Multi-epoch UV–X-Ray Spectral Study of NGC 4151 with AstroSat

We study accretion disk emission from eight Seyfert 1–1.5 active galactic nuclei (AGN) using far-ultraviolet (FUV) (1300–1800 Å) slitless grating spectra acquired with AstroSat/UVIT. We correct for the Galactic and intrinsic extinction, contamination from the host galaxies, narrow and broad-line regions, Fe ii emission, and Balmer continuum, and derive the intrinsic continua. We use Hubble Space Telescope COS/FOS spectra to account for the emission/absorption lines in the low-resolution UVIT spectra. We find generally redder power-law (f ν ∝ ν α ) slopes (α ∼ −1.1 to 0.3) in the FUV band than predicted by the standard accretion disk model in the optical/UV band. We fit accretion disk models such as the multitemperature disk blackbody (DISKBB) and relativistic disk (ZKERRBB, OPTXAGNF) models to the observed intrinsic continuum emission. We measure the inner disk temperatures using the DISKBB model for seven AGN. These temperatures in the range ∼3.6–5.8 eV are lower than the peak temperatures predicted for standard disks around maximally spinning supermassive black holes accreting at Eddington rates. The inner disks in two AGN, NGC 7469, and Mrk 352, appear to be truncated at ∼35–125 and 50–135 r g , respectively. While our results show that the intrinsic FUV emission from the AGN is consistent with the standard disks, it is possible that UV continua may be affected by the presence of soft X-ray excess emission, X-ray reprocessing, and thermal Comptonization in the hot corona. Joint spectral modeling of simultaneously acquired UV/X-ray data may be necessary to further investigate the nature of accretion disks in AGN.

We present a method to estimate and map the two-dimensional distribution of dust extinction in the late-type spiral galaxy NGC 959 from the theoretical and observed flux ratio of optical V and mid-IR (MIR) 3.6 micron images. Our method is applicable to both young and old stellar populations for a range of metallicities, and is not restricted to lines-of-sight toward star-formation (SF) regions. We explore this method using a pixel-based analysis on images of NGC 959 obtained in the V-band at the Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope (VATT) and at 3.6 micron (L-band) with Spitzer/IRAC. We present the original and extinction corrected GALEX far-UV (FUV) and near-UV (NUV) images, as well as optical UBVR images of NGC 959. While the dust lanes are not clearly evident at GALEX resolution, our dust map clearly traces the dust that can be seen silhouetted against the galaxy's disk in the high-resolution HST images of NGC 959. The advantages of our method are: (1) it only depends on two relatively common broadband images in the optical V-band and in the MIR at 3.6 micron (but adding a near-UV band improves its fidelity); and (2) it is able to map the two-dimensional spatial distribution of dust within a galaxy. This powerful tool could be used to measure the detailed distribution of dust extinction within higher redshift galaxies to be observed with, e.g., the HST/WFC3 (optical--near-IR) and JWST (mid-IR), and to distinguish properties of dust within galaxy bulges, spiral arms, and inter-arm regions.

We present a time variability analysis of broad absorption lines (BAL; spread over the velocity range of 5800–29 000 km s−1) seen in the spectrum of J132216.25 + 052446.3 (zem = 2.04806) at ten different epochs spanning over 19 yr. The strongest absorption component (BAL-A; spread over 5800–9900 km s−1) is made up of several narrow components having velocity separations close to C iv doublet splitting. The C iv, N v, and Si iv absorption from BAL-A show correlated optical depth variability without major changes in the velocity structure. A very broad and shallow absorption (BAL-C; spread over the velocity range 15 000–29 000 km s−1) emerged during our monitoring period coinciding with a dimming episode of J1322 + 0524. All the identified absorption lines show correlated variability with the equivalent widths increasing with decreasing flux. This together with the C iv emission line variability is consistent with ionization being the main driver of the correlated variability. The observed UV-continuum variations are weaker than what is required by the photoionization models. This together with a scatter in the C iv equivalent width at a given continuum flux can be understood if variations of the C iv ionizing photons are much larger than that of the UV continuum, the variations in the ionizing photon and UV fluxes are not correlated and/or the covering factor of the flow varies continuously. We suggest BAL-A is produced by a stable clumpy outflow located beyond the broad emission line region and BAL-C is a newly formed wind component located near the accretion disc and both respond to changes in the ionizing continuum.

Here we give an observational method for measurements of the equatorial scattering region radius using variability in the polarized broad lines in Type 1 active galactic nuclei (AGNs). The polarization in broad lines of Type 1 AGNs is mostly caused by equatorial scattering, where specific features allow one to separate its contribution from the total polarized flux. We propose to monitor variability in the polarized line flux and find the time lag between the nonpolarized continuum and polarized broad line variability. The distance to the scattering screen can then be determined from the time delay. The method was, for the first time, applied to the observations of the Type 1 AGN Mrk 6, and we found that the size of the scattering region in this AGN is around 100 lt-days. That is significantly smaller than the dusty region size estimated by the infrared interferometric observations and also larger than known broad line region (BLR) size. This indicates that the scattering region lies between the BLR and the dusty region and could be used as a probe of the dust sublimation radius.

