The collisional and photoionized plasma in the polarized NLS1 galaxy Mrk 1239

Abstract

Mrk 1239 is a highly polarized NLS1 in the optical band, whose 0.3 − 3 keV spectrum has remained remarkably consistent over more than two decades of observation. Previous analysis of this object suggested that the soft X-ray band was dominated by emission lines (collisionally and/or photoionized) from the distant host galaxy as the X-ray emission from the central engine was highly obscured. New XMM-Newton data of Mrk 1239 are presented here to investigate the soft X-ray band of this galaxy with high resolution. The first RGS spectra of this source reveal a plethora of ionized emission lines originating from two distinct plasmas, one collisionally ionized and the other photoionized at approximately equal brightness. The best fit model uses apec and xstar grids to account for the collisionally ionized and photoionized components, respectively. The fit improves significantly if the photoionized material is allowed to outflow at ≈500 km s−1, matching the outflow velocity of the forbidden O vii emission line. From constraints on the ionization and density of the photoionized material we can estimate the location of it to be no further than a few pc from the central source, around the outer radius of the torus, which is consistent with the O vii(f) emission line. Properties of the collisionally ionized plasma are consistent with star formation rate (SFR) of $\approx 3 \hbox{$\rm \, M_{\odot }$}\textrm {yr}^{-1}$, which is comparable with several previous measurements of the SFR in this galaxy.

A Hot Mess: The Rich and Complex Soft Emitting Regions Surrounding the Reflection Dominated Flaring Central Engine of Mrk 1239

“…The SFR measured was ∼3 M e yr −1 , consistent with other measurements. The presumed large scales of the plasma were consistent with the extended and asymmetric X-ray emission seen in the Chandra image (Buhariwalla et al 2023).…”

“…The final component was a relatively featureless component, interpreted as the AGN continuum leaking through the obscuring clouds. The components and interpretation were largely consistent in the Reflection Grating Spectrometer (RGS) analysis of Buhariwalla et al (2023). In the RGS spectra, the photo and collisionally ionized components are visible, while the third continuum-like component was not distinguished from the background.…”

“…Mrk 1239 straddles the border between radio-quiet (Doi et al 2015) and radio-loud (Berton et al 2018) and is classified as a Fanaroff-Riley type I radio source (Fanaroff & Riley 1974;Doi et al 2015), where radio emission is most intense in the center of the galaxy and decreases intensity with increasing radius. Buhariwalla et al (2023) overplotted the soft band emission and the radio contours produced by Järvelä et al (2022) to show that the soft X-ray emission is asymmetric and extended from the center of the galaxy (see Figure 1 of Buhariwalla et al 2023).…”

“…The first high-resolution spectrum of Mrk 1239 was reported by Buhariwalla et al (2023). Ionized emission lines were detected between 0.4 and 1.7 keV (7-35 Å); however, due to the dim nature of the source, no continuum was observed.…”

Changing-Look Narrow-Line Seyfert 1 Galaxies, their Detection with SVOM, and the Case of NGC 1566

“…Once identified (no matter whether the type 2 state is long-lived and due to the unified model [100], or due to high-amplitude variability), then, in X-rays, type 2 states enable follow-up imaging spectroscopy. For example, the detection of X-ray lines from the circum-nuclear medium [101,102] and the determination of their excitation/ionization mechanism, or the detection of spatially resolved optical outflows, are of great interest for our understanding of the mechanisms of feeding and feedback, especially in these high-accretion systems which are rapidly growing their SMBHs.…”