The Seyfert 1 galaxy Ark 120 in 1996–2005: U BV RI photometry

Abstract

Photometry of the nucleus of the Seyfert 1 galaxy Ark 120 acquired in 1996–2005 with telescopes of the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory and the Sternberg Astronomical Institute’s Crimean Laboratory is used to construct and analyze the object’s U BV RI variability. The U BV RI variations have different timescales, and the variability amplitude grows towards shorter wavelengths. Changes in the color indices of the variable source appear to be due to variations in the opacity of gas at temperatures T > 15 000 K. The spectral energy distribution (SED) of the rapidly varying component is bluer than the SED of the slowly-varying component. The rapid variations are due to instabilities in the inner part of the accretion disk where, according to current ideas, the continuum is formed. Based on the peak of the cross-correlation function, the V RI variations lag the B variations by 1.4 to 5.6 days, with the lag increasing systematically from V to I. The lag calculated from the centroid of the cross-correlation function is from 2.8 days for V to 10.5 days for I. We demonstrate that the wavelength dependence of the lag is well approximated by the function τ ∝ λ4/3, characteristic of optically thick accretion disks.