X-Ray studies of the physics of matter around super-massive black-holes in nearby Seyfert galaxies

Changing-look active galactic nuclei (AGNs) present an important laboratory to understand the origin and physical properties of the broad-line region (BLR). We investigate follow-up optical spectroscopy spanning ∼500 days after the outburst of the changing-look AGN 1ES 1927+654. The emission lines displayed dramatic, systematic variations in intensity, velocity width, velocity shift, and symmetry. Analysis of optical spectra and multiband images indicates that the host galaxy contains a pseudobulge and a total stellar mass of . Enhanced continuum radiation from the outburst produced an accretion disk wind, which condensed into BLR clouds in the region above and below the temporary eccentric disk. Broad Balmer lines emerged ∼100 days after the outburst, together with an unexpected, additional component of narrow-line emission. The newly formed BLR clouds then traveled along a similar eccentric orbit (e ≈ 0.6). The Balmer decrement of the BLR increased by a factor of ∼4–5 as a result of secular changes in cloud density. The drop in density at late times allowed the production of He i and He ii emission. The mass of the black hole cannot be derived from the broad emission lines because the BLR is not virialized. Instead, we use the stellar properties of the host galaxy to estimate . The nucleus reached near or above its Eddington limit during the peak of the outburst. We discuss the nature of the changing-look AGN 1ES 1927+654 in the context of other tidal disruption events.

Context. R Aqr is a symbiotic binary system consisting of a Mira variable with a pulsation period of 387 days and a hot companion which is presumably a white dwarf with an accretion disk. This binary system is the source of a prominent bipolar gaseous outflow. Aims. We use high spatial resolution and sensitive images from the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) to identify and investigate the different structural components that form the complex morphology of the R Aqr jet. Methods. We present new high-resolution HST WFC3/UVIS narrow-band images of the R Aqr jet obtained in 2013/14 using the [OIII]λ5007, [OI]λ6300, [NII]λ6583, and Hα emission lines. These images also allow us to produce detailed maps of the jet flow in several line ratios such as [OIII]λ5007/[OI]λ6300 and [NII]λ6583/[OI]λ6300 which are sensitive to the outflow temperature and its hydrogen ionisation fraction. The new emission maps together with archival HST data are used to derive and analyse the proper motion of prominent emitting features which can be traced over 20 years with the HST observations. Results. The images reveal the fine gas structure of the jet out to distances of a few tens of arcseconds from the central region, as well as in the innermost region, within a few arcseconds around the stellar source. They reveal for the first time the straight, highly collimated jet component which can be traced to up to ~900 AU in the NE direction. Images in [OIII]λ5007, [OI]λ6300, and [NII]λ6583 clearly show a helical pattern in the jet beams which may derive from the small-scale precession of the jet. The highly collimated jet is accompanied by a wide opening angle outflow which is filled by low excitation gas. The position angles of the jet structures as well as their opening angles are calculated. Our measurements of the proper motions of some prominent emission knots confirm the scenario of gas acceleration during the propagation of the outflow. Finally, we produce several detailed line ratio maps which present a mosaic combined from the large field and the PSF-subtracted inner region. Conclusions. The high signal-to-noise HST WFC3/UVIS images provide powerful tools for the study of the jet morphology and also bring detailed information about the physical jet gas conditions. The simultaneous observations of [OIII], [OI], [NII], and [SII] would allow us to measure basic parameters of the ionised gas in the R Aqr outflow such as electron density, electron temperature and hydrogen ionisation fraction, and compare them with other stellar jets.

The requirement of an intermediate-line component in the recently observed spectra of several active galactic nuclei (AGNs) points to the possible existence of a physically separate region between the broad-line region (BLR) and narrow-line region (NLR). In this paper we explore the emission from the intermediate-line region (ILR) by using photoionization simulations of the gas clouds distributed radially from the center of the AGN. The gas clouds span distances typical for the BLR, ILR, and NLR, and the appearance of dust at the sublimation radius is fully taken into account in our model. The structure of a single cloud is calculated under the assumption of constant pressure. We show that the slope of the power-law radial profile of the cloud density does not affect the existence of the ILR in major types of AGNs. We found that the low-ionization iron line, Fe ii, appears to be highly sensitive to the presence of dust and therefore becomes a potential tracer of dust content in line-emitting regions. We show that the use of a disk-like cloud density profile computed for the upper part of the atmosphere of the accretion disk reproduces the observed properties of the line emissivities. In particular, the distance of the Hβ line inferred from our model agrees with that obtained from reverberation mapping studies in the Sy1 galaxy NGC 5548.

