Abstract
Exceptionally strong and long- lasting flaring activity of the blazar Mrk 421 occurred between 2001 January and March. Based on the excellent signal- to- noise ratio of the data, we derive the energy spectrum between 260 GeV and 17 TeV with unprecedented statistical precision. The spectrum is not well described by a simple power law even with a curvature term. Instead, the data can be described by a power law with exponential cutoff: dN dE proportional to E(-2.14 + -0.03 stat)e(-E E0) m(-2) s(-1) TeV-1 with E0=4.3 + -0.3(stat) TeV. Mrk 421 is the second gamma -ray blazar that unambiguously exhibits an absorption- like feature in its spectral energy distribution at 3-6 TeV.
| Original language | English (Ireland) |
|---|---|
| Number of pages | 3 |
| Journal | Astrophysical Journal |
| Volume | 560 |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Oct 2001 |
Authors (Note for portal: view the doc link for the full list of authors)
- Authors
- Krennrich, F;Badran, HM;Bond, IH;Bradbury, SM;Buckley, JH;Carter-Lewis, DA;Catanese, M;Cui, W;Dunlea, S;Das, D;Perez, ID;Fegan, DJ;Fegan, SJ;Finley, JP;Gaidos, JA;Gibbs, K;Gillanders, GH;Hall, TA;Hillas, AM;Holder, J;Horan, D;Jordan, M;Kertzman, M;Kieda, D;Kildea, J;Knapp, J;Kosack, K;Lang, MJ;LeBohec, S;McKernan, B;Moriarty, P;Muller, D;Ong, R;Pallassini, R;Petry, D;Quinn, J;Reay, NW;Reynolds, PT;Rose, HJ;Sembroski, GH;Sidwell, R;Stanton, N;Swordy, SP;Vassiliev, VV;Wakely, SP;Weekes, TC