Exploring the potential for ultra-relativistic jets in Scorpius X-1 with low angular resolution radio observations

Journal article

Scorpius X-1 (Sco X-1) is a neutron star X-ray binary in which the neutron star is accreting rapidly from a low-mass stellar companion. At radio frequencies, Sco X-1 is highly luminous and has been observed to have jet ejecta moving at mildly relativistic velocities away from a radio core, which corresponds to the binary position. In this letter, we present new radio observations of Sco X-1 taken with the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array. Using a fast imaging method, we find that the 10 and 15 GHz data show a number of flares. We interpret these flares as the possible launching of fast jets (), previously observed in Sco X-1 and called ultra-relativistic flows, and their interaction with slower moving jet ejecta. Using the period between successive flares, we find that it is possible for the fast jets to remain undetected, as a result of the fast jet velocity being sufficiently high to cause the jet emission to be beamed in the direction of the motion and out of our line of sight. Our findings demonstrate that the ultra-relativistic flows could be explained by the presence of fast jets in the Sco X-1 system.

Authors: Stephens, I; Rhodes, L; Cooper, AJ; Motta, SE; Bright, JS

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Journal: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
• Volume: 546
• Issue: 2
• Pages: stag046
• Article number: stag046
• Publication date: 2026-01-09
• Acceptance date: 2026-01-06
• DOI: 10.1093/mnras/stag046
• EISSN: 1365-2966
• ISSN: 0035-8711
• Language: English
• Keywords: X-rays: binaries; stars: neutron; radio continuum: transients