A Sharper View of the X-ray Spectrum of MCG--6-30-15 with XRISM, XMM-Newton and NuSTAR

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251008926v1.pdf (8.36 MB)

Links to Files

http://arxiv.org/abs/2510.08926

Permanent Link

https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2510.08926
 http://hdl.handle.net/11603/40850

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UMBC Physics Department
UMBC Center for Space Sciences and Technology (CSST) / Center for Research and Exploration in Space Sciences & Technology II (CRSST II)
UMBC Faculty Collection

Author/Creator

Author/Creator ORCID

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2704-599X

Date

2025-10-10

Type of Work

journal articles
postprints
Text

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Citation of Original Publication

Rights

This work was written as part of one of the author's official duties as an Employee of the United States Government and is therefore a work of the United States Government. In accordance with 17 U.S.C. 105, no copyright protection is available for such works under U.S. Law.
Public Domain

Subjects

Astrophysics - Astrophysics of Galaxies
Astrophysics - High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena

Abstract

We present a time-averaged spectral analysis of the 2024 XRISM observation of the narrow-line Seyfert-1 galaxy MCG--6-30-15, taken contemporaneously with XMM-Newton and NuSTAR. Our analysis leverages a unique combination of broadband and high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy to definitively isolate and characterize both broad and narrow emission and absorption features in this source. The best-fitting model for the joint spectral analysis is very well described by reflection from the inner accretion disk illuminated by a compact corona, modified by multi-zone ionized absorption from an outflowing wind along the line of sight. The XRISM/Resolve data confirm that a strong, relativistically-broadened Fe Kα emission line is required in order to obtain an adequate model fit. The Resolve data additionally verify the presence of a 𝑣*<subscript out>∼2300 km/s component of this outflowing wind, find tentative evidence for a 𝑣*<subscript out>∼20,000 km/s wind component, and indicate that the reflection from distant, neutral material may originate in a non-uniform structure rather than the traditional torus of AGN unification schemes. Though a rapid prograde black hole spin is statistically preferred by the best-fitting model, consistent with previous results, the AGN flux variability over the course of the observation complicates the interpretation of the time-averaged spectra. This insight, clarified by the combination of high signal-to-noise and high spectral resolution in the joint dataset, emphasizes the importance of time-resolved, high-resolution spectral analysis in unambiguously measuring the physical properties of variable AGN.