EHT 2014

Christiann Brinkerink, Radboud University Nijmegen

What closure phase measurements at 86 GHz can tell us about Sagittarius A*

Thomas Bronzwaer, Radboud University Nijmegen

Predicted VLBI Observables for SMBH's Based on GRMHD Simulations

Alejandro Cardenas-Avendano, Universidad Nacional de Colombia

Probing the Regular Nature of the Spacetime by Measuring the Shadow of a Black Hole

Andrew Chael, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics

Maximum Entropy Polarimetric Imaging

Laura Chajet, York University

AGNs: Line Width Distribution of MHD Disc Winds

Pierre Christian, Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics

complimentary observations to the EHT for understanding strong gravity

Riley Connors, University of Amsterdam

Jet Physics Across the Black Hole Mass Scale: Sgr A* and A0620-00

Roger Deane, University of Cape Town

Extreme Interferometry with MeqTrees: advanced interferometric simulation and analysis

Salome Dibi, Radboud University Nijmegen

The emission mechanisms from Sgr A*’s inner gravitational radii

Ciriaco Goddi, Radboud University Nijmegen

mm-VLBI in Europe

Svetlana Jorstad, Boston University

Linear Polarization in the Jet of the Quasar 3C279 at near-EHT resolution 

Motoki Kino, Korea Astronomy & Space Science Institute

Magnetic field strength at the jet base of M87

Michael Landry, LIGO Hanford Observatory

Advanced LIGO status

Alan Marscher, Boston University

Linear Polarization at 1 mm as a Probe of the "Core" of Blazar Jets

Gisela Ortiz, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México

Testing a 3 mm VLBI system at the Large Millimeter Telescope: Observations of Sgr A*.

Percy Paul, University of Saskatchewan

Gravity Waves in RS models

Hung-Pi Pu, Academia Sinica Institute of Astronomy & Astrophysics

Semi-analytical GRMHD jet model and its Synchrotron Image on Horizon Scale

Angelo Ricarte, Yale University

Probing Strong Gravity and Accretion Physics with the Event Horizon Telescope

Frank Roelofs, Radboud University Nijmegen

imaging Sgr A* through time-variability

Eduard Ros, Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy

Jet formation region of NGC 1052 with mm-VLBI

Fumie Tazaki, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan

super-resolution images of M87 with compressed sensing

There are good reasons to believe that relativistic jets of AGN are powered by rotating black holes via the Blandford-Znajek mechanism. Although the original mathematical solution, which demonstrated the possibility of such energy extraction, was found 37 years ago, its physical nature still remains a subject of debate. I will give a brief review of some recent developments in this area with focus on the roles played by the EH and the Ergoregion in the Blandford-Znajek mechanism.

Both the continuum-fitting and Fe-line methods of measuring black hole spin will be discussed and compared, with attention to sources of systematic error. Both methods rely on estimating the inner radius of the black hole's accretion disk and identifying it with the radius of the ISCO. The Fe-line method is extremely important because of its dominant role in measuring the spins of supermassive black holes, which is problematic for the continuum-fitting method. Meantime, both methods are applicable to stellar-mass black holes, and we will discuss current efforts to cross-check the spins of individual black holes. Finally, a comprehensive summary of spin results for both stellar-mass and supermassive black holes will be presented.

We examine the structure and dynamics of the M87 jet based on both multi-frequency observations and MHD jet theories. Millimeter (mm) VLBI cores are considered as innermost jet emissions. Resolved parabolic streamline may suggest that the jet collimation maintains in five orders of magnitude in the distance starting from the vicinity of the supermassive black hole (SMBH), less than 10 r_s where the VLBI core at 1.3 mm is located. Observed sub-to-superluminal motions may indicate an MHD acceleration takes place from non-relativistic to relativistic regimes. We discuss that the M87 jet consists hybrid spine/sheath structure from either a spinning super massive black hole and or radiatively inefficient accretion flow. Future sub-mm VLBI imaging play an essential role in resolving the origin (i.e., formation mechanism) of the M87 jet as well as constraining the SMBH spin parameter. Based on our understanding of M87, we also discuss about the key science in other AGN jets with sub-mm VLBI experiments.

Stellar dynamical measurements of black hole masses have become the de facto standard method. I will give a brief review of how this measurement method works, along with arguments for its overall reliability and caveats. Then I will turn my attention to the case of the black hole in M87. The black hole is undeniably large ? billions of solar masses ? but has a stellar dynamical mass measurement in disagreement with gas dynamical mass measurements at about the 2 sigma level. I will discuss potential systematic uncertainties in both measurements and avenues to reconciling the discrepancy.

The super-massive black hole in the center of the Milky Way, Sgr~A*, displays a nearly flat radio spectrum which is typical for jets in Active Galactic Nuclei. Indeed, time-dependent, magnetized models of radiatively inefficient accretion flows, which are commonly used to explain emission of Sgr A* also often produce jet-like outflows. However, the emission from these models so far has failed to reproduce the flat radio spectrum. We show that current GRMHD simulations can naturally reproduce the flat spectrum, when using a two-temperature plasma in the disk and a constant electron temperature plasma in the jet. This assumption is consistent with current state-of-the art simulations, in which the electron temperature evolution is not explicitly modeled. The model images and spectra are consistent with the radio sizes and spectrum of Sgr~A*. The model can also reproduce the radio images of the jet base in M87.

Mass accretion rate on the SMBHs is one of the fundamental parameters used to investigate AGNs. Faraday Rotation Measure (RM) observations at mm/sub-mm wavelengths is one of the powerful methods to derive the mass accretion rate of hot accretion flows towards our galactic center, Sgr A* (e.g., Marrone et al. 2006). Based on this scheme, we conducted an SMA observation to apply this method to M 87, which is one of the primary target for our submm VLBI observations, in February 2013. We succeeded to derive an RM of (2.1 ± 1.8) × 10^5 rad m^-2, it gives the range of the mass accretion rate (M_dot) between 0 and 9.2 × 10^-4 M_sun yr^-1 at the distance of 21 rs from the SMBH. Our estimated M.is already two orders of magnitude smaller than the M_dot at the outer part of the accretion flow (~10^5 r_s) of 0.1 M_sun yr^-1 determined by X-ray observations (Di Matteo et al. 2003). This significant suppression of the M_dot at the inner region is expected with the radiatively inefficient accretion flow (RIAF) model. With future submm VLBI polarimetry towards jetted sources including M 87, we will derive the profile of accretion flow along the jet. It is very important itself for the study of the accretion process onto the SMBH, but also provide fundamental properties to derive BH parameters from the BH shadow imaging.

VLBI observations at the highest possible frequency penetrate the opacity barrier in the nuclear regions of radio-galaxies and blazars, which are synchrotron self-absorbed at longer wavelength. This facilitates a direct and sharper than ever view into the 'heart' of Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN), into region in which BH physics and general relativity effects become important and where radio jets are launched. Here we report on new results from global 3mm and 1.3mm VLBI observations adding the APEX and IRAM to the Event Horizon Telescope. New images and core size estimates for a number of AGN jets and for Sgr A* are presented and discussed.

Because of the existence of a prominent jet, M87 provides an ideal source with which the EHT can critically test current jet launching paradigms. The EHT has already placed weak limits on the black hole spin based on generic arguments regarding limits on the image size. However, careful modeling of the jet structure can produce much more stringent constraints on both the black hole properties and the mechanisms responsible for the generation of the observed radio emission. I will describe how this modeling is performed, what the remaining chief uncertainties are and why we believe they can be controlled, and how existing EHT observations of M87 support models of electromagnetically launched jets powered by black hole spin.