Simultaneous Spectral Energy Distributions Research Articles

Multifrequency variability study of flat-spectrum radio quasar PKS 0346-27

ABSTRACT We have presented a multiwavelength temporal and spectral study of the blazar PKS 0346-27 for the period 2019 January–2021 December (MJD 58484–59575) using data from Fermi-LAT (γ-rays), Swift-XRT (X-rays), and Swift-UVOT (ultraviolet and optical). We identified multiple flaring episodes by analysing the gamma-ray light curve generated from the Fermi-LAT data over a 2-yr period. The light curves of these individual gamma-ray flares with 1-d binning were then modelled using a sum-of-exponentials fit. We found the minimum variability times for the gamma-ray light curve to be 1.34 ± 0.3 d and a range of 0.1–3.2 d for the Swift wavelengths, suggesting the compactness of the source. The broad-band emission mechanism was studied by modelling the simultaneous multiwaveband spectral energy distributions (SEDs) using the one-zone leptonic emission mechanism. We found that the optical-UV and X-ray data can be explained by the synchrotron and synchrotron self-Compton (SSC) emissions. However, the disc component of the external Compton (EC) radiation is dominant at higher energies with contributions from the EC broad-line region component and SSC. Further, we performed a power spectral density analysis with data from the gamma-ray light curve using the power spectrum response method. With the power-law model, the best-fitting slope of 2.15 ± 0.87 was found. This source could be a promising target for the upcoming Cherenkov telescope array for its harder spectrum at lower energies (tens of GeV).

Study of Temporal and Spectral variability for Blazar PKS 1830-211 with Multiwavelength Data

Abstract A study of the gravitationally lensed blazar PKS 1830-211 was carried out using multi-wave band data collected by Fermi-LAT, Swift-XRT, and Swift-UVOT telescopes between MJD 58400 to MJD 58800 (2018 October 9–2019 November 13). Flaring states were identified by analyzing the γ-ray light curve. Simultaneous multi-wave band spectral energy distributions (SEDs) were obtained for these flaring periods. A cross-correlation analysis of the multi-wave band data was carried out, which suggested a common origin of the γ-ray and X-ray emission. The broadband emission mechanism was studied by modeling the SED using a leptonic model. Physical parameters of the blazar were estimated from the broadband SED modeling. The blazar PKS 1830-211 is gravitationally lensed by at least two galaxies and has been extensively studied in the literature because of this property. The self-correlation of the γ-ray light curve was studied to identify the signature of lensing, but no conclusive evidence of correlation was found at the expected time delay of 26 days.

Correlations between γ-ray luminosity and magnetization of the jet as well as relativistic electron injection power: cases for Mrk 421, 3C 454.3 and 3C 279

ABSTRACTBy fitting high-quality and simultaneous multiwavelength spectral energy distributions at multiple epochs with a one-zone leptonic jet model, we study the jet properties of three famous blazars: Mrk 421, 3C 454.3 and 3C 279. In the jet model, the emitting electron energy distributions are calculated by solving the kinetic equations of electron injection, escape, adiabatic and radiative energy losses. To explore multidimensional parameter space systematically, we employ a Markov chain Monte Carlo fitting technique. The properties of the emission regions we have derived here are consistent with those in previous studies, for example, the particle-dominated and low-magnetization jet. The new finding is that there is a tight correlation between γ-ray luminosity and electron injection power and an anticorrelation between γ-ray luminosity and the jet magnetization parameter. The results suggest that the same energy-dissipative mechanism (such as a shock) could be operating in the jets of different types of blazars, and that the origin of γ-ray flares is associated with the particle acceleration process.

