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© 2017. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved. During the Space Telescope and Optical Reverberation Mapping Project observations of NGC 5548, the continuum and emission-line variability became decorrelated during the second half of the six-month-long observing campaign. Here we present Swift and Chandra X-ray spectra of NGC 5548 obtained as part of the campaign. The Swift spectra show that excess flux (relative to a power-law continuum) in the soft X-ray band appears before the start of the anomalous emission-line behavior, peaks during the period of the anomaly, and then declines. This is a model-independent result suggesting that the soft excess is related to the anomaly. We divide the Swift data into on- and off-anomaly spectra to characterize the soft excess via spectral fitting. The cause of the spectral differences is likely due to a change in the intrinsic spectrum rather than to variable obscuration or partial covering. The Chandra spectra have lower signal-to-noise ratios, but are consistent with the Swift data. Our preferred model of the soft excess is emission from an optically thick, warm Comptonizing corona, the effective optical depth of which increases during the anomaly. This model simultaneously explains all three observations: the UV emission-line flux decrease, the soft-excess increase, and the emission-line anomaly.

© 2017. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved. We present the results of an optical spectroscopic monitoring program targeting NGC 5548 as part of a larger multiwavelength reverberation mapping campaign. The campaign spanned 6 months and achieved an almost daily cadence with observations from five ground-based telescopes. The Hβ and He ii λ4686 broad emission-line light curves lag that of the 5100 +-optical continuum by 4.17+0.36-0.36 and 0.79+0.35-0.34 days, respectively. The Hβ lag relative to the 1158 ultraviolet continuum light curve measured by the Hubble Space Telescope is ∼50% longer than that measured against the optical continuum, and the lag difference is consistent with the observed lag between the optical and ultraviolet continua. This suggests that the characteristic radius of the broad-line region is ∼50% larger than the value inferred from optical data alone. We also measured velocity-resolved emission-line lags for Hβ and found a complex velocity-lag structure with shorter lags in the line wings, indicative of a broad-line region dominated by Keplerian motion. The responses of both the Hβ and He ii emission lines to the driving continuum changed significantly halfway through the campaign, a phenomenon also observed for C iv, Lyα, He ii(+O iii]), and Si iv(+O iv]) during the same monitoring period. Finally, given the optical luminosity of NGC 5548 during our campaign, the measured Hβ lag is a factor of five shorter than the expected value implied by the R BLR-L AGN relation based on the past behavior of NGC 5548.

To investigate the black hole mass versus stellar velocity dispersion (MBH-σ*) relation of active galaxies, we measured the velocity dispersions of a sample of local Seyfert 1 galaxies, for which we have recently determined black hole masses using reverberation mapping. For most objects, stellar velocity dispersions were measured from high signal-to-noise ratio optical spectra centered on the Ca II triplet region (∼ 8500 Å), obtained at the Keck, Palomar, and Lick Observatories. For two objects, in which the Ca II triplet region was contaminated by nuclear emission, the measurement was based on high-quality H-band spectra obtained with the OH-Suppressing Infrared Imaging Spectrograph at the Keck-II telescope. Combining our new measurements with data from the literature, we assemble a sample of 24 active galaxies with stellar velocity dispersions and reverberation-based black hole mass measurements in the range of black hole mass 106< MBH/M⊙< 109. We use this sample to obtain reverberation-mapping constraints on the slope and intrinsic scatter of the MBH-σ*relation of active galaxies. Assuming a constant virial coefficient f for the reverberation-mapping black hole masses, we find a slope β = 3.55 ± 0.60 and the intrinsic scatter σint= 0.43 ± 0.08 dex in the relation log(MBH/M⊙) = α + β log(σ*/200kms-1), which are consistent with those found for quiescent galaxies. We derive an updated value of the virial coefficient f by finding the value which places the reverberation masses in best agreement with the MBH-σ*relation of quiescent galaxies; using the quiescent MBH-σ*relation determined by Gültekin etal., we find log f = 0.72+0.09-0.10with an intrinsic scatter of 0.44 ± 0.07 dex. No strong correlations between f and parameters connected to the physics of accretion (such as the Eddington ratio or line-shape measurements) are found. The uncertainty of the virial coefficient remains one of the main sources of the uncertainty in black hole mass determinations using reverberation mapping, and therefore also in single-epoch spectroscopic estimates of black hole masses in active galaxies. © 2010 The American Astronomical Society.