Nowadays we generally accept the idea that the emission from active galactic nuclei (AGNs) is powered by an accreting supermassive black hole (SMBH) at the center of a galaxy. It is also well known that most -probably all- galaxies go through an active phase at some point in their lives, and that several empirical relations connect black hole and host galaxy properties: this suggests that a tight feedback between the evolution of the black hole and the host galaxy exists; hence, in order to go deeper into galaxy evolution, it is crucial for us to learn more about the formation and evolution of the black holes residing in their centers. Variability is a defining property of AGN emission at all wavebands, and concerns both continuum and broad-line emission. It is generally attributed to instabilities in the AGN accretion disk, together with changes in the accretion rate. Since the extent of variations in different wavelength ranges is not the same, variability measurements can help understand the underlying emission mechanism, constraining the size and structure of the emitting region. The present work investigates AGN variability from two different perspectives. The first part of the project tests the efficiency of optical variability as a tool to select AGNs, since optical continuum variability seems to be a universal feature of broad-line AGNs on timescales from months to years, with variations generally ranging from 1% to 10% of the magnitude, but also much larger (50% of the magnitude) in some cases. Testing techniques for AGN identification based on data from ground-based telescopes is of great relevance in the framework of current and future wide-field surveys (e.g., Dark Energy Survey, Large Synoptic Survey Telescope), since we will need reliable methods to detect and classify the wealth of sources they will provide. The second part of the project investigates the variability of broad absorption lines (BALs) in quasi-stellar object (QSO) spectra, in order to deeply understand the physics and structure of AGNs. BALs originate from outflowing winds along our line of sight; winds are thought to originate from the accretion disk, in the very proximity of the central SMBH; we generally think that they are responsible for a triggering of the accretion mechanism onto the SMBH, as they remove angular momentum from the disk and, since they evacuate gas from the host galaxy, they also play a leading role into galaxy evolution. Several works show that BAL equivalent widths can change on typical timescales from months to years. Such variability is generally attributed to changes in the covering factor (due to rotation and/or changes in the wind structure) and/or in the ionization level. We investigate BAL variability, focusing on BAL disappearance, in a sample of more than 1500 QSOs -the largest sample ever used for such an analysis- to gain insight into the structure and co-evolution of the SMBH and the host galaxy.

According to the standard model, an active galactic nucleus (AGN) consists of an inner accretion disk with a jet around a central massive black hole, and a number of outer broad line regions (BLRs) and narrow line regions (NLRs). The geometrical relationship between the BLRs and the accretion disk is not well understood. Assuming the motion of the BLRs is virialized and its configuration is disk-like, we derived its inclination to the line of sight for a sample of AGNs from their bulge stellar velocity dispersion, their size of the BLRs and their H β linewidth. Compared with the inclination of the accretion disk obtained from the X-ray Fe K α emission lines, we found that there is no positive correlation between the two. Our results showed that BLRs are not coplanar with the accretion disk and that we should be cautious of using the BLRs inclination as the disk inclination. The non-coplanar geometry of the outer BLRs and the inner accretion disk provides clues to the origin of BLRs and the properties of the accretion disk. Our preferable interpretation is that BLRs arise out of the outer part of a warped accretion disk.

Deep optical imaging of Mkn 231 reveals twin (tidal?) tails, a linear nuclear feature at green wavelengths, and a very blue region 4 arcsec south of the nucleus. Much of the central part of the galaxy is red, but there are complex areas of blue luminosity outside this, and a sharp edge to the luminosity at a distance of ~16 arcsec from the centre. Overall, the host galaxy appears to have a normal optical luminosity and blue colour (B-R ~0.7) despite being one of the most luminous galaxies known in the infrared. Radio emission in the system is extended on one side on a similar scale to the optical tails, but shows no detailed correspondence with optical structure; in particular there is no radio counterpart to the optical ‘jet’. Examination of IUE archival data indicate that the UV flux is very weak and the UV spectrum is peculiar for a Seyfert galaxy. The UV observations provide evidence for considerable nuclear extinction in the system, in accordance with previously published optical and infrared work, but the UV extinction is unlike Galactic absorption and may be more similar to that seen in the LMC. Recent optical spectra of Mkn 231 show changes in both the emission line spectrum and in the strong broad absorption lines (BAL), compared with previously published observations. This places strong limitations on the size of the nuclear continuum source. We suggest that Mkn 221 is a recently merged system which is currently undergoing star-formation, and discuss the connection with BAL QSOs.

