Dr. David Paneque (Max-Planck Institute)
The challenge of studying blazars: the crucial role of gamma-ray astronomy
Blazars are the most powerful persistent sources in the Universe, bringing information about physical processes that cannot be reproduced on Earth-based laboratories. Despite having been studied for half a century, they are still far from being understood due to their complexity and a number of observational challenges that need to be overcome. In the presentation I will show that the advent of the new Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes (in operation since 2004, and upgraded in mid 2012), the Large Area Telescope (in operation since mid 2008) on board of the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope, and the upcoming Cherenkov Telescope Array (expected to start partial operation in 2018) provides us with a wealth of possibilities that did not exist before, and can play a crucial role in boosting our understanding of these extreme objects during the next 10 years.