We have carried out a survey of long 50ks XMM-Newton observations of a sample of bright, variable AGN. We found a distinctive energy dependence of the variability in RXJ0136.9-3510 where the fractional variability increases from 0.3 to 2 keV, and then remains constant. This is in sharp contrast to other AGN where the X-ray variability is either flat or falling with energy, sometimes with a peak at $\sim$~2 keV superimposed on the overall trend. Intriguingly these unusual characteristics of the variability are shared by one other AGN, namely RE J1034+396, which is so far unique showing a significant X-ray QPO. In addition the broad band spectrum of RXJ0136.9-3510 is also remarkably similar to that of RE J1034+396, being dominated by a huge soft excess in the EUV-soft X-ray bandpass. The bolometric luminosity of RX J0136.9-3510 gives an Eddington ratio of about 2.7 for a black hole mass (from the H beta line width) of $7.9 \times 10^{7}M_{\sun}$. This mass is about a factor of 50 higher than that of RE J1034+396, making any QPO undetectable in this length of observation. Nonetheless, its X-ray spectral and variability similarities suggest that RE J1034+396 is simply the closest representative of a new class of AGN spectra, representing the most extreme mass accretion rates.
Context: The unification scheme of Seyfert galaxies hypothesizes that Seyfert type 1s and type 2s are intrinsically similar and the observed differences between the two subtypes are solely due to the differing orientations of toroidal-shaped obscuring material around the AGN. In the framework of the unification scheme, both the Seyfert subtypes are expected to show similar intrinsic nuclear properties, such as the absorption-corrected AGN X-ray luminosity, bolometric luminosity, accretion rate and the mass of the supermassive black hole. Aims: To test the predictions of the Seyfert unification…
We present new mid-infrared (MIR) imaging data for three Type-1 Seyfert galaxies obtained with T-ReCS on the Gemini-South Telescope at subarcsecond resolution. Our aim is to enlarge the sample studied in a previous work to compare the properties of Type-1 and Type-2 Seyfert tori using clumpy torus models and a Bayesian approach to fit the infrared nuclear spectral energy distributions (SEDs). Thus, the sample considered here comprises 7 Type-1, 11 Type-2, and 3 intermediate-type Seyferts. The unresolved IR emission of the Seyfert 1 galaxies can be reproduced by a combination of dust heated by …
We present and discuss the properties of a complete and well defined sample of X-ray selected type 1 AGNs including 26 Narrow-Line Seyfert 1 and 129 Broad-Line Seyfert 1 galaxies derived from the XMM-Newton Bright Serendipitous Survey (XBS). We study the differences between the two classes of AGNs for what concerns the X-ray properties (the photon-index) and the main physical parameters, like the Black-Hole mass and the Eddington ratio. We then consider the two classes together and look for statistical correlations between observed and physical parameters. We find a significant dependence of t…
We propose a new method to explore the candidate super-Eddington active galactic nuclei (AGNs). We examine the properties of infrared (IR) emission from the inner edge of the dusty torus in AGNs, which are powered by super- or sub-Eddington accretion flows around black holes, by considering the dependence of the polar angle on the radiation flux of accretion flows (Watarai et al. 2005). We find that for super-Eddington AGNs, of which the mass accretion rate is more than 10^2 times larger than the Eddington rate, the ratio of the AGN IR luminosity and the disc bolometric luminosity is less than…
We consider whether Broad Absorption Line Quasars (BAL QSOs) and Narrow Line Seyfert 1 galaxies (NLS1s) are similar, as suggested by Brandt & Gallagher (2000) and Boroson (2002). For this purpose we constructed a sample of 11 BAL QSOs from existing Chandra and Swift observations. We found that BAL QSOs and NLS1s both operate at high Eddington ratios L/Ledd, although BAL QSOs have slightly lower L/Ledd. BAL QSOs and NLS1s in general have high FeII/H$β$ and low [OIII]/H$β$ ratios following the classic 'Boroson \& Green' eigenvector 1 relation. We also found that the mass accretion rates $\dot{M}…
Previous studies of the active galactic nuclei (AGN) contribution to the cosmic X-ray background (CXB) consider only observable parameters such as luminosity and absorbing column. Here, for the first time, we extend the study of the CXB to physical parameters including the Eddington ratio of the sources and the black hole mass. In order to calculate the contribution to the CXB of AGN accreting at various Eddington ratios, an evolving Eddington ratio space density model is calculated. In particular, Compton thick (CT) AGN are modeled as accreting at specific, physically motivated Eddington rati…
