J/ApJ/788/123 IRTF J-band spectrum of Mrk 231 (Leighly+, 2014)
Evidence for active galactic nucleus feedback in the broad absorption lines
and reddening of Mrk 231.
Leighly K.M., Terndrup D.M., Baron E., Lucy A.B., Dietrich M.,
Gallagher S.C.
<Astrophys. J., 788, 123 (2014)>
=2014ApJ...788..123L 2014ApJ...788..123L (SIMBAD/NED BibCode)
ADC_Keywords: Galaxies, Seyfert ; Active gal. nuclei ; Spectra, infrared
Keywords: quasars: absorption lines - quasars: individual: Mrk 231
Abstract:
We present the first J-band spectrum of Mrk 231, which reveals a large
He I* λ10830 broad absorption line with a profile similar to
that of the well-known Na I broad absorption line. Combining this
spectrum with optical and UV spectra from the literature, we show that
the unusual reddening noted by Veilleux et al. (2013ApJ...764...15V 2013ApJ...764...15V)
is explained by a reddening curve like those previously used to
explain low values of total-to-selective extinction in Type Ia supernovae.
The nuclear starburst may be the origin and location of the dust.
Spatially resolved emission in the broad absorption line trough
suggests nearly full coverage of the continuum emission region. The
broad absorption lines reveal higher velocities in the He I* lines
(produced in the quasar-photoionized H II region) compared with the Na I
and Ca II lines (produced in the corresponding partially ionized
zone). Cloudy simulations show that a density increase is required
between the H II and partially ionized zones to produce ionic column
densities consistent with the optical and IR absorption line
measurements and limits, and that the absorber lies ∼100 pc from the
central engine. These results suggest that the He I* lines are
produced in an ordinary quasar BAL wind that impacts upon, compresses,
and accelerates the nuclear starburst's dusty effluent (feedback in
action), and the Ca II and Na I lines are produced in this dusty
accelerated gas. This unusual circumstance explains the rarity of Na I
absorption lines; without the compression along our line of sight,
Mrk 231 would appear as an ordinary iron low-ionization, broad
absorption line quasar.
Description:
Mrk 231 was observed using SpeX (Rayner et al. 2003PASP..115..362R 2003PASP..115..362R) on
the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF) on 2010 April 24 for 30
minutes. A standard ABBA integration scheme was used. The A0 star HD 112623
was used for flux and telluric corrections. The spectra were reduced,
and the telluric correction applied, in the standard manner using
Spextool and accompanying software (Cushing et al. 2004PASP..116..362C 2004PASP..116..362C;
Vacca et al. 2003PASP..115..389V 2003PASP..115..389V). The resolution measured from the
arc lamp lines was about 12 Å FWHM, or 330 km/s in the vicinity
of the absorption line. The galactic reddening in the direction of Mrk 231
is E(B-V)=0.0095, and we corrected for that using the CCM reddening
curve (Cardelli et al. 1988ApJ...329L..33C 1988ApJ...329L..33C).
Objects:
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RA (ICRS) DE Designation(s)
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12 56 14.23 +56 52 25.2 Mrk 231 = 2MASX J12561432+5652244
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File Summary:
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FileName Lrecl Records Explanations
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ReadMe 80 . This file
table1.dat 26 4178 IRTF Spectrum
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See also:
J/ApJ/709/1257 : Spitzer-IRS spectra of Seyfert galaxies. II. (Tommasin+, 2010)
J/AJ/143/83 : Properties of a sample of Seyfert 1 galaxies (Xu+, 2012)
J/A+A/593/A30 : Detection of fast HI outflow in Mrk231 (Morganti+, 2016)
Byte-by-byte Description of file: table1.dat
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Bytes Format Units Label Explanations
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1- 8 F8.6 um Wave Observed wavelength
10- 17 F8.3 10-19W/m2/nm Flux Flux density; 10-17 erg/s/cm2/Å (1)
19- 26 F8.5 10-19W/m2/nm e_Flux Error in Flux (1)
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Note (1): Corrected for Galactic Extinction.
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History:
From electronic version of the journal
(End) Prepared by [AAS], Tiphaine Pouvreau [CDS] 13-Jul-2017