XMM-Newton and Chandra monitoring of Sgr A*

This includes the latest XMM-Newton and Chandra campaigns devoted to monitoring the closest approach of the very red Br{gamma} emitting object called G2. The entire data set analysed extends from 1999 September through 2014 November.

We employed a Bayesian block analysis to investigate any possible variations in the characteristics (frequency, energetics, peak intensity, duration) of the flaring events that Sgr A* has exhibited since their discovery in 2001. We observe that the total bright or very bright flare luminosity of Sgr A* increased between 2013 and 2014 by a factor of 2-3 (~3.5{sigma} significance). We also observe an increase (~99.9 percent significance) from 0.27+/-0.04 to 2.5+/-1.0/d of the bright or very bright flaring rate of Sgr A*, starting in late summer 2014, which happens to be about six months after G2's pericentre passage.