We present the discovery of compact, obscured star formation in galaxies at z ~ 0.6 that exhibit >1000 km/s outflows. Using optical morphologies from the Hubble Space Telescope and infrared photometry from the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, we estimate star formation rate (SFR) surface densities that approach Sigma_SFR ~ 3000 Msun/yr/kpc^2, comparable to the Eddington limit from radiation pressure on dust grains. We argue that feedback associated with a compact starburst in the form of radiation pressure from massive stars and ram pressure from supernovae and stellar winds is sufficient …
As part of an extensive study of the physical properties of active galactic nuclei (AGN) we report high spatial resolution near-IR integral-field spectroscopy of the narrow-line region (NLR) and coronal-line region (CLR) of seven Seyfert galaxies. These measurements elucidate for the first time the two-dimensional spatial distribution and kinematics of the recombination line Brγ and high-ionization lines [Sivi], [Alix] and [Caviii] on scales <300 pc from the AGN. The observations reveal kinematic signatures of rotation and outflow in the NLR and CLR. The spatially resolved kinematics can be mo…
We present the Spitzer 10-37um IRS high resolution (R~600) spectroscopic survey of the Seyfert galaxies of the 12 micron Galaxy Sample. The new spectra of 61 galaxies, with those already published, gives us a total of 91 12micron Seyfert galaxies observed, out of 112. We use an improved AGN classification for Seyfert galaxies: instead of the type 1 and 2 classes, we use the spectropolarimetric data to divide them into "AGN 1" and "AGN 2", where AGN 1's include all broad-line objects, including the Seyfert 2's showing hidden broad lines in polarized light, while AGN 2's contains only Seyferts w…
An extended XMM-Newton observation of the Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 4051 has revealed a rich absorption line spectrum indicating the presence of a photoionized outflow with a wide range of velocities and ionization parameter. At low continuum fluxes an emission line spectrum is well defined with both narrow and broad components of several abundant metal ions. The absorption line velocity structure and a broad correlation of velocity and ionization parameter are consistent with an outflow scenario where a highly ionized, high velocity wind, perhaps launched during intermittent super-Eddington accret…
The ensemble optical/ultraviolet variability of narrow-line Seyfert 1 (NLS1) type active galactic nuclei (AGNs) is investigated, based on a sample selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Stripe-82 region with multi-epoch photometric scanning data. As a comparison a control sample of broad-line Seyfert 1 (BLS1) type AGNs is also incorporated. To quantify properly the intrinsic variation amplitudes and their uncertainties, a novel method of parametric maximum-likelihood is introduced, that has, as we argued, certain virtues over previously used methods. The majority of NLS1-type AGNs e…
According to the unified model, the differences observed in different classes of AGN are due to anisotropic obscuration. This implies that in the hard X-rays, at energies where the radiation can pierce the obscuring material, the average spectral characteristics of different classes of AGN should be the same. Here we present a study of the 17-250 keV INTEGRAL IBIS/ISGRI average spectra of Seyfert galaxies, aimed to constrain similarities and possible differences between different classes of AGN. The sample we consists of all the 172 Seyfert galaxies detected by INTEGRAL IBIS/ISGRI at z<0.2 dur…
We present a deep study of the average hard X-ray spectra of Seyfert galaxies. We analyzed all public INTEGRAL IBIS/ISGRI data available on all the 165 Seyfert galaxies detected at z<0.2. Our final sample consists of 44 Seyfert 1's, 29 Seyfert 1.5's, 78 Seyfert 2's, and 14 Narrow Line Seyfert 1's. We derived the average hard X-ray spectrum of each subsample in the 17-250keV energy range. All classes of Seyfert galaxies show on average the same nuclear continuum, as foreseen by the zeroth order unified model, with a cut-off energy of Ec>200keV, and a photon index of Gamma ~1.8. Compton-thin Sey…
