NuSTAR Observations and Multiwavelength Modeling of the High-redshift BL Lacertae Object 4FGL J2146.5-1344

Abstract

Abstract High synchrotron peak (HSP; Hz) BL Lac objects are some of the most extreme accelerators in the universe. Those found at high redshifts (z > 1) challenge our understanding of blazar evolution models and are crucial for cosmological measurements of the extragalactic background light. In this paper, we study a high-z BL Lac object, 4FGL J2146.5-1344, detected to be at z = 1.34 using the photometric dropout technique. We collected multiwavelength data for this source from optical up to γ-rays, in order to study its spectral energy distribution (SED). In particular, this source was observed for the first time with the Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array, which accurately measures the synchrotron emission of this blazar up to 50 keV. Despite being classified as an HSP BL Lac object, the modeling of the SED reveals that this source likely belongs to the “masquerading BL Lac” class, which comprises flat spectrum radio quasars appearing as disguised BL Lac objects.