skip to main content
US FlagAn official website of the United States government
dot gov icon
Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
https lock icon
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( lock ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.


Search for: All records

Creators/Authors contains: "Dykaar, Hannah"

Note: When clicking on a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) number, you will be taken to an external site maintained by the publisher. Some full text articles may not yet be available without a charge during the embargo (administrative interval).
What is a DOI Number?

Some links on this page may take you to non-federal websites. Their policies may differ from this site.

  1. Abstract We present a detailed analysis of AT 2020nov, a tidal disruption event (TDE) in the center of its host galaxy, located at a redshift ofz= 0.083. AT 2020nov exhibits unique features, including double-peaked Balmer emission lines, a broad UV/optical flare, and a peak log luminosity in the extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) estimated at 45.6 6 0.33 + 0.10 erg s 1 . A late-time X-ray flare was also observed, reaching an absorbed luminosity of 1.67 × 1043erg s−1approximately 300 days after the UV/optical peak. Multiwavelength coverage, spanning optical, UV, X-ray, and mid-infrared (MIR) bands, reveals a complex spectral energy distribution (SED) that includes MIR flaring indicative of dust echoes, suggesting a dust covering fraction consistent with typical TDEs. Spectral modeling indicates the presence of an extended, quiescent disk around the central supermassive black hole with a radius of 5.0 6 0.77 + 0.59 × 1 0 4 R g . The multicomponent SED model, which includes a significant EUV component, suggests that the primary emission from the TDE is reprocessed by this extended disk, producing the observed optical and MIR features. The lack of strong active galactic nuclei signatures in the host galaxy, combined with the quiescent disk structure, highlights AT 2020nov as a rare example of a TDE occurring in a galaxy with a dormant but extended preexisting accretion structure. 
    more » « less
    Free, publicly-accessible full text available April 2, 2026
  2. Abstract We present a systematic search for tidal disruption events (TDEs) using radio data from the Variables and Slow Transients (VAST) Pilot Survey conducted using the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder. Historically, TDEs have been identified using observations at X-ray, optical, and ultraviolet wavelengths. After discovery, a few dozen TDEs have been shown to have radio counterparts through follow-up observations. With systematic time-domain radio surveys becoming available, we can now identify new TDEs in the radio regime. A population of radio-discovered TDEs has the potential to provide several key insights including an independent constraint on their volumetric rate. We conducted a search to select variable radio sources with a single prominent radio flare and a position consistent within 2σof the nucleus of a known galaxy. While TDEs were the primary target of our search, sources identified in this search may also be consistent with active galactic nuclei exhibiting unusual flux density changes at the timescales probed, uncharacteristically bright supernovae, or a population of gamma-ray bursts. We identify a sample of 12 radio-bright candidate TDEs. The timescales and luminosities range from ∼6 to 230 days and ∼1038to 1041erg s−1, respectively, consistent with models of radio emission from TDEs that launch relativistic jets. After calculating the detection efficiency of our search using a Monte Carlo simulation of TDEs, and assuming all 12 sources are jetted TDEs, we derive a volumetric rate for jetted TDEs of 0.80 0.23 + 0.31 Gpc−3yr−1, consistent with previous empirically estimated rates. 
    more » « less
  3. Abstract Late-time (∼a year) radio follow-up of optically discovered tidal disruption events (TDEs) is increasingly resulting in detections at radio wavelengths, and there is growing evidence for this late-time radio activity to be common to the broad class of subrelativistic TDEs. Detailed studies of some of these TDEs at radio wavelengths are also challenging the existing models for radio emission. Using all-sky multiepoch data from the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP), taken as a part of the Rapid ASKAP Continuum Survey (RACS), we searched for radio counterparts to a sample of optically discovered TDEs. We detected late-time emission at RACS frequencies (742–1032 MHz) in five TDEs, reporting the independent discovery of radio emission from TDE AT 2019ahk and extending the time baseline out to almost 3000 days for some events. Overall, we find that at least 22 11 + 15 % of the population of optically discovered TDEs has detectable radio emission in the RACS survey, while also noting that the true fraction can be higher given the limited cadence (two epochs separated by ∼3 yr) of the survey. Finally, we project that the ongoing higher-cadence (∼2 months) ASKAP Variable and Slow Transients survey can detect ∼20 TDEs in its operational span (4 yr), given the current rate from optical surveys. 
    more » « less