10,343 research outputs found
An XMM-Newton observation of the Narrow Line Seyfert 1 Galaxy, Markarian 896
XMM-Newton observations of the NLS1 Markarian 896 are presented. Over the
2-10 keV band, an iron emission line, close to 6.4 keV, is seen. The line is
just resolved and has an equivalent width of ~170 eV. The broad-band spectrum
is well modelled by a power law slope of gamma ~ 2.03, together with two
blackbody components to fit the soft X-ray excess. Using a more physical
two-temperature Comptonisation model, a good fit is obtained for an input
photon distribution of kT ~ 60eV and Comptonising electron temperatures of ~0.3
and 200 keV. The soft excess cannot be explained purely through the
reprocessing of a hard X-ray continuum by an ionised disc reflector.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figures, accepted by MNRA
An outburst scenario for the X-ray spectral variability in 3C 111
We present a combined Suzaku and Swift BAT broad-band E=0.6-200keV spectral
analysis of three 3C 111 observations obtained in 2010. The data are well
described with an absorbed power-law continuum and a weak (R~0.2) cold
reflection component from distant material. We constrain the continuum cutoff
at E_c~150-200keV, which is in accordance with X-ray Comptonization corona
models and supports claims that the jet emission is only dominant at much
higher energies. Fe XXVI Ly\alpha emission and absorption lines are also
present in the first and second observations, respectively. The modelling and
interpretation of the emission line is complex and we explore three
possibilities. If originating from ionized disc reflection, this should be
emitted at r_in> 50r_g or, in the lamp-post configuration, the illuminating
source should be at a height of h> 30r_g over the black hole. Alternatively,
the line could be modeled with a hot collisionally ionized plasma with
temperature kT = 22.0^{+6.1}_{-3.2} keV or a photo-ionized plasma with
log\xi=4.52^{+0.10}_{-0.16} erg s^{-1} cm and column density N_H > 3x10^23
cm^{-2}. However, the first and second scenarios are less favored on
statistical and physical grounds, respectively. The blue-shifted absorption
line in the second observation can be modelled as an ultra-fast outflow (UFO)
with ionization parameter log\xi=4.47^{+0.76}_{-0.04} erg s^{-1} cm, column
density N_H=(5.3^{+1.8}_{-1.3})x 10^{22} cm^{-2} and outflow velocity v_out =
0.104+/-0.006 c. Interestingly, the parameters of the photo-ionized emission
model remarkably match those of the absorbing UFO. We suggest an outburst
scenario in which an accretion disc wind, initially lying out of the line of
sight and observed in emission, then crosses our view to the source and it is
observed in absorption as a mildly-relativistic UFO.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNARS on July 1st 201
Resolving the large scale spectral variability of the luminous Seyfert 1 galaxy 1H 0419-577: Evidence for a new emission component and absorption by cold dense matter
An XMM-Newton observation of the luminous Seyfert 1 galaxy 1H 0419-577 in
September 2002, when the source was in an extreme low-flux state, found a very
hard X-ray spectrum at 1-10 keV with a strong soft excess below ~1 keV.
Comparison with an earlier XMM-Newton observation when 1H 0419-577 was `X-ray
bright' indicated the dominant spectral variability was due to a steep power
law or cool Comptonised thermal emission. Four further XMM-Newton observations,
with 1H 0419-577 in intermediate flux states, now support that conclusion,
while we also find the variable emission component in intermediate state
difference spectra to be strongly modified by absorption in low ionisation
matter. The variable `soft excess' then appears to be an artefact of absorption
of the underlying continuum while the `core' soft emission can be attributed to
recombination in an extended region of more highly ionised gas. We note the
wider implications of finding substantial cold dense matter overlying (or
embedded in) the X-ray continuum source in a luminous Seyfert 1 galaxy.Comment: 34 pages, 15 figures, submitted to Ap
The spectrum of the Broad Line Region and the high-energy emission of powerful blazars
High-energy emission (from the X-ray through the gamma-ray band) of Flat
Spectrum Radio Quasars is widely associated with the inverse Compton (IC)
scattering of ambient photons, produced either by the accretion disk or by the
Broad Line Region, by high-energy electrons in a relativistic jet. In the
modelling of the IC spectrum one usually adopts a simple black-body
approximation for the external radiation field, though the real shape is
probably more complex. The knowledge of the detailed spectrum of the external
radiation field would allow to better characterize the soft-medium X-ray IC
spectrum, which is crucial to address several issues related to the study of
these sources. Here we present a first step in this direction, calculating the
IC spectra expected by considering a realistic spectrum for the external
radiation energy density produced by the BLR, as calculated with the
photoionization code CLOUDY. We find that, under a wide range of the physical
parameters characterizing the BLR clouds, the IC spectrum calculated with the
black-body approximation reproduces quite well the exact spectrum for energies
above few keV. In the soft energy band, instead, the IC emission calculated
using the BLR emission shows a complex shape, with a moderate excess with
respect to the approximate spectrum, which becomes more important for
decreasing values of the peak frequency of the photoionizing continuum. We also
show that the high-energy spectrum shows a marked steepening, due to the energy
dependence of the scattering cross section, above a characteristic energy of
10-20 GeV, quasi independent on the Lorentz factor of the jet.Comment: 10 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
Nineteenth-century Ship-based Catches of Gray Whales, Eschrichtius robustus, in the Eastern North Pacific
The 19th century commercial ship-based fishery for gray whales, Eschrichtius robustus, in the eastern North Pacific began in 1846 and continued until the mid 1870’s in southern areas and the 1880’s in the north. Henderson identified three periods in the southern part of the fishery: Initial, 1846–1854; Bonanza, 1855–1865; and Declining, 1866–1874. The largest catches were made by “lagoon whaling” in or immediately outside the whale population’s main wintering areas in Mexico—Magdalena Bay, Scammon’s Lagoon, and San Ignacio Lagoon. Large catches were also made by “coastal” or “alongshore” whaling where the whalers attacked animals as they migrated along
the coast. Gray whales were also hunted to a limited extent on their feeding grounds in the Bering and Chukchi Seas in summer.
