We propose to observe BL Lacertae with XMM-Newton three times in AO6, toconstruct its SED in different brightness states. Our interest is focused on theUV and soft X-ray energy domains, and this makes XMM-Newton the ideal instrumentto attain our goal, which is to investigate the existence of a UV to soft-X-raybump, as we detected in AO 0235+16 with observations in AO3. This would meanthat in BL Lac objects there may be an important emission component in additionto the synchrotron and inverse-Compton ones, which is likely the photoionizingsource of the broad line region, similarly to the blue bump of FSRQs.Simultaneous observations at low frequencies by the WEBT will allow to to studythe correlations among the emissions at different wavelengths.
Instrument
EMOS1, EMOS2, EPN, OM, RGS1, RGS2
Temporal Coverage
2007-07-10T23:05:55Z/2008-01-08T21:34:00Z
Version
17.56_20190403_1200
Mission Description
The European Space Agencys (ESA) X-ray Multi-Mirror Mission (XMM-Newton) was launched by an Ariane 504 on December 10th 1999. XMM-Newton is ESAs second cornerstone of the Horizon 2000 Science Programme. It carries 3 high throughput X-ray telescopes with an unprecedented effective area, and an optical monitor, the first flown on a X-ray observatory. The large collecting area and ability to make long uninterrupted exposures provide highly sensitive observations. Since Earths atmosphere blocks out all X-rays, only a telescope in space can detect and study celestial X-ray sources. The XMM-Newton mission is helping scientists to solve a number of cosmic mysteries, ranging from the enigmatic black holes to the origins of the Universe itself. Observing time on XMM-Newton is being made available to the scientific community, applying for observational periods on a competitive basis.
European Space Agency, Dr Claudia M. Raiteri, 2009, 'Looking for a thermal emission component in BL Lacertae', 17.56_20190403_1200, European Space Agency, https://doi.org/10.5270/esa-5ogq9l6