Multi-frequency temporal and spectral variability study of blazar PKS 1424−418

ABSTRACT A study of blazar PKS 1424−418 was carried out using multi-waveband data collected by the Fermi Large Area Telescope (Fermi-LAT), Swift X-Ray Telescope (Swift-XRT), Swift UltraViolet and Optical Telescope (Swift-UVOT), and Small and Moderate Aperture Research Telescope System (SMARTS) between MJD 56000 and MJD 56600 (2012 March 14–2013 November 4). Two flaring episodes were identified by analysing the gamma-ray light curve. Simultaneous multi-waveband spectral energy distributions (SEDs) were obtained for those two flaring periods. A cross-correlation analysis of infrared (IR)–optical and γ-ray data suggested that the emission originated from the same region. We have set a lower limit for the Doppler factor using the highest energy photon observed from this source during the flaring periods, which should be >12. The broad-band emission mechanism was studied by modelling the SED using the leptonic emission mechanism.

The compact triply eclipsing triple star TIC 209409435 discovered with TESS

ABSTRACT We report the discovery in TESS Sectors 3 and 4 of a compact triply eclipsing triple star system. TIC 209409435 is a previously unknown eclipsing binary with a period of 5.717 d, and the presence of a third star in an outer eccentric orbit of 121.872-d period was found from two sets of third-body eclipses and from eclipse timing variations. The latter exhibits signatures of strong third-body perturbations. After the discovery, we obtained follow-up ground-based photometric observations of several binary eclipses as well as another of the third-body eclipses. We carried out comprehensive analyses, including the simultaneous photodynamical modelling of TESS and ground-based light curves (including both archival WASP data, and our own follow-up measurements), as well as eclipse timing variation curves. Also, we have included in the simultaneous fits multiple star spectral energy distribution data and theoretical PARSEC stellar isochrones. We find that the inner binary consists of near twin stars of mass 0.90 M⊙ and radius 0.88 R⊙. The third star is just 9 per cent more massive and 18 per cent larger in radius. The inner binary has a rather small eccentricity, while the outer orbit has e = 0.40. The inner binary and outer orbit have inclination angles within 0.1° and 0.2° of 90°, respectively. The mutual inclination angle is ≲1/4°. All of these results were obtained without radial velocity observations.

TICs 167692429 and 220397947: the first compact hierarchical triple stars discovered with TESS

ABSTRACT We report the discovery and complex analyses of the first two compact hierarchical triple star systems discovered with TESS in or near its southern continuous viewing zone during Year 1. Both TICs 167692429 and 220397947 were previously unknown eclipsing binaries, and the presence of a third companion star was inferred from eclipse timing variations exhibiting signatures of strong third-body perturbations and, in the first system, also from eclipse depth variations. We carried out comprehensive analyses, including the simultaneous photodynamical modelling of TESS and archival ground-based WASP light curves, as well as eclipse timing variation curves. Also, for the first time, we included in the simultaneous fits multiple star spectral energy distribution data and theoretical PARSEC stellar isochrones, taking into account Gaia DR2 parallaxes and catalogued metallicities. We find that both systems have twin F-star binaries and a lower mass tertiary star. In the TIC 167692429 system, the inner binary is moderately inclined (imut = 27°) with respect to the outer orbit, and the binary versus outer (triple) orbital periods are 10.3 versus 331 d, respectively. The mutually inclined orbits cause a driven precession of the binary orbital plane that leads to the disappearance of binary eclipses for long intervals. In the case of TIC 220397947, the two orbital planes are more nearly aligned and the inner versus outer orbital periods are 3.5 and 77 d, respectively. In the absence of radial velocity observations, we were unable to calculate highly accurate masses and ages for the two systems. According to stellar isochrones TIC 167692429 might be either a pre-main sequence (MS) or an older post-MS system. In the case of TIC 220397947, our solution prefers a young pre-MS scenario.