Using all available sources, we identified 657 visits by whaling vessels to the Mexican whaling grounds during the gray whale breeding and calving seasons between 1846 and 1874. We then estimated the total number of such visits in which the whalers engaged in gray whaling. We also read logbooks from a sample of known visits to estimate catch per visit and the rate at which struck animals were lost. This resulted in an overall estimate of 5,269 gray whales
(SE = 223.4) landed by the ship-based fleet (including both American and foreign vessels) in the Mexican whaling grounds from 1846 to 1874. Our “best” estimate of the
number of gray whales removed from the eastern North Pacific (i.e. catch plus hunting loss) lies somewhere between 6,124 and 8,021, depending on assumptions about survival of struck-but-lost whales. Our estimates can be compared to those by Henderson (1984), who estimated that
5,542–5,507 gray whales were secured and processed by ship-based whalers between 1846 and 1874; Scammon (1874), who
believed the total kill over the same period (of eastern gray whales by all whalers in all areas) did not exceed 10,800; and Best (1987), who estimated the total landed
catch of gray whales (eastern and western) by American ship-based whalers at 2,665 or 3,013 (method-dependent) from 1850 to 1879.
Our new estimates are not high enough to resolve apparent inconsistencies between the catch history and estimates of
historical abundance based on genetic variability. We suggest several lines of further research that may help resolve these inconsistencies
Fe K emission and absorption features in XMM-Newton spectra of Mkn 766 - evidence for reprocessing in flare ejecta
We report on the analysis of a long XMM-Newton EPIC observation in 2001 May
of the Narrow Line Seyfert 1 galaxy Mkn 766. The 3-11 keV spectrum exhibits a
moderately steep power law continuum, with a broad emission line at ~6.7 keV,
probably blended with a narrow line at ~6.4 keV, and a broad absorption trough
above ~8.7 keV. We identify both broad spectral features with reprocessing in
He-like Fe. An earlier XMM-Newton observation of Mkn 766 in 2000 May, when the
source was a factor ~2 fainter, shows a similar broad emission line, but with a
slightly flatter power law and absorption at a lower energy. In neither
observation do we find a requirement for the previously reported broad 'red
wing' to the line and hence of reflection from the innermost accretion disc.
More detailed examination of the longer XMM-Newton observation reveals evidence
for rapid spectral variability in the Fe K band, apparently linked with the
occurrence of X-ray 'flares'. A reduction in the emission line strength and
increased high energy absorption during the X-ray flaring suggests that these
transient effects are due to highly ionised ejecta associated with the flares.
Simple scaling from the flare avalanche model proposed for the luminous QSO PDS
456 (Reeves etal. 2002) confirms the feasibility of coherent flaring being the
cause of the strong peaks seen in the X-ray light curve of \mkn.Comment: 9 pages, 11 figures, submitted to MNRA
X-ray variability analysis of a large series of XMM-Newton + NuSTAR observations of NGC 3227
We present a series of X-ray variability results from a long XMM-Newton +
NuSTAR campaign on the bright, variable AGN NGC 3227. We present an analysis of
the lightcurves, showing that the source displays typically
softer-when-brighter behaviour, although also undergoes significant spectral
hardening during one observation which we interpret as due to an occultation
event by a cloud of absorbing gas. We spectrally decompose the data and show
that the bulk of the variability is continuum-driven and, through rms
variability analysis, strongly enhanced in the soft band. We show that the
source largely conforms to linear rms-flux behaviour and we compute X-ray power
spectra, detecting moderate evidence for a bend in the power spectrum,
consistent with existing scaling relations. Additionally, we compute X-ray
Fourier time lags using both the XMM-Newton and - through maximum-likelihood
methods - NuSTAR data, revealing a strong low-frequency hard lag and evidence
for a soft lag at higher frequencies, which we discuss in terms of
reverberation models.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS; 19 pages, 13 figures, 4 tables;
minor typographical errors corrected and reference list update
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