ALBERT

Description: We present an analysis of the 3–79 keV NuSTAR spectrum of the low-luminosity active galactic nucleus NGC 7213. In agreement with past observations, we find a lower limit to the high-energy cut-off of E c  〉 140 keV, no evidence for a Compton-reflected continuum and the presence of an iron K α complex, possibly produced in the broad-line region. From the application of the mytorus model, we find that the line-emitting material is consistent with the absence of a significant Compton reflection if arising from a Compton-thin torus of gas with a column density of $5.0^{+2.0}_{-1.6}\times 10^{23}$ cm –2 . We report variability of the equivalent width of the iron lines on the time-scale of years using archival observations from XMM–Newton , Chandra and Suzaku . This analysis suggests a possible contribution from dusty gas. A fit with a Comptonization model indicates the presence of a hot corona with a temperature kT e  〉 40 keV and an optical depth   1, assuming a spherical geometry.

Description: We examine simultaneous X-ray and UV light curves from multi-epoch 8 d XMM–Newton observations of the narrow line Seyfert 1 galaxy 1H 0707–495. The simultaneous observations reveal that both X-ray and UV emission are variable and that the amplitude of the X-ray variations is significantly greater than that of the UV variations in both epochs. Using a discrete correlation function the X-ray and UV light curves were examined for correlation on time-scales up to 7 d. Low-significance (~95 per cent confidence) correlations with the UV leading the X-ray variations are observed. The lack of a significant correlation between the UV and X-ray bands seems consistent with the X-ray source being centrally compact and dominated by light bending close to the black hole. In addition, multiband X-ray light curves were examined for correlations on similar time-scales. Highly significant (〉99.9 per cent confidence) correlations were observed at zero lag consistent with previous studies of this active galactic nucleus.

Description: We compare two different methods of constraining the characteristic velocity and spatial scales of gas motions in the X-ray bright, nearby Centaurus cluster, using new deep (760 ks) Chandra observations. The power spectrum of excess surface brightness fluctuations in the 0.5–6.0 keV band in a sector to west is measured and compared to theoretical expectations for Kolmogorov index fluctuations. The observed power spectrum is flatter than these expectations, and the surface brightness fluctuations are around the 8 per cent level on length-scales of 2 kpc. We convert the 2D power spectrum of fluctuations into a 3D power spectrum using the method of Churazov et al., and then convert this into constraints on the one-component velocity of the gas motions as a function of their length-scale. We find one-component velocities in the range 100–150 km s –1 on spatial scales of 4–10 kpc. An independent constraint on the characteristic velocity and length-scales of the gas motions is then found by considering the diffusion coefficient needed to explain the distribution of metals in the Centaurus cluster, combined with the need to balance the rate of gas cooling with the rate of heat dissipated by the gas motions. We find that these two methods of constraining the velocity and length-scales of the gas motions are in good agreement.

Description: We present a dynamical analysis of the merging galaxy cluster system Abell 2146 using spectroscopy obtained with the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph on the Gemini North telescope. As revealed by the Chandra X-ray Observatory, the system is undergoing a major merger and has a gas structure indicative of a recent first core passage. The system presents two large shock fronts, making it unique amongst these rare systems. The hot gas structure indicates that the merger axis must be close to the plane of the sky and that the two merging clusters are relatively close in mass, from the observation of two shock fronts. Using 63 spectroscopically determined cluster members, we apply various statistical tests to establish the presence of two distinct massive structures. With the caveat that the system has recently undergone a major merger, the virial mass estimate is $M_{\rm vir}= 8.5^{+4.3}_{-4.7} \times 10^{14} \,\mathrm{M}_{{\odot }}$ for the whole system, consistent with the mass determination in a previous study using the Sunyaev–Zel'dovich signal. The newly calculated redshift for the system is z = 0.2323. A two-body dynamical model gives an angle of 13°–19° between the merger axis and the plane of the sky, and a time-scale after first core passage of 0.24–0.28 Gyr.

Description: We consider the high radio-frequency (15–353 GHz) properties and variability of 35 brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs). These are the most core-dominated sources drawn from a parent sample of more than 700 X-ray selected clusters, thus allowing us to relate our results to the general population. We find that ≥6.0 per cent of our parent sample (≥15.1 per cent if only cool-core clusters are considered) contain a radio source at 150 GHz of at least 3 mJy (1 x 10 23 W Hz –1 at our median redshift of z   0.13). Furthermore, ≥3.4 per cent of the BCGs in our parent sample contain a peaked component (Gigahertz Peaked Spectrum, GPS) in their spectra that peaks above 2 GHz, increasing to ≥8.5 per cent if only cool-core clusters are considered. We see little evidence for strong variability at 15 GHz on short (week–month) time-scales although we see variations greater than 20 per cent at 150 GHz over six-month time frames for 4 of the 23 sources with multi-epoch observations. Much more prevalent is long-term (year–decade time-scale) variability, with average annual amplitude variations greater than 1 per cent at 15 GHz being commonplace. There is a weak trend towards higher variability as the peak of the GPS-like component occurs at higher frequency. We demonstrate the complexity that is seen in the radio spectra of BCGs and discuss the potentially significant implications of these high-peaking components for Sunyaev–Zel‘dovich cluster searches.