Leptonic modelling of Ton 599 in flare and quiescent states

ABSTRACT The flat-spectrum radio quasar Ton 599 attained its highest ever γ-ray flux state during the first week of 2017 November. Observations of the source by the Swift satellite during this period made it possible to generate a simultaneous high flux state broad-band spectral energy distribution (SED). The high flux state activity of Ton 599 is modelled in this work for the first time. We modelled one high flux state and one quiescent state of the source in order to characterize the evolution of SEDs covering the entire dynamic range of γ-ray flux observed by Fermi-LAT. An attempt was made to model the 2017 November state of the source using an external Compton (EC) model in the leptonic scenario. We reproduce the broad-band flaring state SED using a two-component leptonic emission model. We considered one component as an EC+synchrotron self-Compton (SSC) component and the other as pure SSC, lying further down in the jet. The EC+SSC component was located outside the broad-line region (BLR). It mainly reproduces the GeV emission by an EC process with a dusty torus (DT) photon field providing seed photons. We reproduce the broad-band emission from Ton 599 satisfactorily during its peculiar flaring state with a leptonic two-component model. Besides this, we compare the model parameters of a quiescent-state SED with the available average state model parameters in the literature.

Simultaneous Spectral Energy Distribution and Near-infrared Interferometry Modeling of HD 142666

Abstract We present comprehensive models of the Herbig Ae star, HD 142666, which aim to simultaneously explain its spectral energy distribution (SED) and near-infrared (NIR) interferometry. Our new submilliarcsecond resolution CHARA (CLASSIC and CLIMB) interferometric observations, supplemented with archival shorter baseline data from VLTI/PIONIER and the Keck Interferometer, are modeled using centrosymmetric geometric models and an axisymmetric radiative transfer code. CHARA’s 330 m baselines enable us to place strong constraints on the viewing geometry, revealing a disk inclined at 58° from face-on with a 160° major axis position angle. Disk models imposing vertical hydrostatic equilibrium provide poor fits to the SED. Models accounting for disk scale height inflation, possibly induced by turbulence associated with magnetorotational instabilities, and invoking grain growth to ≳1 μm size in the disk rim are required to simultaneously reproduce the SED and measured visibility profile. However, visibility residuals for our best model fits to the SED indicate the presence of unexplained NIR emission, particularly along the apparent disk minor axis, while closure phase residuals indicate a more centrosymmetric emitting region. In addition, our inferred 58° disk inclination is inconsistent with a disk-based origin for the UX Ori-type variability exhibited by HD 142666. Additional complexity, unaccounted for in our models, is clearly present in the NIR-emitting region. We propose that the disk is likely inclined toward a more edge-on orientation and/or an optically thick outflow component also contributes to the NIR circumstellar flux.

Constraints on the Location of γ-Ray Sample of Blazars with Radio Core-shift Measurements

Abstract We model simultaneous or quasi-simultaneous multi-band spectral energy distributions (SEDs) for a sample of 25 blazars that have radio core-shift measurements, where a one-zone leptonic model and Markov chain Monte Carlo technique are adopted. In the SED fitting for 23 low-synchrotron-peaked (LSP) blazars, the seed photons from the broad-line (BLR) and molecular torus are considered respectively in the external Compton process. We find that the SED fitting with the seed photons from the torus are better than those utilizing BLR photons, which suggest that the γ-ray emitting region may be located outside the BLR. Assuming the magnetic field strength in the γ-ray emitting region as constrained from the SED fitting follows the magnetic field distribution as derived from the radio core-shift measurements (i.e., , where R is the distance from the central engine and is the magnetic field strength at 1 pc), we further calculate the location of the γ-ray emitting region, , for these blazars. We find that ( is the Schwarzschild radius and is the BLR size), where is estimated from the broad-line luminosities using the empirical correlations obtained using the reverberation mapping methods.