Type 2 or "obscured" AGN have long been identified at low AGN luminosities (e.g. Seyfert 2s) or through their radio luminosities (e.g. radio galaxies). But radio-quiet quasars (RQQs) are many times more common than radio-loud quasars, and it's therefore unsurprising that recent searches have revealed that radio-quiet quasar 2s also form significant population. Finding the numbers, properties, and redshift distribution of quasar 2s will be very important to resolving questions about the formation and co-evolution of black holes and galaxies. We have selected a sample of Type 2 and Type 1 quasars matched in their mid-infrared luminosity from the Spitzer First Look Survey by selecting on their mid-infrared dust emission properties (as measured by Spitzer IRAC photometry). This emission provides a distinctive signature of AGN activity but should not be affected by orientation or torus opening angle. We have obtained mid-infrared IRS spectroscopy of these samples to study star formation activity in the host galaxies and the dust environments of the AGN, using measurements of the PAH features, the shape of the mid-infrared SED, and the equivalent width of the silicate features at 10 microns. We find that the quasar 2s have more diverse mid-IR spectral properties, and that obscuration of the AGN is linked to star formation activity in the host.

We present a preliminary investigation of the spectral energy distributions (SEDs), and star-formation properties of a sample of Mid-IR selected Quasars. The mid-infrared SEDs of our objects are consistent with that expected from clumpy torus models. At longer infrared wavelengths, the radio to infrared ratios of several objects are consistent with those of star-forming galaxies.

211th Meeting of the american Astronomical Society with the Historical Astrnonomy Division and the High Energy Astrophysics Division, 7-11 January 2007, Austin, Texas, USA

We present an investigation of the spectral energy distribution of mid-IR-selected quasars from the Spitzer First Look and SWIRE surveys. We explore a suite of clumpy torus models from Nenkova et al. (2002) to see how well they fit the types of objects we find. For about one-third of our objects these models underestimate the amount of observed 70 micron emission. We constrain the contribution and rough population age of the AGN hosts and use radio, 70 and 24 micron data to characterize the star-forming properties of these objects.

We present optical spectroscopy of a sample of 77 luminous active galactic nuclei (AGNs) and quasars selected on the basis of their mid-infrared colors. Our objects are selected from the Spitzer Extragalactic First Look Survey and the SWIRE XMM-Newton Large-Scale Structure Survey (XMM-LSS) fields, with a typical 24 μm flux density of 5 mJy. The median redshift is 0.6, with a range of ~0.05-4. Only 33% (25 out of 77) of these objects are normal type 1 quasars, with no obscuration. Forty-four percent (34 out of 77) are type 2 objects, with high-ionization, narrow emission lines, and 14% (11 out of 77) are dust-reddened type 1 quasars, showing broad lines but a dust-reddened or unusually weak quasar continuum. Nine percent (7 out of 77) show no sign of an AGN in the optical spectrum, having either starburst spectra or spectra that could be of either starburst or LINER type. These latter objects are analogous to the X-ray-detected population of AGNs with weak or nonexistent optical AGN emission (the X-ray-bright, optically normal galaxies). Of our objects from the SWIRE field, 21 fall within moderately deep XMM-Newton exposures. All the unobscured quasars and about half the obscured quasars are detected in these exposures. This sample, when taken together with other samples of Spitzer-selected AGNs and quasars and results from X-ray studies, confirms that obscured AGNs dominate the AGN and quasar number counts of all rapidly accreting supermassive black hole systems, at least for z ≾ 4. This implies a high radiative efficiency for the black hole accretion process.

We present a preliminary investigation of the spectral energy distributions (SEDs), and star-formation properties of a sample of Mid-IR selected Quasars. The mid-infrared SEDs of our objects are consistent with that expected from clumpy torus models. At longer wavelengths, the radio to infrared ratios of several objects are consistent with those of star-forming galaxies., Comments: 4 pages, 4 figures. To appear in the proceedings for the Spitzer Science Center 2005 Conference: Infrared Diagnostics of Galaxy Evolution, Ed. R. Chary. November, 2005, Pasadena

We present results from the spectroscopic follow-up of a sample of candidate obscured AGN selected in the mid-infrared from the Spitzer First Look Survey. Our selection allows a direct comparison of the numbers of obscured and unobscured AGN at a given luminosity for the first time, and shows that the ratio of obscured to unobscured AGN in an 8μm-selected sample with infrared luminosities corresponding to low luminosity quasars is ≈ 1 : 1 at z ~0.5. Most of our optically-faint candidate obscured AGN have the high-ionization, narrowline spectra expected from type-2 AGN. We discuss techniques for selecting such samples at longer infrared wavelengths to reduce the selection bias against highly-obscured and high redshift objects inherent in our IRAC-based selection technique.

