AT 2020nov: Evidence for Disk Reprocessing in a Rare Tidal Disruption Event

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 of z = 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 <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" overflow="scroll"> <mml:mo>∼</mml:mo> <mml:mn>45.6</mml:mn> <mml:msubsup> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>6</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>−</mml:mo> <mml:mn>0.33</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>+</mml:mo> <mml:mn>0.10</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:msubsup> <mml:mspace width="0.25em"/> <mml:mi mathvariant="normal">erg</mml:mi> <mml:mspace width="0.25em"/> <mml:msup> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi mathvariant="normal">s</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>−</mml:mo> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:msup> </mml:math> . A late-time X-ray flare was also observed, reaching an absorbed luminosity of 1.67 × 10 43 erg s −1 approximately 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 <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" overflow="scroll"> <mml:mo>∼</mml:mo> <mml:mn>5.0</mml:mn> <mml:msubsup> <mml:mn>6</mml:mn> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>−</mml:mo> <mml:mn>0.77</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>+</mml:mo> <mml:mn>0.59</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:msubsup> <mml:mo>×</mml:mo> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> <mml:msup> <mml:mn>0</mml:mn> <mml:mn>4</mml:mn> </mml:msup> <mml:mspace width="0.25em"/> <mml:msub> <mml:mi>R</mml:mi> <mml:mi mathvariant="normal">g</mml:mi> </mml:msub> </mml:math> . 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.

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Publication Details

Journal
The Astrophysical Journal
Published
2025-04-02
DOI
https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/adb974
Citations
5
Primary Topic
Gamma-ray bursts and supernovae
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
5.77

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article

AT 2020nov: Evidence for Disk Reprocessing in a Rare Tidal Disruption Event

R. J. Foley, D. O. Jones, E. A. Magnier, Christa Gall et al.
5 citations
The Astrophysical Journal
Gamma-ray bursts and supernovae
5.77
article

AT 2020nov: Evidence for Disk Reprocessing in a Rare Tidal Disruption Event

R. J. Foley, D. O. Jones, E. A. Magnier, Christa Gall, Vivienne Baldassare, Thomas de Boer, K. Decker French, Chien-Cheng Lin, E. Ramírez-Ruiz, Kyle W. Davis, Hannah Dykaar, M. E. Huber, I. Arcavi, Wenbin Lu, S. I. Raimundo, Megan Masterson, Brenna Mockler, D. A. Coulter, M. C. Shepherd, Katie Auchettl, Hua Gao, M. R. Drout, Danial Langeroodi, Margaret E. Verrico, N. Earl
article en
5 citations

Abstract

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 of z = 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 <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" overflow="scroll"> <mml:mo>∼</mml:mo> <mml:mn>45.6</mml:mn> <mml:msubsup> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>6</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>−</mml:mo> <mml:mn>0.33</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>+</mml:mo> <mml:mn>0.10</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:msubsup> <mml:mspace width="0.25em"/> <mml:mi mathvariant="normal">erg</mml:mi> <mml:mspace width="0.25em"/> <mml:msup> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi mathvariant="normal">s</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>−</mml:mo> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:msup> </mml:math> . A late-time X-ray flare was also observed, reaching an absorbed luminosity of 1.67 × 10 43 erg s −1 approximately 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 <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" overflow="scroll"> <mml:mo>∼</mml:mo> <mml:mn>5.0</mml:mn> <mml:msubsup> <mml:mn>6</mml:mn> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>−</mml:mo> <mml:mn>0.77</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>+</mml:mo> <mml:mn>0.59</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:msubsup> <mml:mo>×</mml:mo> <mml:mn>1</mml:mn> <mml:msup> <mml:mn>0</mml:mn> <mml:mn>4</mml:mn> </mml:msup> <mml:mspace width="0.25em"/> <mml:msub> <mml:mi>R</mml:mi> <mml:mi mathvariant="normal">g</mml:mi> </mml:msub> </mml:math> . 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.

The Astrophysical JournalVol. 983(1)
University of Copenhagen (DK), Space Telescope Science Institute (US), University of Hawaii System (US), University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (US), Tel Aviv University (IL), The University of Melbourne (AU), University of California, Santa Cruz (US), University of Toronto (CA), University of Hawaii at Hilo (US), Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté (FR), Carnegie Observatories (US), National Center for Supercomputing Applications (US), University of Southampton (GB), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (US), Washington State University (US), Ruhr University Bochum (DE), University of California, Berkeley (US)
National Science Foundation, David and Lucile Packard Foundation, Smithsonian Institution, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, W. M. Keck Foundation, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Illinois Space Grant Consortium, University of California, Santa Cruz, California Institute of Technology, Michigan State University, University of Washington, Johns Hopkins University, Villum Fonden, National Centre for Supercomputing Applications, Space Telescope Science Institute, UK Research and Innovation, Heising-Simons Foundation, NASA Exoplanet Science Institute, European Commission, Queen's University Belfast, Durham University, Trinity College Dublin, United States-Israel Binational Science Foundation, Canada Research Chairs, Queen's University, Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovação, University of Toronto, Nuclear Safety and Security Commission, National Central University, Stockholms Universitet, PAZY Foundation, Eötvös Loránd Tudományegyetem, Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, College of Engineering, Michigan State University, University of California, Los Angeles, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, Science Mission Directorate, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Science and Technology Facilities Council, Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron, Institut National de Physique Nucléaire et de Physique des Particules, Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics, University of California, Santa Barbara, Planetary Science Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory
Openalex Percentile: Top 5%
Gamma-ray bursts and supernovae
5.77
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