Constraining the red shifts of TeV BL Lac objects

We present a model-dependent method to estimate the redshifts of three TeV BL Lac objects (BL Lacs) through fltting their (quasi-) simultaneous multi-waveband spectral energy distributions (SEDs) by one-zone leptonic synchrotron self-Compton (SSC) model. Considering the impact of electron energy distributions (EEDs) on the results, we use three types of EEDs, such as the power-law EED with exponential cut-ofi (PLC), the log-parabola (PLLP) and the broken power-law (BPL) EEDs, to flt the SEDs. We also use a parameter fi to describe the uncertainties of the extragalactic background light (EBL) models, as in (Abdo et al. 2010b). We then use Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) method to explore multi-dimensional parameter space and obtain the uncertainties of the model parameters based on the observational data. We apply our method to obtain the redshifts of three TeV BL Lac objects in the marginalized 68% confldence, and flnd that the PLC EED does not flt the SEDs. For 3C66A, the redshift is 0.14 - 0.31 and 0.16 - 0.32 in the BPL and PLLP EEDs; for PKS1424+240, the redshift is 0.55 - 0.68 and 0.55 - 0.67 in the BPL and PLLP EEDs; for PG1553+113, the redshift is 0.22 - 0.48 and 0.22 - 0.39 in the BPL and PLLP EEDs. We also estimate the redshift of PKS1424+240 in the high stage to be 0.46 - 0.67 in the PLLP EED, roughly consistent with that in the low stage.

OISTER optical and near-infrared monitoring observations of peculiar radio-loud active galactic nucleus SDSS J110006.07+442144.3

Abstract We present monitoring campaign observations at optical and near-infrared (NIR) wavelengths for a radio-loud active galactic nucleus (AGN) at z = 0.840, SDSS J110006.07+442144.3 (hereafter, J1100+4421), which was identified during a flare phase in late 2014 February. The campaigns consist of three intensive observing runs from the discovery to 2015 March, mostly within the scheme of the OISTER collaboration. Optical–NIR light curves and simultaneous spectral energy distributions (SEDs) are obtained. Our measurements show the strongest brightening in 2015 March. We found that the optical–NIR SEDs of J1100+4421 show an almost steady shape despite the large and rapid intranight variability. This constant SED shape is confirmed to extend to ∼5 μm in the observed frame using the archival WISE data. Given the lack of absorption lines and the steep power-law spectrum of αν ∼ −1.4, where $f_{\nu }\propto \nu ^{\alpha _{\nu }}$, synchrotron radiation by a relativistic jet with no or small contributions from the host galaxy and the accretion disk seems most plausible as an optical–NIR emission mechanism. The steep optical–NIR spectral shape and the large amplitude of variability are consistent with this object being a low νpeak jet-dominated AGN. In addition, sub-arcsecond resolution optical imaging data taken with Subaru Hyper Suprime-Cam does not show a clear extended component and the spatial scales are significantly smaller than the large extensions detected at radio wavelengths. The optical spectrum of a possible faint companion galaxy does not show any emission lines at the same redshift, and hence a merging hypothesis for this AGN-related activity is not supported by our observations.

The central parsecs of M87: jet emission and an elusive accretion disc

We present the first simultaneous spectral energy distribution (SED) of M87 core at a scale of 0.4 arcsec ($\sim 32\, \rm{pc}$) across the electromagnetic spectrum. Two separate, quiescent, and active states are sampled that are characterized by a similar featureless SED of power-law form, and that are thus remarkably different from that of a canonical active galactic nuclei (AGN) or a radiatively inefficient accretion source. We show that the emission from a jet gives an excellent representation of the core of M87 core covering ten orders of magnitude in frequency for both the active and the quiescent phases. The inferred total jet power is, however, one to two orders of magnitude lower than the jet mechanical power reported in the literature. The maximum luminosity of a thin accretion disc allowed by the data yields an accretion rate of $< 6 \times 10^{-5}\, \rm{M_\odot \, yr^{-1}}$, assuming 10% efficiency. This power suffices to explain M87 radiative luminosity at the jet-frame, it is however two to three order of magnitude below that required to account for the jet's kinetic power. The simplest explanation is variability, which requires the core power of M87 to have been two to three orders of magnitude higher in the last 200 yr. Alternatively, an extra source of power may derive from black hole spin. Based on the strict upper limit on the accretion rate, such spin power extraction requires an efficiency an order of magnitude higher than predicted from magnetohydrodynamic simulations, currently in the few hundred per cent range.