Radio outflows of active galactic nuclei (AGN) are invoked in cosmological models as a key feedback mechanism in the latest phases of massive galaxy formation. Recently it has been suggested that the two major radio AGN populations -- the powerful high-excitation, and the weak low-excitation radio AGN (HERAGN and LERAGN, resp.) -- represent two earlier and later stages of massive galaxy build-up. To test this, here we make use of a local (0.04<z<0.1) sample of ~500 radio AGN with available optical spectroscopy, drawn from the FIRST, NVSS, SDSS, and 3CRR surveys. A clear dichotomy is found betw…
Eddington outflows probably regulate the growth of supermassive black holes (SMBH) in AGN. I show that effect of the Rayleigh--Taylor instability on these outflows means that SMBH masses are likely to be a factor of a few below the $M - σ$ relation in AGN. This agrees with the suggestion by Batcheldor (2010) that the $M - σ$ relation defines an upper limit to the black hole mass. I further argue that observed AGN black holes must spend much of their lives accreting at the Eddington rate. This is already suggested by the low observed AGN fraction amongst all galaxies despite the need to grow to…
A bright, soft X-ray source was detected on 2010 July 14 during an XMM--Newton slew at a position consistent with the galaxy GSN 069 (z=0.018). Previous ROSAT observations failed to detect the source and imply that GSN 069 is now >240 times brighter than it was in 1994 in the soft X-ray band. We report here results from a ~1 yr monitoring with Swift and XMM-Newton, as well as from optical spectroscopy. GSN 069 is an unabsorbed, ultra-soft source in X-rays, with no flux detected above ~1 keV. The soft X-rays exhibit significant variability down to timescales of hundreds of seconds. The UV-to-X-…
We report the discovery with Fermi/LAT of gamma-ray emission from three radio-loud narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxies: PKS 1502+036 (z=0.409), 1H 0323+342 (z=0.061) and PKS 2004-447 (z=0.24). In addition to PMN J0948+0022 (z=0.585), the first source of this type to be detected in gamma rays, they may form an emerging new class of gamma-ray active galactic nuclei (AGN). These findings can have strong implications on our knowledge about relativistic jets and the unified model of AGN.
In a matched sample of Seyfert and quiescent galaxies we simultaneously probe the stellar and molecular gas kinematics from 1 kpc down to 50 pc with the aim of identifying the dynamical processes dictating black hole accretion rates. This first paper compares the global characteristics of a sample of ten galaxies. We find several differences within a radius of 500 pc that are correlated with Active Galactic Nucleus (AGN) activity. The Seyferts have: (1) a more centrally concentrated nuclear stellar surface brightness with lower stellar luminosities beyond a radius of 100 pc, (2) a lower stella…
Bolometric luminosities and Eddington ratios of both X-ray selected broad-line (Type-1) and narrow-line (Type-2) AGN from the XMM-Newton survey in the COSMOS field are presented. The sample is composed by 929 AGN (382 Type-1 AGN and 547 Type-2 AGN) and it covers a wide range of redshifts, X-ray luminosities and absorbing column densities. About 65% of the sources are spectroscopically identified as either Type-1 or Type-2 AGN (83% and 52% respectively), while accurate photometric redshifts are available for the rest of the sample. The study of such a large sample of X-ray selected AGN with a h…
We explore the connection between different classes of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) and the evolution of their host galaxies, by deriving host galaxy properties, clustering, and Eddington ratios of AGNs selected in the radio, X-ray, and infrared. We study a sample of 585 AGNs at 0.25 < z < 0.8 using redshifts from the AGN and Galaxy Evolution Survey (AGES) and data in the radio (WSRT 1.4 GHz), X-rays (Chandra XBootes), and mid-IR (IRAC Shallow Survey). The radio, X-ray, and IR AGN samples show modest overlap, indicating that to the flux limits of the survey, they represent largely distinct cl…
The Unified Model of Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) has provided a successful explanation for the observed diversity of AGN in the local Universe. However, recent analysis of multi-wavelength spectral and image data suggests that the Unified Model is only a partial theory of AGN, and may need to be augmented to remain consistent with all observations. Recent studies using high spatial resolution ground- and space-based observations of local AGN show that Seyfert class and the "core" (r<~1 kpc) host-galaxy morphology are correlated. Currently, this relationship has only been established qualitati…
