Open AccessThe ultraluminous X‐ray source in M82: an intermediate‐mass black hole with a giant companion
Author(s) -
Patruno A.,
Portegies Zwart S.,
Dewi J.,
Hopman C.
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
monthly notices of the royal astronomical society: letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.067
H-Index - 122
eISSN - 1745-3933
pISSN - 1745-3925
DOI - 10.1111/j.1745-3933.2006.00176.x
Subject(s) - physics , astrophysics , black hole (networking) , luminosity , galaxy , astronomy , roche lobe , x ray binary , star cluster , intermediate mass black hole , stellar black hole , stars , binary star , neutron star , computer network , routing protocol , routing (electronic design automation) , computer science , link state routing protocol
The starburst galaxy M82, at a distance of 12 million light years, is the host of an unusually bright 2.4–16 × 10 40 erg s −1 X‐ray point source, which is best explained by an accreting black hole 10 2 to 10 4 times more massive than the Sun. Though the strongest candidate for a so‐called intermediate‐mass black hole, the only support stems from the observed luminosity and the 0.05–0.1 Hz quasi‐periodicity in its signal. Interestingly, the 7–12 Myr old star cluster MGG‐11 which has been associated with the X‐ray source is sufficiently dense that an intermediate mass black hole could have been produced in the cluster core via collision runaway. The recently discovered 62.0 ± 2.5 d periodicity in the X‐ray source X‐1 further supports the hypothesis that this source is powered by a black hole several hundred times more massive than the Sun. We perform detailed binary evolution simulations with an accreting compact object of 10–5000 M ⊙ and find that the X‐ray luminosity, the age of the cluster, the observed quasi‐periodic oscillations and the now observed orbital period are explained best by a black hole of 200–5000 M ⊙ that accretes material from a 22–25 M ⊙ giant companion in a state of Roche‐lobe contact. Interestingly, such a companion star is consistent with the expectation based on the tidal capture in a young and dense star cluster such as MGG‐11, making the picture self‐consistent.