Related papers: Identifying Black Hole Central Engines in Gamma-Ra…
The central engine of short gamma-ray bursts (sGRBs) is hidden from direct view, operating at a scale much smaller than that probed by the emitted radiation. Thus we must infer its origin not only with respect to the formation of the {\it…
The mechanisms responsible for the production of relativistic jets from supermassive black holes (SMBHs) accreting at near-Eddington rates are not well-understood. Simple theoretical expectations indicate that SMBHs in quasars accrete via…
We calculate the minimum value of the power in kinetic bulk motion of the galactic superluminal source GRS 1915+105. This value far exceeds the Eddington luminosity for accretion onto a black hole of 10 solar masses. This large value…
To explain the extremely high energy release, $>10^{53}$~erg, suggested by the observations of some Gamma Ray Bursts (GRBs) we propose a new energy extraction mechanism from the rotation energy of a Kerr-Newman black hole (BH) by a massive…
An introduction is given to a meeting on the role of massive and stellar black holes in powering non-thermal activity in a rich variety of cosmic sources. Relevant properties of magnetized, spinning black holes are summarized and their…
The existence of black holes (BHs) of mass ~ 10^{9} M_sun at z > 6 is a big puzzle in astrophysics because even optimistic estimates of the accretion time are insufficient for stellar mass BHs of ~ 10 M_sun to grow into such supermassive…
Striking similarities exist between high energy gamma ray emission from active galactic nuclei (AGN) and gamma ray bursts (GRBs). They suggest that GRBs are generated by inverse Compton scattering from highly relativistic electrons in…
Recent observations of Galactic Black Hole Candidates (BHCs) suggest that those that are superluminal jet sources have more rapid black hole spin rates than otherwise normal BHCs. This provides observational support for models of…
We use two-dimensional relativistic hydrodynamic numerical calculations to show that highly collimated relativistic jets can be produced in neutron star merger models of short-duration gamma ray bursts without the need for a highly directed…
Based on recent models of relativistic jet formation by thermal energy deposition around black hole-torus systems, the relation between the on- and off-axis appearance of short, hard gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) is discussed in terms of…
Observations of jets in X-ray binaries show a correlation between radio power and black hole spin. This correlation, if confirmed, points towards the idea that relativistic jets may be powered by the rotational energy of black holes. In…
By means of three-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations with a Eulerian PPM code we investigate the formation and the properties of the accretion torus around the stellar mass black hole which originates from the merging of two neutron…
The ultrarelativistic jets triggered by neutrino annihilation processes or Blandford-Znajek (BZ) mechanisms in stellar-mass black hole (BH) hyperaccretion systems are generally considered to power gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). Due to the high…
We have not identified for sure what is the mechanism launching, accelerating and collimating relativistic jets. The two most likely possibilities are the gravitational energy of the accreting matter or the rotational energy of a spinning…
Gamma-ray bursts are the most luminous electromagnetic events in the universe. Their prompt gamma-ray emission has typical durations between a fraction of a second and several minutes. A rare subset of these events have durations in excess…
Two related topics are discussed. 1. Accretion onto black holes at low and high (though not very high) rates is believed to proceed adiabatically ({\em ie} non-radiatively). It is argued that the liberated energy is carried off by an…
Progenitors of long GRBs, and core-collapse supernovae in general, may have two separate mechanisms driving the outflows: quasi-isotropic neutrino-driven supernova explosions followed by a highly collimated relativistic outflow driven by…
Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are luminous stellar explosions characterized by the ejection of relativistic jets. This work proposes a novel paradigm to study these GRB jets. By analyzing the timing information of prompt pulses and X-ray flares,…
Growing evidence connects the progenitor systems of the short-hard subclass of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) to the merger of compact object binaries composed by two neutron stars (NSs) or by a NS and a black hole (BH). The recent observation of…
The radiation observed by blazars is believed to originate from the transformation of bulk kinetic energy of relativistic jets into random energy. A simple way to achieve this is to have an intermittent central power source, producing…