Multi-GeV <i>Fermi</i> -LAT detection of PSR B1259-63
ABSTRACT PSR B1259–63/LS 2883 is a classical gamma-ray binary detected from radio to TeV energies near periastron. Using over 17 yr of Fermi-LAT observations, we report the first significant detection ($8\sigma$ in likelihood analysis) of the system in the 10–100 GeV energy range, over orbital phases from −400 to +100 d relative to periastron. The observed spectrum is well described by a power law with photon index $\Gamma = 1.9 \pm 0.1$ and shows a flux level consistent with that measured at TeV energies by H.E.S.S. The smooth connection between the Fermi-LAT and TeV spectra suggests that the detected multi-GeV emission traces the rising tail of the inverse-Compton component extending into the TeV regime. The presence of detectable emission hundreds of days before periastron indicates high-energy activity over a larger orbital phase range than previously established, enabling new constraints on particle-acceleration and radiative processes in the system.
Authors
- A. V. Kuzin
- D. Malyshev (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9689-2194)
- Natalie Matchett (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2741-2959)
- A. J. Gallagher (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3014-8981)
- A. Santangelo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4187-9560)
- B. van Soelen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1873-7855)
- M. Chernyakova (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9735-3608)
- Iu. Shebalkova
Institutions
- Dublin Institute For Advanced Studies (IE)
- United States Department of State (US)
- University of the Free State (ZA)
- EarthTech International (United States) (US)
- Dublin City University (IE)
- University of Tübingen (DE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
- Published
- 2025-12-11
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/staf2212
- Primary Topic
- Astrophysical Phenomena and Observations
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- European Space Agency
- National Research Foundation