As the third paper of our serial studies that are aim at examining the AGN-host coevolution by using partially obscured AGNs, we extend the broad-line composite galaxies (composite AGNs) into ROSAT-selected Seyfert 1.8/1.9 galaxies basing upon the RASS/SDSS-DR5 catalog given by Anderson et al.. The SDSS spectra of in total 92 objects are analyzed by the same method used in our previous studies, after requiring the signal-to-noise ratio in the SDSS r' band is larger than 20. Combing the ROSAT-selected Seyfert galaxies with the composite AGNs reinforces the tight correlation between the line rat…
Aims. We present results of a comprehensive spectral study on the large-scale environment of AGNs based on Sloan Spectroscopic Survey data. Methods. We analyzed the spectra of galaxies in the environment of AGN and other activity classes up to distances of 1 Mpc. Results. The mean Hα and [OIII] λ5007 line luminosities in the environmental galaxies within a projected radius of 1 Mpc are highest around Seyfert 1 galaxies, with decreasing luminosities for Seyfert 2 and HII galaxies, and lowest for absorption line galaxies. Furthermore, there is a trend toward Hα and [OIII] luminosities in the env…
Previous ground based observations of the Seyfert 2 galaxy Mrk 78 revealed a double set of emission lines, similar to those seen in several AGN from recent surveys. Are the double lines due to two AGN with different radial velocities in the same galaxy, or are they due to mass outflows from a single AGN?We present a study of the outflowing ionized gas in the resolved narrow-line region (NLR) of Mrk 78 using observations from Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) and Faint Object Camera (FOC) aboard the Hubble Space Telescope(HST) as part of an ongoing project to determine the kinematics …
The INTEGRAL mission provides a large data set for studying the hard X-ray properties of AGN and allows testing of the unified scheme for AGN. We present analysis of INTEGRAL IBIS/ISGRI, JEM-X, and OMC data for 199 AGN supposedly detected by INTEGRAL above 20 keV. The data analysed here allow a significant spectral extraction on 148 objects and an optical variability study of 57 AGN. The slopes of the hard X-ray spectra of Seyfert 1 and Seyfert~2 galaxies are found to be consistent within the uncertainties, whereas higher cut-off energies and lower luminosities are measured for the more absorb…
There have been recent claims that a significant fraction of type 2 AGN accrete close or even above the Eddington limit. In type 2 AGN the bolometric luminosity (L_b) is generally inferred from the [OIII] emission line luminosity (L_OIII). The key issue, in order to estimate the bolometric luminosity in these AGN, is therefore to know the bolometric correction to be applied to L_OIII. A complication arises from the fact that the observed L_OIII is affected by extinction, likely due to dust within the narrow line region. The extinction-corrected [OIII] luminosity (L^c_OIII) is a better estimato…
We compare [O IV] 25.89 micron emission line luminosities with very hard (10-200 keV) X-rays from Swift, Integral, and BeppoSAX for a complete sample of 89 Seyferts from the Revised Shapley-Ames sample. Using Seyfert 1s, we calibrate [O IV] as a measure of AGN intrinsic luminosity, for particular use in high-obscuration environments. With this calibration, we measure the average decrement in 14-195 keV X-ray to [O IV] luminosity ratio for Seyfert 2s compared to type 1s. We find a decrement of 3.1 +- 0.8 for Seyfert 2s, and a decrement of 5.0 +- 2.7 for known Compton-thick Seyfert 2s. These dec…
We investigate claims according to which the X-ray selection of AGN is not as efficient compared to that based on [OIII] selection because of the effects of X-ray absorption.We construct the predicted X-ray luminosity function both for all Seyferts as well as separately for Seyfert-1 and Seyfert-2 type galaxies, by combining the optical AGN [OIII] luminosity functions derived in SDSS with the corresponding L_X-L_[OIII] relations. These relations are derived from XMM-Newton observations of all Seyfert galaxies in the Palomar spectroscopic sample of nearby galaxies after correction for X-ray abs…
The INTEGRAL mission provides a large data set for studying the hard X-ray properties of AGN and allows to test the unified scheme for AGN. We present results based on the analysis of 199 AGN. A difference between the Seyfert types is detected in slightly flatter spectra with higher cut-off energies and lower luminosities for the more absorbed/type 2 AGN. When applying a Compton reflection model, the underlying continua (photon index 1.95) appear the same in Seyfert 1 and 2, and the reflection strength is R=1 in both cases, with differences in the inclination angle only. A difference is seen i…