FIRSTNuSTAROBSERVATIONS OF MRK 501 WITHIN A RADIO TO TeV MULTI-INSTRUMENT CAMPAIGN

We report on simultaneous broadband observations of the TeV-emitting blazar Markarian 501 between 1 April and 10 August 2013, including the first detailed characterization of the synchrotron peak with Swift and NuSTAR. During the campaign, the nearby BL Lac object was observed in both a quiescent and an elevated state. The broadband campaign includes observations with NuSTAR, MAGIC, VERITAS, the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT), Swift X-ray Telescope and UV Optical Telescope, various ground-based optical instruments, including the GASP-WEBT program, as well as radio observations by OVRO, Mets\"ahovi and the F-Gamma consortium. Some of the MAGIC observations were affected by a sand layer from the Saharan desert, and had to be corrected using event-by-event corrections derived with a LIDAR (LIght Detection And Ranging) facility. This is the first time that LIDAR information is used to produce a physics result with Cherenkov Telescope data taken during adverse atmospheric conditions, and hence sets a precedent for the current and future ground-based gamma-ray instruments. The NuSTAR instrument provides unprecedented sensitivity in hard X-rays, showing the source to display a spectral energy distribution between 3 and 79 keV consistent with a log-parabolic spectrum and hard X-ray variability on hour timescales. None (of the four extended NuSTAR observations) shows evidence of the onset of inverse-Compton emission at hard X-ray energies. We apply a single-zone equilibrium synchrotron self-Compton model to five simultaneous broadband spectral energy distributions. We find that the synchrotron self-Compton model can reproduce the observed broadband states through a decrease in the magnetic field strength coinciding with an increase in the luminosity and hardness of the relativistic leptons responsible for the high-energy emission.

The nature of the γ-ray flare associated with blazar 3C 454.3

We have studied the simultaneous spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of the 2009 December flare and those of the quiescent state of blazar 3C 454.3 by constructing a multi-component model. We find that all six SEDs can be explained by a one-zone leptonic model involving synchrotron self-Compton (SSC) plus external Compton emission from an accretion disk (ECD) and that from a broad-line region (ECC). X-ray emission is dominated by the SSC mechanism, and the γ-ray spectrum is well represented by a combination of ECD and ECC processes. Our results indicate that the energy density of the magnetic field and electrons decrease with distance from the central engine, and the Doppler factor increases with the blob moving outward in the development of the 2009 December flare. The increase in the observed flux density is possibly due to the increase in the Doppler factor of the blob. The relation between the Doppler factor δb and the distance from the central black hole suggests the magnetically driven jets span a sub-pc scale, and the relation between the magnetic field B' and the dimension of the emission region R'b is in good agreement with what is required by conservation of magnetic flux. The weak “harder-when-brighter” behavior of the γ-ray spectrum could be a result of the increase in Doppler factor during the outward motion of the blob. The parameters during the quiescent state obviously deviate from those during the flare state. We propose that the flare was likely caused by the ejection of a new blob. The gamma-ray emissions in different states are associated with the evolution of the blob.

