Radio flares and plasmon size in Cygnus X-3

We have observed a number of minor radio flares in Cyg X-3 using the MERLIN array. Photometric observations show the system to be highly active with multiple flares on hourly time-scales over the one month observing programme. Analysis of the power spectrum of the source show no persistent periodicities in these data, and no evidence of the 4.8-h orbital period. An upper limit of 15 mJy can be placed on the amplitude of any sinusoidal variation of source flux at the orbital period. The brightness temperature of a flare is typically Tb≥109–1010 K, with a number of small flares of 5-min duration having brightness temperatures of Tb≥ few×1011 K. For such a change in flux to occur within a typical 10-min time-scale, the radiation must originate from plasmons with a size ≤1.22 au. This emission is unlikely to originate close to the centre of the system as both the jets and compact object are buried deep within an optically thick stellar wind. Assuming a spherically symmetric wind, plasmons would become visible at distances ∼13 au from the core.