Using the X-ray Dust Scattering Halo of Cygnus X-1 to determine distance and dust distributions

Abstract

We present a detailed study of the X-ray dust scattering halo of the black hole candidate \cygx1 based on two \chandra\ HETGS observations. Using 18 different dust models, including one modified by us (dubbed XLNW), we probe the interstellar medium between us and this source. A consistent description of the cloud properties along the line of sight that describes at the same time the halo radial profile, the halo lightcurves, and the column density from source spectroscopy is best achieved with a small subset of these models. Combining the studies of the halo radial profile and the halo lightcurves, we favor a geometric distance to \cygx1 of $d=1.81\pm 0.09$\,kpc. Our study also shows that there is a dense cloud, which contributes $\sim$50% of the dust grains along the line of sight to \cygx1, located at $\sim 1.6$ kpc from us. The remainder of the dust along the line of sight is close to the black hole binary.

Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal; 10 pages; 10 figures; 3 tables; emulateapj style

References in corpus (5)

• The jet-powered optical nebula of Cygnus X-1
• High-Resolution X-ray Spectroscopy of the Interstellar Medium II: Neon and Iron Absorption Edges
• Chandra X-ray spectroscopy of the focused wind in the Cygnus X-1 system. I. The non-dip spectrum in the low/hard state
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• Confirmation Via the Continuum-Fitting Method that the Spin of the Black Hole in Cygnus X-1 is Extreme
• The Reflection Component from Cygnus X-1 in the Soft State Measured by NuSTAR and Suzaku
• Alternative explanations for extreme supersolar iron abundances inferred from the energy spectrum of Cygnus X-1
• A radio parallax to the black hole X-ray binary MAXI J1820+070
• Long term variability of Cygnus X-1 V. State definitions with all sky monitors
• Understanding Compact Object Formation and Natal Kicks. III. The case of Cygnus X-1
• ULX spectra revisited: Accreting, highly magnetized neutron stars as the engines of ultraluminous X-ray sources
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• Analysis of NuSTAR and Suzaku observations of Cyg X-1 in the hard state: evidence for a truncated disc geometry
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• Detection of gamma rays of likely jet origin in Cygnus X-1
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• A Very High Energy $\gamma$-Ray Survey towards the Cygnus Region of the Galaxy
• Long term variability of Cygnus X-1: VII. Orbital variability of the focussed wind in Cyg X-1 / HDE 226868 system
• The multi-wavelength polarization of Cygnus X-1
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• A giant X-ray dust scattering ring around the black hole transient MAXI J1348-630 discovered with SRG/eROSITA
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• A Joint Chandra and Swift View of the 2015 X-Ray Dust Scattering Echo of V404 Cygni
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• Dust scattering halo of 4U 1630-47 observed with Chandra and Swift: New constraints on the source distance
• Probing the Interstellar Dust towards the Galactic Centre: Dust Scattering Halo around AX J1745.6-2901
• Chandra X-ray spectroscopy of the focused wind in the Cygnus X-1 system III. Dipping in the low/hard state
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• Shell-Shocked: The Interstellar Medium Near Cygnus X-1
• Si K Edge Structure and Variability in Galactic X-Ray Binaries
• The X-ray dust scattered rings of the black hole low mass binary V404 Cyg
• The fate of Cyg X-1: an empirical lower limit on BH-NS merger rate
• A stochastic propagation model to the energy dependent rapid temporal behaviour of Cygnus X-1 as observed by AstroSat in the hard state
• Ray-tracing simulations and spectral models of X-ray radiation in dusty media
• The Dust Scattering Halo of Cygnus X-3
• AstroSat and MAXI view of Cygnus X-1: Signature of an `extreme' soft nature
• Rapid Spectral Changes of Cygnus X-1 in the Low/Hard State with Suzaku
• Highly Ionized Fe-K Absorption Line from Cygnus X-1 in the High/Soft State Observed with Suzaku
• X-ray Scattering Echoes and Ghost Halos from the Intergalactic Medium: Relation to the nature of AGN variability
• X-ray Scattered Halo around IGR J17544-2619
• The X-ray spectral-timing contribution of the stellar wind in the hard state of Cyg X-1
• Interstellar absorption and dust scattering
• XRISM High-Resolution X-ray Spectroscopy of Cygnus X-1 -- highly ionized Iron absorption structures
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• Polarization radiation with turbulent magnetic fields from X-ray binaries