Radio Variability of the Sagittarius ${\mathrm{A}}^{\ast }$ due to an Orbiting Star

Abstract

Recently, unprecedentedly accurate data on the orbital motion of stars in the vicinity of the Sagittarius ${\mathrm{A}}^{\ast }$ have been available. Such information can be used not only to constrain the mass of the supermassive black hole (SMBH) in the Galactic center but also to study the source of the radio emission. Two major competing explanations of the radio spectrum of the Sagittarius ${\mathrm{A}}^{\ast }$ are based on two different models, that is, hot accretion disk and jet. Hence, independent observational constraints are required to resolve related issues. We explore the possibility of using the observational data of the star S2, currently closest to the Galactic center, to distinguish physical models for the radio emission of the Sagittarius ${\mathrm{A}}^{\ast }$, by applying the stellar cooling model to the Sagittarius ${\mathrm{A}}^{\ast }$ with the orbital parameters derived from the observation. The relative difference in the electron temperature due to the stellar cooling from the star S2 at the pericenter is a few parts of a thousand and the consequent relative radio luminosity difference is order of $10^{-4}$. Therefore, one could possibly expect to observe the radio flux variation with a periodic or quasi-periodic modulation in the frequency range at $ν\la {\rm 100 MHz}$ if the radiatively inefficient hot accretion flows are indeed responsible for the radio emission, contrary to the case of a jet. According to our findings, even though no periodic radio flux variations have been reported up to date a radiatively inefficient hot accretion disk model cannot be conclusively ruled out.

arXiv comment5 pages including 2 eps files, submitted to Astronomy and Astrophysics

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• Dynamical Friction of a Circular-Orbit Perturber in a Gaseous Medium
• Using close stars as probes of hot accretion flow in Sgr A*