Deep optical imaging of Mkn 231 reveals twin (tidal?) tails, a linear nuclear feature at green wavelengths, and a very blue region 4 arcsec south of the nucleus. Much of the central part of the galaxy is red, but there are complex areas of blue luminosity outside this, and a sharp edge to the luminosity at a distance of ~16 arcsec from the centre. Overall, the host galaxy appears to have a normal optical luminosity and blue colour (B-R ~0.7) despite being one of the most luminous galaxies known in the infrared. Radio emission in the system is extended on one side on a similar scale to the optical tails, but shows no detailed correspondence with optical structure; in particular there is no radio counterpart to the optical ‘jet’. Examination of IUE archival data indicate that the UV flux is very weak and the UV spectrum is peculiar for a Seyfert galaxy. The UV observations provide evidence for considerable nuclear extinction in the system, in accordance with previously published optical and infrared work, but the UV extinction is unlike Galactic absorption and may be more similar to that seen in the LMC. Recent optical spectra of Mkn 231 show changes in both the emission line spectrum and in the strong broad absorption lines (BAL), compared with previously published observations. This places strong limitations on the size of the nuclear continuum source. We suggest that Mkn 221 is a recently merged system which is currently undergoing star-formation, and discuss the connection with BAL QSOs.

Deep optical imaging of Mkn 231 reveals twin (tidal?) tails, a linear nuclear feature at green wavelengths, and a very blue region 4 arcsec south of the nucleus. Much of the central part of the galaxy is red, but there are complex areas of blue luminosity outside this, and a sharp edge to the luminosity at a distance of about 16 arcsec from the center. Overall, the host galaxy appears to have a normal optical luminosity and blue color (B-R = about 0.7) despite being one of the most luminous galaxies known in the IR. Radio emission in the system is extended on one side on a scale similar to the optical tails, but shows no detailed correspondence with optical structure; in particular, there is no radio counterpart to the optical 'jet'. Examination of IUE archival data indicates that the UV flux is very weak and the UV spectrum is peculiar for a Seyfert galaxy. The UV observations provide evidence for considerable nuclear extinction in the system, in accordance with previously published optical and IR work, but the UV extinction is unlike Galactic absorption and may be more similar to that seen in the LMC. Recent optical spectra of Mkn 231 show changes in both the emission-line spectrum and in the strong broad absorption lines (BAL), compared with previously published observations. It is suggested that Mkn 231 may be a recently merged system which is currently undergoing star formation. The connection with BAL QSOs is also discussed.

The broad-line region (BLR) disappears in many low-luminosity AGNs, the reason of which is still controversial. The BLRs in AGNs are believed to be associated with the outflows from the accretion disks. Most of the low-luminosity AGNs (LLAGNs) contain advection dominated accretion flows (ADAFs), which are very hot and have a positive Bernoulli parameter. ADAFs are therefore associated with strong outflows. We estimate the cooling of the outflows from the ADAFs, and find that the gases in such hot outflows always cannot be cooled efficiently by bremsstrahlung radiation. The ADAF may co-exist with the standard disk, i.e., the inner ADAF connects to the outer thin accretion disk at radius R_tr, in the sources accreting at slightly lower than the critical rate. For the ADAFs with >0.001 L_edd, a secondary small inner cold disk is suggested to co-exist with the ADAF due to the condensation process. We estimate the Compton cooling of the outflow, of which the soft seed photons either come from the outer cold disk or the secondary inner cold disk. It is found that the gas in the outflow far from the ADAF may be efficiently cooled to form BLR clouds due to the soft seed photons emitted from the cold disks, provided the transition radius of the ADAF to the outer cold disk is small or/and the secondary small cold disk has a luminosity >0.003L_edd. The BLR clouds can still be formed in the outflows from the outer cold thin disks, if the transition radius is not very large. For the sources with <0.001L_edd, the inner small cold disk is evaporated completely in the ADAF and outer thin accretion disk may be suppressed by the ADAF, which leads to the disappearance of the BLR. The physical implications of this scenario on the double-peaked broad-line emitters are also discussed.

We take advantage of Gaia Data Release 2 to present 275 and 1774 ultraviolet luminous stars in the far ultraviolet (FUV) and near ultraviolet (NUV), respectively. These stars exceed their expected values by 5σ with respect to over one million ultraviolet stars in the log g vs. Teff diagram. Galactic extinction is corrected with a 3D dust map. In order to limit the Lutz-Kelker bias to an insignificant level, we select stars with relative uncertainties in luminosity less than 40% and trigonometric parallaxes less than 20%. We cross-identified our sample with the catalogs of RR Lyr stars and possible white dwarf main-sequence binaries, and find they compose ∼62% and ∼16% of our sample in the FUV and NUV, respectively. This catalog provides a unique sample to study stellar activity, spectrally unresolved compact main-sequence binaries and variable stars.