Search for TeV γ-ray emission from giant radiogalaxies with the HEGRA IACT system

Giant radiogalaxies, e.g. the elliptical galaxy M 87 with a mass of about $1013M⊙,$ contain nonthermal energy in form of accelerated particles. Their central engines, possibly supermassive black holes, are supposed to be responsible for the building up of large scale jets. TeV γ-radiation could be produced as a consequence of termination shocks of these jets in the surrounding interstellar medium or due to particle interactions close to the center of these objects. A search for TeV γ-rays from a selection of nearby giant radiogalaxies has been performed by the HEGRA collaboration using the stereoscopic system of five Imaging Air Cherenkov Telescopes (IACTs). The prominent objects Virgo A (M 87), Cygnus A (3C 405) and Perseus A (NGC 1275) have been observed in the years 1998 to 2000.