Issue |
A&A
Volume 612, April 2018
H.E.S.S. phase-I observations of the plane of the Milky Way
|
|
---|---|---|
Article Number | A1 | |
Number of page(s) | 61 | |
Section | Catalogs and data | |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201732098 | |
Published online | 09 April 2018 |
The H.E.S.S. Galactic plane survey★
1
Centre for Space Research, North-West University,
Potchefstroom
2520, South Africa
2
Universität Hamburg, Institut für Experimentalphysik,
Luruper Chaussee 149,
22761
Hamburg, Germany
3
Max-Planck-Institut für Kernphysik,
PO Box 103980,
69029
Heidelberg, Germany
4
Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies,
31 Fitzwilliam Place,
Dublin
2, Ireland
5
National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia,
Marshall Baghramian Avenue, 24,
0019
Yerevan, Republic of Armenia
6
Yerevan Physics Institute,
2 Alikhanian Brothers St.,
375036
Yerevan, Armenia
7
Institut für Physik, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin,
Newtonstr. 15,
12489
Berlin, Germany
8
University of Namibia, Department of Physics,
Private Bag 13301,
Windhoek, Namibia
9
GRAPPA, Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam,
Science Park 904,
1098 XH
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
10
Department of Physics and Electrical Engineering, Linnaeus University,
351 95
Växjö, Sweden
11
Institut für Theoretische Physik, Lehrstuhl IV: Weltraum und Astrophysik, Ruhr-Universität Bochum,
44780
Bochum, Germany
12
GRAPPA, Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy and Institute of High-Energy Physics, University of Amsterdam,
Science Park 904,
1098 XH
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
13
Institut für Astro- und Teilchenphysik, Leopold-Franzens-Universität Innsbruck,
6020
Innsbruck, Austria
14
School of Physical Sciences, University of Adelaide,
Adelaide
5005, Australia
15
LUTH, Observatoire de Paris, PSL Research University, CNRS, Université Paris Diderot,
5 Place Jules Janssen,
92190
Meudon, France
16
Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Université Paris 06, Université Paris Diderot, Sorbonne Paris Cité, CNRS, Laboratoire de Physique Nucléaire et de Hautes Energies (LPNHE),
4 place Jussieu,
75252
Paris Cedex 5,
France
17
Laboratoire Univers et Particules de Montpellier, Université Montpellier, CNRS/IN2P3,
CC 72, Place Eugène Bataillon,
34095 Montpellier Cedex 5, France
18
IRFU, CEA, Université Paris-Saclay,
91191
Gif-sur-Yvette,
France
19
Astronomical Observatory, The University of Warsaw,
Al. Ujazdowskie 4,
00-478
Warsaw, Poland
20
Aix Marseille Université, CNRS/IN2P3, CPPM,
Marseille, France
21
Instytut Fizyki Ja̧drowej PAN,
ul. Radzikowskiego 152,
31-342
Kraków, Poland
22
Funded by EU FP7 Marie Curie, grant agreement No. PIEF-GA-2012-332350
23
School of Physics, University of the Witwatersrand,
1 Jan Smuts Avenue,
Braamfontein, Johannesburg
2050, South Africa
24
Laboratoire d’Annecy-le-Vieux de Physique des Particules, Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, CNRS/IN2P3,
74941
Annecy-le-Vieux, France
25
Landessternwarte, Universität Heidelberg, Königstuhl,
69117
Heidelberg, Germany
26
Université Bordeaux, CNRS/IN2P3, Centre d’Études Nucléaires de Bordeaux Gradignan,
33175
Gradignan, France
27
Oskar Klein Centre, Department of Physics, Stockholm University, Albanova University Center,
10691
Stockholm, Sweden
28
Wallenberg Academy Fellow
29
Institut für Astronomie und Astrophysik, Universität Tübingen,
Sand 1,
72076
Tübingen, Germany
30
Laboratoire Leprince-Ringuet, Ecole Polytechnique, CNRS/IN2P3,
91128
Palaiseau, France
31
APC, AstroParticule et Cosmologie, Université Paris Diderot, CNRS/IN2P3, CEA/Irfu, Observatoire de Paris,
Sorbonne Paris Cité, 10, rue Alice Domon et Léonie Duquet,
75205
Paris Cedex 13, France
32
Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, IPAG,
38000
Grenoble, France
33
Department of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Leicester, University Road,
Leicester
