[68.04] A central image of a gravitationally lensed quasar

AAS 203rd Meeting, January 2004
Session 68 Galaxy Clusters and Large Scale Structure III
Oral, Tuesday, January 6, 2004, 2:00-3:30pm, Centennial III

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[68.04] A central image of a gravitationally lensed quasar

J.N. Winn (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics), D. Rusin (University of Pennsylvania), C.S. Kochanek (Ohio State University)

When a quasar is strongly lensed by a foreground galaxy, lens theory predicts that in many cases there should be a faint central image, corresponding to the central maximum in light-travel time. However, no central image has ever been securely identified, presumably due to extreme de-magnification by the large central densities of lens galaxies. We present the first secure identification of a central image, based on new and sensitive high-frequency radio observations of the lens system PMN J1632-0033. The properties of the central image place strong constraints on the mass distribution of the lens galaxy and an upper limit on the mass of its central black hole.

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