Related papers: Spikey: Self-Lensing Flares from Eccentric SMBH Bi…
We present a method for finding binaries among pulsating stars that were observed by the Kepler Mission. We use entire four-year light curves to accurately measure the frequencies of the strongest pulsation modes, then track the pulsation…
This paper explores the possibility of determining the spin of the supermassive black hole (SMBH) in Sgr A*, by using secondary images of stars orbiting the SMBH. The photons propagate close to the SMBH and their trajectories probe the…
We perform a systematic search for sub-parsec binary supermassive black holes (BHs) in normal broad line quasars at z<0.8, using multi-epoch SDSS spectroscopy of the broad Hbeta line. Our working model is that: only one of the two BHs in…
Dual/binary Supermassive Black Hole (SMBH) systems are the inevitable consequence of the current Lambda Cold Dark Matter cosmological paradigm. In this context, we discuss here the properties of MCG+11-11-032, a local (z=0.0362) Seyfert 2…
Hot subdwarfs in close binaries with either M dwarf, brown dwarf or white dwarf companions show unique light variations. In hot subdwarf binaries with M dwarf or brown dwarf companions we can observe the so-called reflection effect and in…
Elusive supermassive black hole binaries (SMBHBs) are thought to be the penultimate stage of galaxy mergers, preceding a final coalescence phase. SMBHBs are sources of continuous gravitational waves, possibly detectable by pulsar timing…
Accreting massive black hole binaries (MBHBs) often display periodic variations in their emitted radiation, providing a distinctive signature for their identification. In this work, we explore the MBHBs identification via optical…
Recent observations indicate that many if not all galaxies host massive central black holes (BHs). In this paper we explore the influence of supermassive binary black holes (SMBBHs) on their actions as gravitational lenses. When lenses are…
Coalescence of binary supermassive black holes (SBHs) would constitute the strongest sources of gravitational waves to be observed by LISA. While the formation of binary SBHs during galaxy mergers is almost inevitable, coalescence requires…
Most massive galaxies contain a supermassive black hole (SMBH) at their center. When galaxies merge, their SMBHs sink to the center of the new galaxy where they are thought to eventually merge. During this process an SMBH binary is formed.…
Gravitational lensing in the wave-optics regime imprints characteristic frequency-dependent amplitude and phase modulations on gravitational-wave (GW) signals, yet to be detected by ground-based interferometers. Similar modulations may also…
Repeatedly flaring X-ray binaries have recently been discovered in NGC 4697 by Sivakoff and collaborators. We show that these flares can be explained as the result of eccentric binaries in globular clusters which accrete more rapidly at…
Binarity is often invoked to explain peculiarities that can not be explained by the standard theory of stellar evolution. Detecting orbital motion via the Doppler effect is the best method to test binarity when direct imaging is not…
There is a large degree of variety in the optical variability of quasars and it is unclear whether this is all attributable to a single (set of) physical mechanism(s). We present the results of a systematic search for major flares in AGN in…
Supermassive black hole binaries (SMBHs) are a fascinating byproduct of galaxy mergers in the hierarchical universe. In the last stage of their orbital evolution, gravitational wave radiation drives the binary inspiral and produces the…
Because most large galaxies contain a central black hole, and galaxies often merge, black-hole binaries are expected to be common in galactic nuclei. Although they cannot be imaged, periodicities in the light curves of quasars have been…
The disruption of a star by a supermassive black hole generates a sudden bright flare. Previous studies have focused on the disruption by single black holes, for which the fallback rate decays as~$\propto t^{-5/3}$. In this paper, we…
We analyze the microlensing event OGLE-2019-BLG-0304, whose light curve exhibits two distinctive features: a deviation in the peak region and a second bump appearing $\sim 61$~days after the main peak. Although a binary-lens model can…
Double-peaked broad emission lines in Active Galactic Nuclei (AGNs) may indicate the existence of a bound supermassive black hole (SMBH) binary where two distinct broad line regions (BLRs) contribute together to the line profile. An…
It is generally accepted that all massive galaxies host supermassive black holes (BHs) in their center and that mergers of two galaxies lead to the formation of BH binaries. The most interesting among them comprise the mergers in their…