2003/11/05 by Margarita Karovska, Massimo Marengo, Martin Elvis +10 · 1 citation
Physics and Astronomy · #Astronomy and Astrophysical Research #Astrophysical Phenomena and Observations #Pulsars and Gravitational Waves Research #astro-ph
paper · pdf · doi:10.1086/380816
published as Astrophys.J. 598 (2003) L91-L94 · 14 pages 3 figures, to appear in The Astrophysical Journal Letters
arxiv created 2003/11/05 · openalex publication_date 2003/11/12 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31
In this Letter, we present results from our exploratory mid-IR study of Centaurus A circumnuclear environment using high angular resolution imaging at the Magellan 6.5 m telescope with the MIRAC/BLINC camera. We detected emission from a compact region surrounding the nuclear source and obtained photometry at 8.8 μm and in the N band. Our analysis suggests that the nuclear region is resolved with a size of ≈3 pc. The mid-IR emission from this region is likely associated with cool dust with an estimated temperature of ~160 K, surrounding the central "hidden" active galactic nucleus (AGN). We discuss the characteristics of this emission in relation to other mid-IR observations and the implications on models of dust formation in AGNs.