Research Projects

Active galactic nuclei (AGNs) are powerful, long-lived objects in the Universe, and their variable nature has made it possible to map them with time resolution. However, current or near-future technology is limited due to high cadence and long time-baseline observations. A multi-band AGN monitoring project (INTERVAL) is proposed to address this issue by utilizing an existing small aperture telescope at the Indian Astronomical Observatory, IIA, and ongoing large imaging surveys. Multi-broadband optical and near-infrared imaging will be used to map the central region around supermassive black holes, tracing accretion disks on sub-parsec scales to the dusty torus component on parsec scales. INTERVAL will overcome the limitations of existing large surveys with limited band datasets, allowing for more comprehensive mapping of AGN physics. The project will also address the origin of spectral and color variability and its correlation with other multifrequency datasets on diverse time scales. The project will involve an extensive observational campaign, developing an automated data reduction pipeline, modeling algorithms of multi-band datasets, and testing various physical models of AGN innermost regions. To advance telescope operations, the 50cm telescope will be automated and auto-scheduling algorithms for queue mode observations. The INTERVAL campaign will integrate and complement other electromagnetic bands to probe extreme black-hole physics and map the nature and scales of the accretion disk out to torus.

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