CONSTRAINTS ON THE MINIMUM ELECTRON LORENTZ FACTOR AND MATTER CONTENT OF JETS FOR A SAMPLE OF BRIGHT FERMI BLAZARS

We fit the (quasi-)simultaneous multi-waveband spectral energy distributions (SEDs) for a sample of low-synchrotron-peaked (LSP) blazars with a one-zone leptonic model. The seed photons that predominantly come from broad line region (BLR) and infrared (IR) molecular torus are considered respectively in external Compton process. We find that the modeling with IR seed photons is systematically better than that with BLR photons based on a $\chi^2$ test, which suggest that $\gamma$-ray emitting region most possibly stay outside the BLR. The minimum electron Lorentz factor, $\gamma_{\rm min}$, is constrained from the modeling for these LSP blazars with good soft X-ray data (ranges from 5 to 160 with a median value of 55), which plays a key role in jet power estimation. Assuming one-to-one ratio of proton and electron, we find that the jet power for LSP blazars is systematically higher than that of FR II radio galaxies at given 151 MHz radio luminosity, $L_{\rm 151MHz}$, even though FR IIs are regarded as same as LSP blazars in unification scheme except the jet viewing angle. The possible reason is that there are some $e^{\pm}$ pairs in the jet of these blazars. If this is the case, we find the number density of $e^{\pm}$ pairs should be several times higher than that of $e^{-}-p$ pairs by assuming the jet power is the same for LSP blazars and FR IIs at given $L_{\rm 151MHz}$.

The simultaneous low state spectral energy distribution of 1ES 2344+514 from radio to very high energies

[Abridged] Context. To construct and interpret the spectral energy distribution (SED) of BL Lacertae objects, simultaneous broad-band observations are mandatory. Aims. We present the results of a dedicated multi-wavelength study of the high-frequency peaked BL Lacertae (HBL) object and known TeV emitter 1ES 2344+514 by means of a pre-organised campaign. Methods. The observations were conducted during simultaneous visibility windows of MAGIC and AGILE in late 2008. The measurements were complemented by Mets\"ahovi, RATAN-600, KVA+Tuorla, Swift and VLBA pointings. Additional coverage was provided by the ongoing long-term F-GAMMA and MOJAVE programs, the OVRO 40-m and CrAO telescopes as well as the Fermi satellite. The obtained SEDs are modelled using a one-zone as well as a self-consistent two-zone synchrotron self-Compton model. Results. 1ES 2344+514 was found at very low flux states in both X-rays and very high energy gamma rays. Variability was detected in the low frequency radio and X-ray bands only, where for the latter a small flare was observed. The X-ray flare was possibly caused by shock acceleration characterised by similar cooling and acceleration time scales. MOJAVE VLBA monitoring reveals a static jet whose components are stable over time scales of eleven years, contrary to previous findings. There appears to be no significant correlation between the 15 GHz and R-band monitoring light curves. The observations presented here constitute the first multi-wavelength campaign on 1ES 2344+514 from radio to VHE energies and one of the few simultaneous SEDs during low activity states. The quasi-simultaneous Fermi-LAT data poses some challenges for SED modelling, but in general the SEDs are described well by both applied models. The resulting parameters are typical for TeV emitting HBLs. Consequently it remains unclear whether a so-called quiescent state was found in this campaign.

Multiwavelength Observations of the Gamma-ray Blazars Detected by AGILE

Since its launch in April 2007, the AGILE satellite detected with the Gamma-Ray Imaging Detector several blazars in high γ-ray activity: 3C 279, 3C 454.3, PKS 1510–089, S5 0716+714, 3C 273, W Comae and Mrk 421. Thanks to the rapid dissemination of our alerts, we were able to obtain multiwavelength ToO data from other observatories such as Spitzer, Swift, RXTE, Suzaku, INTEGRAL, MAGIC, VERITAS, as well as radio-to-optical coverage by means of the GASP Project of the WEBT and the REM Telescope. This large multifrequency coverage gave us the opportunity to study truly simultaneous spectral energy distributions of these sources from radio to γ-ray energy bands and to investigate the different mechanisms responsible for their emission. We present an overview of the AGILE results on these γ-ray blazars and the relative multifrequency data.

