THE FIRST ACCURATE PARALLAX DISTANCE TO A BLACK HOLE

Using astrometric VLBI observations, we have determined the parallax of the black hole X-ray binary V404 Cyg to be 0.418 ± 0.024 mas, corresponding to a distance of 2.39 ± 0.14 kpc, significantly lower than the previously accepted value. This model-independent estimate is the most accurate distance to a Galactic stellar-mass black hole measured to date. With this new distance, we confirm that the source was not super-Eddington during its 1989 outburst. The fitted distance and proper motion imply that the black hole in this system likely formed in a supernova, with the peculiar velocity being consistent with a recoil (Blaauw) kick. The size of the quiescent jets inferred to exist in this system is <1.4 AU at 22 GHz. Astrometric observations of a larger sample of such systems would provide useful insights into the formation and properties of accreting stellar-mass black holes.

[1]  J. Casares,et al.  Optical studies of V404 Cyg, the X-Ray transient GS 2023 + 338 – III. The secondary star and accretion disc , 1993 .

[2]  R. Fender,et al.  The radio spectrum of a quiescent stellar mass black hole , 2004, astro-ph/0410387.

[3]  Ucsb,et al.  Zooming in on a sleeping giant: milliarcsecond High Sensitivity Array imaging of the black hole binary V404 Cyg in quiescence , 2008, 0805.4603.

[4]  V. Kalogera,et al.  Theoretical Black Hole Mass Distributions , 1999, astro-ph/9911312.

[5]  Patrick Charlot,et al.  The International Celestial Reference Frame as Realized by Very Long Baseline Interferometry , 1998 .

[6]  J. Binney,et al.  The uncertainty in Galactic parameters , 2009, 0907.4685.

[7]  Michael R. Garcia,et al.  � 1997. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved. Printed in U.S.A. ADVECTION-DOMINATED ACCRETION AND BLACK HOLE EVENT HORIZONS , 1996 .

[8]  A universal radio-X-ray correlation in low/hard state black hole binaries , 2003, astro-ph/0305231.

[9]  I. Rodrigues,et al.  The runaway black hole GRO J1655-40 ⋆ , 2002, astro-ph/0211445.

[10]  Tim Naylor,et al.  The mass of the black hole in V404 Cygni , 1994 .

[11]  Laeff,et al.  STELLAR-MASS BLACK HOLE SPIN CONSTRAINTS FROM DISK REFLECTION AND CONTINUUM MODELING , 2009, 0902.2840.

[12]  Chris L. Fryer,et al.  UNDERSTANDING COMPACT OBJECT FORMATION AND NATAL KICKS. II. THE CASE OF XTE J1118 + 480 , 2008, 0809.1588.

[13]  W. Goss,et al.  Submitted to the Astrophysical Journal Preprint typeset using L ATEX style emulateapj v. 2/19/04 PRECISION ASTROMETRY WITH THE VERY LONG BASELINE ARRAY: PARALLAXES AND PROPER MOTIONS FOR 14 PULSARS , 2022 .

[14]  Eric W. Greisen,et al.  AIPS, the VLA, and the VLBA , 2003 .

[15]  S. Heinz Composition, Collimation, Contamination: The Jet of Cygnus X-1 , 2005, astro-ph/0509777.

[16]  A. Stirling,et al.  A relativistic jet from Cygnus X-1 in the low/hard X-ray state , 2001, astro-ph/0107192.

[17]  M. Guedel Stellar Radio Astronomy: Probing Stellar Atmospheres from Protostars to Giants , 2002, astro-ph/0206436.

[18]  Roger D. Blandford,et al.  Relativistic jets as compact radio sources , 1979 .

[19]  A. Merloni,et al.  A radio-emitting outflow in the quiescent state of A0620−00: implications for modelling low-luminosity black hole binaries , 2006, astro-ph/0605376.

[20]  S. Corbel,et al.  Revisiting the radio/X-ray flux correlation in the black hole V404 Cyg: from outburst to quiescence , 2008, 0806.3079.

[21]  F. Timmes,et al.  Understanding Compact Object Formation and Natal Kicks. I. Calculation Methods and the Case of GRO J1655–40 , 2004, astro-ph/0411423.

[22]  J. Casares,et al.  Optical studies of V404 Cyg, the X-ray transient GS 2023 + 338 – IV. The rotation speed of the companion star , 1994 .

[23]  R. P. Mignani,et al.  A high-velocity black hole on a Galactic-halo orbit in the solar neighbourhood , 2001, Nature.

[24]  M. Rupen,et al.  The Quiescent Spectral Energy Distribution of V404 Cyg , 2009, 0907.4376.

[25]  L. Loinard,et al.  VLBA Determination of the Distance to Nearby Star-forming Regions. I. The Distance to T Tauri with 0.4% Accuracy , 2007, 0708.2081.

[26]  I. Mirabel,et al.  Formation of a Black Hole in the Dark , 2003, Science.

[27]  E. L. Robinson,et al.  Infrared contamination in Galactic X-ray novae , 2008, 0804.0370.

[28]  R. Rosenfeld Nature , 2009, Otolaryngology--head and neck surgery : official journal of American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery.

[29]  The Spin of the Near-Extreme Kerr Black Hole GRS 1915+105 , 2006, astro-ph/0606076.

[30]  Kristen Menou,et al.  Black Hole and Neutron Star Transients in Quiescence , 1998, astro-ph/9810323.

[31]  G. A. Moellenbrock,et al.  TRIGONOMETRIC PARALLAXES OF MASSIVE STAR-FORMING REGIONS. VI. GALACTIC STRUCTURE, FUNDAMENTAL PARAMETERS, AND NONCIRCULAR MOTIONS , 2009, 0902.3913.

[32]  Amsterdam,et al.  The formation of the black hole in the X-ray binary system V404 Cyg , 2008, 0812.3327.

[33]  Andre Heck,et al.  Information Handling in Astronomy - Historical Vistas , 2002 .

[34]  I. Mirabel,et al.  Kinematics of Black Hole X-Ray Binary GRS 1915+105 , 2007, 0705.1800.

[35]  P. G. Jonker,et al.  The distances to Galactic low-mass X-ray binaries: consequences for black hole luminosities and kicks , 2004 .

[36]  C. Haswell,et al.  The Spectrum of the Black Hole X-Ray Nova V404 Cygni in Quiescence as Measured by XMM-Newton , 2007, 0706.2652.