Description: Chandra X-ray observations of the nearby brightest cluster galaxy M87 resolve the hot gas structure across the Bondi accretion radius of the central supermassive black hole (SMBH), a measurement possible in only a handful of systems but complicated by the bright nucleus and jet emission. By stacking only short frame-time observations to limit pileup, and after subtracting the nuclear point spread function, we analysed the X-ray gas properties within the Bondi radius at 0.12-0.22 kpc (1.5-2.8 arcsec), depending on the black hole mass. Within 2 kpc radius, we detect two significant temperature components, which are consistent with constant values of 2 and 0.9 keV down to 0.15 kpc radius. No evidence was found for the expected temperature increase within ~ 0.25 kpc due to the influence of the SMBH. Within the Bondi radius, the density profile is consistent with r –1 . The lack of a temperature increase inside the Bondi radius suggests that the hot gas structure is not dictated by the SMBH's potential and, together with the shallow density profile, shows that the classical Bondi rate may not reflect the accretion rate on to the SMBH. If this density profile extends in towards the SMBH, the mass accretion rate on to the SMBH could be at least two orders of magnitude less than the Bondi rate, which agrees with Faraday rotation measurements for M87. We discuss the evidence for outflow from the hot gas and the cold gas disc and for cold feedback, where gas cooling rapidly from the hot atmosphere could feed the cirumnuclear disc and fuel the SMBH. At 0.2 kpc radius, the cooler X-ray temperature component represents ~20 per cent of the total X-ray gas mass and, by losing angular momentum to the hot gas component, could provide a fuel source of cold clouds within the Bondi radius.

Description: 1RXS J180408.9–342058 is a transient neutron star low-mass X-ray binary that exhibited a bright accretion outburst in 2015. We present NuSTAR , Swift , and Chandra observations obtained around the peak brightness of this outburst. The source was in a soft X-ray spectral state and displayed an X-ray luminosity of L X ~= (2–3)  x  10 37 ( D /5.8 kpc) 2 erg s –1 (0.5–10 keV). The NuSTAR data reveal a broad Fe–K emission line that we model as relativistically broadened reflection to constrain the accretion geometry. We found that the accretion disc is viewed at an inclination of i ~= 27°–35° and extended close to the neutron star, down to R in ~= 5–7.5 gravitational radii (~=11–17 km). This inner disc radius suggests that the neutron star magnetic field strength is B 2  x  10 8  G. We find a narrow absorption line in the Chandra /HEG data at an energy of ~=7.64 keV with a significance of ~=4.8. This feature could correspond to blueshifted Fe  xxvi and arise from an accretion disc wind, which would imply an outflow velocity of v out ~= 0.086 c (~=25 800 km s –1 ). However, this would be extreme for an X-ray binary and it is unclear if a disc wind should be visible at the low inclination angle that we infer from our reflection analysis. Finally, we discuss how the X-ray and optical properties of 1RXS J180408.9–342058 are consistent with a relatively small ( P orb 3 h) binary orbit.

Description: X-ray reverberation, where light-travel time delays map out the compact geometry around the inner accretion flow in supermassive black holes, has been discovered in several of the brightest, most variable and well-known Seyfert galaxies. In this work, we expand the study of X-ray reverberation to all Seyfert galaxies in the XMM–Newton archive above a nominal rms variability and exposure level (a total of 43 sources). Approximately 50 per cent of sources exhibit iron K reverberation, in that the broad iron K emission line responds to rapid variability in the continuum. We also find that on long time-scales, the hard band emission lags behind the soft band emission in 85 per cent of sources. This ‘low-frequency hard lag’ is likely associated with the coronal emission, and so this result suggests that most sources with X-ray variability show intrinsic variability from the nuclear region. We update the known iron K lag amplitude versus black hole mass relation, and find evidence that the height or extent of the coronal source (as inferred by the reverberation time delay) increases with mass accretion rate.

Description: We report the detection of high-amplitude X-ray flaring of the AGN HE 1136-2304, which is accompanied by a strong increase in the flux of the broad Balmer lines, changing its Seyfert type from almost type 2 in 1993 down to 1.5 in 2014. HE 1136-2304 was detected by the XMM–Newton slew survey at 〉10 times the flux it had in the ROSAT all-sky survey, and confirmed with Swift follow-up after increasing in X-ray flux by a factor of ~30. Optical spectroscopy with SALT shows that the AGN has changed from a Seyfert 1.95 to a Seyfert 1.5 galaxy, with greatly increased broad line emission and an increase in blue continuum AGN flux by a factor of 〉4. The X-ray spectra from XMM–Newton and NuSTAR reveal moderate intrinsic absorption and a high energy cutoff at ~100 keV. We consider several different physical scenarios for a flare, such as changes in obscuring material, tidal disruption events, and an increase in the accretion rate. We find that the most likely cause of the increased flux is an increase in the accretion rate, although it could also be due to a change in obscuration.

Description: We extend our previous study of the cool gas responsible for the emission of O vii X-ray lines in the cores of clusters and groups of galaxies. This is the coolest X-ray emitting phase and connects the 10 000 K H α emitting gas to the million degree phase, providing a useful tool to understand cooling in these objects. We study the location of the O vii gas and its connection to the intermediate Fe xvii and hotter O viii phases. We use high-resolution X-ray grating spectra of elliptical galaxies with strong Fe xvii line emission and detect O vii in 11 of 24 objects. Comparing the O vii detection level and resonant scattering, which is sensitive to turbulence and temperature, suggests that O vii is preferably found in cooler objects, where the Fe xvii resonant line is suppressed due to resonant scattering, indicating subsonic turbulence. Although a larger sample of sources and further observations is needed to distinguish between effects from temperature and turbulence, our results are consistent with cooling being suppressed at high turbulence as predicted by models of active galactic nuclei feedback, gas sloshing and galactic mergers. In some objects, the O vii resonant-to-forbidden line ratio is decreased by either resonant scattering or charge exchange boosting the forbidden line, as we show for NGC 4636. Charge exchange indicates interaction between neutral and ionized gas phases. The Perseus cluster also shows a high Fe xvii forbidden-to-resonance line ratio, which can be explained with resonant scattering by low-turbulence cool gas in the line of sight.