J/A+A/703/A63 VLT/MUSE images of 5 nearby galaxies (Finlez+, 2025)
The luminosity history of fading local quasars over 104-5 years as observed
by VLT-MUSE.
Finlez C., Treister E., Bauer F., Koss M., Keel W., Maksym W.P., Sartori L.,
Venturi G. , Ricci C., Nagar N., Riesco C., Diaz Y., Parra M.
<Astron. Astrophys. 703, A63 (2025)>
=2025A&A...703A..63F 2025A&A...703A..63F (SIMBAD/NED BibCode)
ADC_Keywords: Active gal. nuclei ; Galaxies, optical ; Galaxies, Seyfert
Keywords: galaxies: active - quasars: emission lines -
quasars: general - quasars: supermassive black holes -
galaxies: Seyfert
Abstract:
We present a comprehensive study of five nearby active galaxies
featuring large (tens of kiloparsecs) extended emission-line regions
(EELRs). The study is based on large-format, integral-field
spectroscopic observations conducted with the Multi Unit Spectroscopic
Explorer (MUSE) at the Very Large Telescope (VLT). The spatially
resolved kinematics of the ionized gas and stellar components show
signs of rotation, bi-conical outflows, and complex behavior likely
associated with past interactions. An analysis of the physical
conditions of the EELRs indicates that in these systems the active
galactic nucleus (AGN) is the primary ionization source. Using
radiative transfer simulations, we compared the ionization state
across the EELRs to estimate the required AGN bolometric luminosities
at different radial distances. Then, considering the projected light
travel time, we reconstructed the inferred AGN luminosity curves. We
find that all sources are consistent with a fading trend in intrinsic
AGN luminosity by 0.2-3dex over timescales of 40000 to 80000-years,
with a time dependence consistent with previous studies of fading
AGNs. These results support the hypothesis that most AGNs undergo
significant fluctuations in their accretion rates over multiple
timescales ranging from 10000 to 1000000-years, as proposed by
existing theoretical models. These results provide new insights into
the transient phases of AGN activity on previously unexplored scales
and their potential long-term impact on their host galaxies through
various feedback mechanisms.
Description:
Narrow line imaging for every source, to create the pseudo-RGB images
of Figure 1 for SDSS J151004.01+074037.1, UGC 7342, SDSS
J152412.58+083241.2, NGC 5972 and The Teacup,. Green: Contains [OIII];
Red: Contains Halpha; Blue: Spectral window containing only stellar
continuum.
Objects:
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RA (2000) DE Designation(s)
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15 10 04.01 +07 40 37.1 SDSS J151004.01+074037.1 = LEDA 84446
12 18 19.30 +29 15 13.0 UGC 7342 = LEDA 39516
15 24 12.58 +08 32 41.3 SDSS J152412.58+083241.2 = LEDA 54994
15 38 54.15 +17 01 34.3 NGC 5972 = LEDA 55684
14 30 29.88 +13 39 12.0 The Teacup = NAME Teacup AGN
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File Summary:
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FileName Lrecl Records Explanations
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ReadMe 80 . This file
list.dat 113 15 List of fits maps
fits/* . 15 Individual fits maps
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Byte-by-byte Description of file: list.dat
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Bytes Format Units Label Explanations
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1- 9 F9.5 deg RAdeg Right Ascension of center (J2000)
10- 18 F9.5 deg DEdeg Declination of center (J2000)
20- 22 F3.1 arcsec/pix scale Scale of the image
24- 26 I3 --- Nx Number of pixels along X-axis
28- 30 I3 --- Ny Number of pixels along Y-axis
32- 35 I4 Kibyte size Size of FITS file
37- 56 A20 --- FileName Name of FITS file, in subdirectory fits
58-113 A56 --- Title Title of the FITS file
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Acknowledgements:
Carolina Finlez, cfinlez(at)eso.org
(End) Carolina Finlez [ESO, Chile], Patricia Vannier [CDS] 23-Oct-2025