Massive black holes (BHs) are detected in the centers of many nearby galaxies are linearly correlated with the luminosity of the host bulge (spheroid), the black hole mass being about 0.1% of the stellar mass. In active galaxies, the BH mass is best measured by the reverberation mapping (light echo) technique. We and others have shown that in AGNs the BH mass follows the same relation with the luminosity of the host galaxy as in ordinary (inactive) galaxies, with the exception of narrow line AGNs which apparently have significantly lower values of the BH/bulge mass (or BH/bulge luminosity) rat…
We estimated black hole masses and Eddington ratios for a well defined sample of local (z<0.3) broad line AGN from the Hamburg/ESO Survey (HES), based on the Hbeta line and standard recipes assuming virial equilibrium for the broad line region. The sample represents the low-redshift AGN population over a wide range of luminosities, from Seyfert 1 galaxies to luminous quasars. From the distribution of black hole masses we derived the active black hole mass function (BHMF) and the Eddington ratio distribution function (ERDF) in the local universe, exploiting the fact that the HES has a well-defi…
We used the CLUMPY torus models and a Bayesian approach to fit the infrared spectral energy distributions (SEDs) and ground-based high-angular resolution mid-infrared spectroscopy of 13 nearby Seyfert galaxies. This allowed us to put tight constraints on torus model parameters such as the viewing angle, the radial thickness of the torus Y, the angular size of the cloud distribution sigma_torus, and the average number of clouds along radial equatorial rays N_0. The viewing angle is not the only parameter controlling the classification of a galaxy into a type 1 or a type 2. In principle type 2s …
We present new low resolution Spitzer mid-infrared spectroscopy of a sample of 20 ROSAT selected local Narrow Line Seyfert 1 galaxies (NLS1s). We detect strong AGN continuum in all and clear PAH emission in 70% of the sources. The 6.2 micron PAH luminosity spans three orders of magnitudes, from ~10^(39) erg/s to ~10^(42) erg/s providing strong evidence for intense ongoing star formation in the circumnuclear regions of these sources. Using the IRS/Spitzer archive we gather a large number of additional NLS1s and their broad line counterparts (BLS1s) and constructed NLS1 and BLS1 sub-samples to c…
[Abridged] Narrow-line Seyfert 1 (NLS1) galaxies are a class of active galactic nuclei (AGN) that have all the properties of type 1 Seyfert galaxies but show peculiar characteristics, including the narrowest Balmer lines, strongest Fe II emission, and extreme properties in the X-rays. Line and continuum radio observations provide an optimal tool to access the (often) optically obscured innermost regions of AGN and reveal the kinematics of the gas around their central engines. We investigate the interplay between the peculiar NLS1 class of AGN and the maser phenomenon, to help us understand the…
We discuss the relationship between a standard Shakura & Sunyaev (1973) accretion disk model and the Big Blue Bump (BBB) observed in Type 1 AGN, and propose a new method to estimate black hole masses. We apply this method to a sample of 23 radio-loud narrow-line Seyfert 1 (RL-NLS1) galaxies, using data from WISE (Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer), SDSS (Sloan Digital Sky Survey) and GALEX. Our black hole mass estimates are at least a factor $\sim$6 above previous results based on single epoch virial methods, while the Eddington ratios are correspondingly lower. Hence, the black hole masses …
The discovery of gamma-ray emission from 5 radio-loud narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxies revealed the presence of a possible emerging third class of AGNs with relativistic jets, in addition to blazars and radio galaxies. The existence of relativistic jets also in this subclass of Seyfert galaxies opened an unexplored research space for our knowledge of the radio-loud AGNs. Here, we discuss the radio-to-gamma-rays properties of the gamma-ray emitting narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxies, also in comparison with the blazar scenario.
Narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxies have been identified by the Fermi Gamma-Ray Space Telescope as a rare class of gamma-ray emitting active galactic nuclei (AGN). The lowest-redshift candidate among them is the source 1H 0323+342. Here we present quasi-simultaneous Gemini near-infrared and Keck optical spectroscopy for it, from which we derive a black hole mass based on both the broad Balmer and Paschen emission lines. We supplement these observations with a NuSTAR X-ray spectrum taken about two years earlier, from which we constrain the black hole mass based on the short timescale spectral variab…
