Abstract

Invited Talk - Splinter NonThermalAccel

Wednesday, 09 September 2026, 14:30   (MW-1250)

Exploring the Non-thermal Universe with LST and MAGIC

Axel Arbet-Engels, on behalf of the LST and MAGIC Collaborations
Max Planck Institute for Physics / University of Geneva

The detection of photons at gamma-ray energies provides a unique window into the most energetic and violent phenomena taking place in our Universe. Located on the island of La Palma, the MAGIC (Major Atmospheric Gamma Imaging Cherenkov) telescopes have been at the forefront of gamma-ray astronomy for more than two decades. The Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory (CTAO) represents the future of gamma-ray astronomy. With an impressive 23-m-diameter reflector, the Large-Sized Telescopes (LSTs) will dominate the CTAO sensitivity at low energies. Four LSTs are being built next to the MAGIC telescopes, and the first of them, LST-1, is already providing exciting scientific results. A low-energy threshold reaching down to 20 GeV, coupled with a lightweight design, provides unprecedented opportunities to characterize the very high-energy emission from a multitude of extreme astrophysical sources, such as pulsars, distant active galactic nuclei or rapid gamma-ray bursts. In this talk, I will review the results obtained by the LST and MAGIC Collaborations that are paving the way to the CTAO era. The presentation will cover studies on the non-thermal processes in galactic and extragalactic sources. Recent results on joint LST-1 and MAGIC observations that allow an additional boost in sensitivity will also be presented. Finally, the synergies with multi-wavelength and multi-messenger facilities will be highlighted.