X-RAY OBSERVATIONS OF TIDAL DISRUPTIONS EVENTS ARE A UNIQUE PROBE OF THE PHYSICS OF ACCRETION AROUND SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLES AS THEY ARE THOUGHT TO START OUT AS SUPER-EDDINGTON ACCRETION FLOWS AND TRANSITION TO THINNER ACCRETION DISCS ON TIMESCALES OF MONTHS/YEARS. XMM-NEWTON HAS BEEN AN INVALUABLE INSTRUMENT FOR MAKING DEEP OBSERVATIONS OF TIDAL DISRUPTION EVENTS AT EARLY TIMES SOON AFTER THEIR DISCOVERY AND HAS REVEALED QUASI-PERIODIC OSCILLATIONS X-RAY REVERBERATION AND IONISED WINDS ALL OF WHICH HAVE HELPED CONSTRAIN THE PHYSICS OF THE SUPER-EDDINGTON PHASE OF ACCRETION. HOWEVER OBSERVATIONS AT LATE TIMES HAVE EITHER BEEN TOO SHORT OR OCCURRED TOO LONG AFTER THE INITIAL FLARE AND THEREFORE WE HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO TRACE THE EVOLUTION OF THE QPOS WINDS ETC. AS THE ACCRETION FLOW CHANGES. IN THIS PROPOSAL WE AIM TO FOLLOW-UP A BRIGHT X-RAY TIDAL DISRUPTION EVENT (WHICH WILL BE WELL-OBSERVED AT ITS PEAK) WITH A DEEP 150 KS OBSERVATION 3 MONTHS AFTER THE INITIAL DISCOVERY REVEALING THE PHYSICS OF HOW DISCS WINDS AND JETS AROUND BLACK HOLES CHANGE WITH ACCRETION RATE.
$0FY2020National Aeronautics and Space AdministrationNASA
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