A.
dc.creatorCovault, C. E.
dc.creatorDriscoll, D.
dc.creatorFortin, P.
dc.creatorGingrich, D. M.
dc.creatorHanna, D. S.
dc.creatorLindner, T.
dc.creatorMueller, C.
dc.creatorJarvis, A.
dc.creatorMukherjee, R.
dc.creatorRagan, K.
dc.creatorScalzo, R. A.
dc.creatorWilliams, D. A.
dc.creatorZweerink, J.
dc.date2006-12-19
dc.date.accessioned2026-07-07T11:00:31Z
dc.date.available2026-07-07T11:00:31Z
dc.descriptionMarkarian 421 (Mrk 421) was the first blazar detected at gamma-ray energies above 300 GeV, and it remains one of only twelve TeV blazars detected to date. TeV gamma-ray measurements of its flaring activity and spectral variability have placed constraints on models of the high-energy emission from blazars. However, observations between 50 and 300 GeV are rare, and the high-energy peak of the spectral energy distribution (SED), predicted to be in this range, has never been directly detected. We present a detection of Mrk 421 above 100 GeV as made by the Solar Tower Atmospheric Cherenkov Effect Experiment (STACEE) during a multiwavelength campaign in early 2004. STACEE is a ground-based atmospheric Cherenkov telescope using the wavefront sampling technique to detect gamma rays at lower energies than achieved by most imaging Cherenkov telescopes. We also outline a method for reconstructing gamma-ray energies using a solar heliostat telescope. This technique was applied to the 2004 data, and we present the differential energy spectrum of Mrk 421 above 130 GeV. Assuming a differential photon flux dN/dE proportional to E^-a, we measure a spectral index a = 2.1 +/- 0.2 (statistical) +0.2/-0.1 (systematic). Finally, we discuss the STACEE spectrum in the context of the multiwavelength results from the same epoch.
dc.description16 pages, 4 figures, submitted to ApJ
dc.identifierhttps://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0612562
dc.identifierhttp://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0612562
dc.identifierAstrophys.J.662:199-204,2007
dc.identifierdoi:10.1086/516818
dc.identifier.urihttp://salesiana.dossiersoluciones.com/handle/123456789/187694
dc.subjectAstrophysics
dc.titleThe Energy Spectrum of the Blazar Markarian 421 Above 130 GeV
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