LE1 7RH, UK
34
Nicolaus Copernicus Astronomical Center, Polish Academy of Sciences,
ul. Bartycka 18,
00-716
Warsaw, Poland
35
Institut für Physik und Astronomie, Universität Potsdam,
Karl-Liebknecht-Strasse 24/25,
14476
Potsdam, Germany
36
Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen Centre for Astroparticle Physics,
Erwin-Rommel-Str. 1,
91058
Erlangen, Germany
37
DESY,
15738
Zeuthen, Germany
38
Obserwatorium Astronomiczne, Uniwersytet Jagielloński,
ul. Orla 171,
30-244
Kraków,
Poland
39
Centre for Astronomy, Faculty of Physics, Astronomy and Informatics, Nicolaus Copernicus University,
Grudziadzka 5,
87-100
Torun, Poland
40
Department of Physics, University of the Free State,
PO Box 339,
Bloemfontein
9300, South Africa
41
Heisenberg Fellow (DFG), ITA Universität Heidelberg,
Heidelberg, Germany
42
Department of Physics, Rikkyo University,
3-34-1 Nishi-Ikebukuro,
Toshima-ku, Tokyo
171-8501, Japan
43
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS),
3-1-1 Yoshinodai,
Chuo-ku, Sagamihara, Kanagawa
229-8510, Japan
44
Now at The School of Physics, The University of New South Wales,
Sydney
2052, Australia
45
Now at Instituto de Física de São Carlos, Universidade de São Paulo,
Av. Trabalhador São-carlense,
400 - CEP 13566-590
São Carlos SP, Brazil
46
Now at Technische Universität Kaiserslautern,
67663
Kaiserslautern, Germany
47
Now at I. Physikalisches Institut B, RWTH Aachen University,
52056
Aachen, Germany
48
Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Manitoba,
Winnipeg
MB R3T 2N2, Canada
★★ Corresponding authors: H.E.S.S. Collaboration,
e-mail: contact.hess@hess-experiment.eu
Received:
13
October
2017
Accepted:
15
January
2018
We present the results of the most comprehensive survey of the Galactic plane in very high-energy (VHE) γ-rays, including a public release of Galactic sky maps, a catalog of VHE sources, and the discovery of 16 new sources of VHE γ-rays. The High Energy Spectroscopic System (H.E.S.S.) Galactic plane survey (HGPS) was a decade-long observation program carried out by the H.E.S.S. I array of Cherenkov telescopes in Namibia from 2004 to 2013. The observations amount to nearly 2700 h of quality-selected data, covering the Galactic plane at longitudes from ℓ = 250° to 65° and latitudes |b|≤ 3°. In addition to the unprecedented spatial coverage, the HGPS also features a relatively high angular resolution (0.08° ≈ 5 arcmin mean point spread function 68% containment radius), sensitivity (≲1.5% Crab flux for point-like sources), and energy range (0.2–100 TeV). We constructed a catalog of VHE γ-ray sources from the HGPS data set with a systematic procedure for both source detection and characterization of morphology and spectrum. We present this likelihood-based method in detail, including the introduction of a model component to account for unresolved, large-scale emission along the Galactic plane. In total, the resulting HGPS catalog contains 78 VHE sources, of which 14 are not reanalyzed here, for example, due to their complex morphology, namely shell-like sources and the Galactic center region. Where possible, we provide a firm identification of the VHE source or plausible associations with sources in other astronomical catalogs. We also studied the characteristics of the VHE sources with source parameter distributions. 16 new sources were previously unknown or unpublished, and we individually discuss their identifications or possible associations. We firmly identified 31 sources as pulsar wind nebulae (PWNe), supernova remnants (SNRs), composite SNRs, or gamma-ray binaries. Among the 47 sources not yet identified, most of them (36) have possible associations with cataloged objects, notably PWNe and energetic pulsars that could power VHE PWNe.
Key words: gamma rays: general / surveys / Galaxy: general
The source catalog is available at the CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/612/A1
© ESO, 2017
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