We present results of near infrared imaging of the disk-galaxy-merger NGC 6240 using adaptive optics on the Keck II Telescope and reprocessed archival data from NICMOS on the Hubble Space Telescope. Both the North and South nuclei of NGC 6240 are clearly elongated, with considerable sub-structure within each nucleus. In K' band there are at least two point-sources within the North nucleus; we tentatively identify the south-western point-source within the North nucleus as the position of one of the two AGNs. Within the South nucleus, the northern sub-nucleus is more highly reddened. Based upon the nuclear separation measured at 5 GHz, we suggest that the AGN in the South nucleus is still enshrouded in dust at K' band, and is located slightly to the north of the brightest point in K' band. Within the South nucleus there is strong H2 1-0 S(1) line emission from the northern sub-nucleus, contrary to the conclusions of previous seeing-limited observations. Narrowband H2 emission-line images show that a streamer or ribbon of excited molecular hydrogen connects the North and South nuclei. We suggest that this linear feature corresponds to a bridge of gas connecting the two nuclei, as seen in computer simulations of mergers. Many point-like regions are seen around the two nuclei. These are most prominent at 1.1 microns with NICMOS, and in K'-band with Keck adaptive optics. We suggest that these point-sources represent young star clusters formed in the course of the merger., 50 pages, 13 figures. To be published in the Astrophysical Journal, March 10, 2005

Optical red spectra of a set of 18 bright barred spiral galaxies are presented. The study is aimed at determining the local kinematics, and the physical conditions of ionized gas in the compact nucleus (inside a diameter of 5") and in the circumnuclear regions (inside a diameter of 20"). Only 8 galaxies showed bright emission from their east and west side of the nucleus. The spectrum of each region was analized separately. In other 10 galaxies the line emission was so weak that we were only able to obtain an average spectrum of the central emission. No emission was detected in the remaining 8 galaxies. An estimate of the dynamical mass is presented based on the observed velocities in the circumnuclear regions. In NGC 4314 and NGC 6951, that show H_alpha emission distributed in circumnuclear ring structures, we determine the [NII]/H_alpha and [SII]/H_alpha ratios for the eastern and western regions of the rings. The velocity difference for the two sides is used to derive the rotation velocity of the gas around the compact nucleus. The ratio [NII]6583/H_alpha is a factor of 2 larger in the compact nucleus of NGC 6951 than in its western side. The electron gas densities have been estimated from the [SII] lines ratio., 14 pages with 10 figures. Accepted for publication in Rev. Mex. Astron. Astrofis. (uses aas2pp4.sty macro)

We model the ultraviolet spectra of the Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC~5548 obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope during the 6-month reverberation-mapping campaign in 2014. Our model of the emission from NGC 5548 corrects for overlying absorption and deblends the individual emission lines. Using the modeled spectra, we measure the response to continuum variations for the deblended and absorption-corrected individual broad emission lines, the velocity-dependent profiles of Ly$\alpha$ and C IV, and the narrow and broad intrinsic absorption features. We find that the time lags for the corrected emission lines are comparable to those for the original data. The velocity-binned lag profiles of Ly$\alpha$ and C IV have a double-peaked structure indicative of a truncated Keplerian disk. The narrow absorption lines show delayed response to continuum variations corresponding to recombination in gas with a density of $\sim 10^5~\rm cm^{-3}$. The high-ionization narrow absorption lines decorrelate from continuum variations during the same period as the broad emission lines. Analyzing the response of these absorption lines during this period shows that the ionizing flux is diminished in strength relative to the far-ultraviolet continuum. The broad absorption lines associated with the X-ray obscurer decrease in strength during this same time interval. The appearance of X-ray obscuration in $\sim\,2012$ corresponds with an increase in the luminosity of NGC 5548 following an extended low state. We suggest that the obscurer is a disk wind triggered by the brightening of NGC 5548 following the decrease in size of the broad-line region during the preceding low-luminosity state., Comment: 50 pages, 30 figures, uses aastex62.cls. Accepted for publication in ApJ, 07/06/2019. High-level products page in MAST will go live after 7/15/2019. Replaced Figure 4 on 7/12/2019 to be more red/green color-blind friendly