Highlights of recent results from the VERITAS Active Galactic Nuclei Observing Program

Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) are the dominant class of the Very High Energy (VHE) gamma-ray sources. The VERITAS Observatory dedicates about 430 hr/year of dark time and 200 hr/year of observations under moonlight, on the AGN observing program. VERITAS is located at the Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory near Tucson, Arizona, and is sensitive to gamma rays with energies between of 85 GeV and 30 TeV. VERITAS became fully operational in 2007, and has since then detected 34 very high energy (VHE) AGN. The majority of the detected galaxies are blazars, in addition to a few radio galaxies. The VHE emission mechanism, and the location of the VHE emission zone of AGN are still poorly understood. Detailed observations of VHE AGN are necessary for understanding these uncertainties. AGN are plausible source candidates for ultra-high-energy cosmic rays and astrophysical neutrinos. VHE gamma-rays from AGN can also be used as probes to place limits on extragalactic background light density. This presentation will report the most recent results from the VERITAS AGN program including newly discovered AGN, and VHE flares of known TeV AGN.