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Morales-Soto, J. A. (ORCID:0000000193610147)

Publications and source records attributed to Morales-Soto, J. A. (ORCID:0000000193610147).

HAWC Detection of a TeV Halo Candidate Surrounding a Radio-quiet Pulsar

Extended very-high-energy (VHE; 0.1–100 TeV) γ-ray emission has been observed around several middle-aged pulsars and referred to as "TeV halos." Their formation mechanism remains under debate. It is also unknown whether they are ubiquitous or related to a certain subgroup of pulsars. With 2321 days of observation, the High Altitude Water Cherenkov (HAWC) Gamma-Ray Observatory detected VHE γ-ray emission at the location of the radio-quiet pulsar PSR J0359+5414 with >6σ significance. By performing likelihood tests with different spectral and spatial models and comparing the TeV spectrum with multiwavelength observations of nearby sources, we show that this excess is consistent with a TeV halo associated with PSR J0359+5414, though future observation of HAWC and multiwavelength follow-ups are needed to confirm this nature. This new halo candidate is located in a noncrowded region in the outer galaxy. It shares similar properties to the other halos but its pulsar is younger and radio-quiet. Our observation implies that TeV halos could commonly exist around pulsars and their formation does not depend on the configuration of the pulsar magnetosphere.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

γ-Ray Emission from Classical Nova V392 Per: Measurements from Fermi and HAWC

This paper reports on the γ -ray properties of the 2018 Galactic nova V392 Per, spanning photon energies ~0.1 GeV–100 TeV by combining observations from the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope and the HAWC Observatory. As one of the most rapidly evolving γ -ray signals yet observed for a nova, GeV γ -rays with a power-law spectrum with an index Γ = 2.0 ± 0.1 were detected over 8 days following V392 Per’s optical maximum. HAWC observations constrain the TeV γ -ray signal during this time and also before and after. We observe no statistically significant evidence of TeV γ -ray emission from V392 Per, but present flux limits. Tests disfavor the extension of the Fermi Large Area Telescope spectrum to energies above 5 TeV by 2 standard deviations (95%) or more. We fit V392 Per’s GeV γ -rays with hadronic acceleration models, incorporating optical observations, and compare the calculations with HAWC limits.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

HAWC Study of the Ultra-high-energy Spectrum of MGRO J1908+06

We report TeV gamma-ray observations of the ultra-high-energy source MGRO J1908+06 using data from the High Altitude Water Cherenkov Observatory. This source is one of the highest-energy known gamma-ray sources, with emission extending past 200 TeV. Modeling suggests that the bulk of the TeV gamma-ray emission is leptonic in nature, driven by the energetic radio-faint pulsar PSR J1907+0602. Depending on what assumptions are included in the model, a hadronic component may also be allowed. Using the results of the modeling, we discuss implications for detection prospects by multi-messenger campaigns.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