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Photometric Variability of Energetic Transients

Led by Dr. Daryl Macomb at Boise State, this group will conduct photometric monitoring of variable sources that are bright sources of X-ray and gamma-ray emission, mainly accreting binaries and blazar-type active galactic nuclei. The multi-wavelength correlation between optical and higher-energy radiation from such systems is an important tool for understanding the accretion processes in binaries and the variability of the relativistic jets responsible for blazar spectra.

A black hole surrounded by a yellow and red accretion disk is pulling in matter from a close blue star. Matter from the star is being accreted into the disk as the black hole spins.
Artist impression of an x-ray binary, Credit: NASA/CXC/M.Weiss