The γ-ray brightest days of the blazar 3C 454.3

In the first week of December 2009, the blazar 3C 454.3 became the brightest high energy source in the sky. Its photon flux reached and surpassed the level of 1e-5 ph/cm2/s above 100 MeV. The Swift satellite observed the source several times during the period of high gamma-ray flux, and we can construct really simultaneous spectral energy distributions (SED) before, during, and after the luminosity peak. Our main findings are: i) the optical, X-ray and gamma-ray fluxes correlate; ii) the gamma-ray flux varies quadratically (or even more) with the optical flux; iii) a simple one-zone synchrotron inverse Compton model can account for all the considered SED; iv) in this framework the gamma-ray vs optical flux correlation can be explained if the magnetic field is slightly fainter when the overall jet luminosity is stronger; v) the power that the jet spent to produce the peak gamma-ray luminosity is of the same order, or larger, than the accretion disk luminosity. During the flare, the total jet power surely surpassed the accretion power.

SIMULTANEOUS OBSERVATIONS OF PKS 2155–304 WITH HESS, FERMI , RXTE , AND ATOM: SPECTRAL ENERGY DISTRIBUTIONS AND VARIABILITY IN A LOW STATE

We report on the first simultaneous observations that cover the optical, X-ray, and high energy gamma-ray bands of the BL Lac object PKS 2155-304. The gamma-ray bands were observed for 11 days, between 25 August and 6 September 2008, jointly with the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope and the H.E.S.S. atmospheric Cherenkov array, providing the first simultaneous MeV-TeV spectral energy distribution with the new generation of gamma-ray telescopes. The ATOM telescope and the RXTE and Swift observatories provided optical and X-ray coverage of the low-energy component over the same time period. The object was close to the lowest archival X-ray and Very High Energy state, whereas the optical flux was much higher. The light curves show relatively little (~30%$) variability overall when compared to past flaring episodes, but we find a clear optical/VHE correlation and evidence for a correlation of the X-rays with the high energy spectral index. Contrary to previous observations in the flaring state, we do not find any correlation between the X-ray and VHE components. Although synchrotron self-Compton models are often invoked to explain the SEDs of BL Lac objects, the most common versions of these models are at odds with the correlated variability we find in the various bands for PKS 2155-304.

Simultaneous X-ray/optical/UV snapshots of active galactic nuclei fromXMM-Newton: spectral energy distributions for the reverberation mapped sample

We employ contemporaneous optical, ultraviolet (UV) and X-ray observations from the XMM–Newton European Photon Imaging Camera (EPIC-pn) and Optical Monitor (OM) archives to present, for the first time, simultaneous spectral energy distributions (SEDs) for the majority of the Peterson et al. reverberation mapped sample of active galactic nuclei (AGN). The raw data were reduced using the latest pipelines and are all analysed consistently. The virial mass estimates from Peterson et al. allow us to calculate Eddington ratios λEdd for the sample using the bolometric accretion luminosities determined directly from the SEDs. We calculate hard X-ray bolometric corrections κ2–10 keV for the sample and confirm a trend for increasing bolometric correction with Eddington ratio proposed in previous studies. Our comparison with previous work on these objects suggests that the OM bandpass may be less susceptible to intrinsic reddening than the far-UV peak of the thermal disc spectrum in AGN, yielding larger bolometric corrections than previous work: κ2–10 keV≈ 15–30 for λEdd≲ 0.1, κ2–10 keV≈ 20–70 for 0.1 ≲λEdd≲ 0.2 and κ2–10 keV≈ 70–150 for λEdd≳ 0.2, but part of this increase could be attributed to spectral complexity preventing accurate recovery of the intrinsic luminosity in some sources. Long-term optical–UV variability contributes a second order, but significant change to the total bolometric luminosity when comparing multiple observations for individual objects. We also consider the effect of a recently proposed correction for radiation pressure when determining black hole masses with reverberation mapping, and find that the revised mass estimates do not significantly alter the range of bolometric corrections seen but may yield a narrower distribution of Eddington ratios.