Deep Chandra Observation of the Remarkable Ionization Cones of NGC 5252
Seyfert galaxy NGC 5252 harbors enormously extended ionization cones that have been previously detected in the optical and X-ray band, offering a unique opportunity to investigate the interaction between the central active galactic nucleus (AGN) and the surrounding gas in the AGN host galaxy. We pre...
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| Format: | Article |
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IOP Publishing
2024-01-01
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| Series: | The Astrophysical Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad18c9 |
| _version_ | 1797302016928645120 |
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| author | Chen Wang Junfeng Wang Mauro Dadina Giuseppina Fabbiano Martin Elvis Stefano Bianchi Matteo Guainazzi |
| author_facet | Chen Wang Junfeng Wang Mauro Dadina Giuseppina Fabbiano Martin Elvis Stefano Bianchi Matteo Guainazzi |
| author_sort | Chen Wang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Seyfert galaxy NGC 5252 harbors enormously extended ionization cones that have been previously detected in the optical and X-ray band, offering a unique opportunity to investigate the interaction between the central active galactic nucleus (AGN) and the surrounding gas in the AGN host galaxy. We present deep Chandra imaging spectroscopy of NGC 5252 with a total exposure time of 230 ks. The morphology in the soft X-rays shows resolved extended structure from the nucleus to a large radial distance, and for the first time we detect the outermost X-ray arc at ∼20 kpc. The X-ray cone mostly follows the direction of the optical ionization cones in the southeast and northwest directions, about 20° misaligned with the major axis of the galactic disk of NGC 5252. Fitting the spectra extracted from radial sectors with photoionization models supports that extended emission is mainly photoionized by the central AGN. We also examine the variation of the photoionization parameter along the radial extension and infer a decreasing ionizing continuum of the central engine by a factor of ∼50 over the past 64,000 yr. These findings are consistent with previous suggestions that NGC 5252 resembles a quasar relic with an M ∼ 10 ^9 M _⊙ supermassive black hole that went through a minor merger event and switched to a low accretion rate state. |
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| format | Article |
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| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1538-4357 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T23:29:53Z |
| publishDate | 2024-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
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| series | The Astrophysical Journal |
| spelling | doaj.art-a88a8815953b421687f920fa404b7eaf2024-02-20T16:42:51ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572024-01-01962218810.3847/1538-4357/ad18c9Deep Chandra Observation of the Remarkable Ionization Cones of NGC 5252Chen Wang0Junfeng Wang1https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4874-0369Mauro Dadina2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7858-7564Giuseppina Fabbiano3https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3554-3318Martin Elvis4https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5060-1398Stefano Bianchi5https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4622-4240Matteo Guainazzi6Department of Astronomy, Xiamen University , Xiamen, 361005, People's Republic of China ; jfwang@xmu.edu.cn; Université Paris Saclay and Université Paris Cité , CEA, CNRS, AIM, F-91191 Gif-sur-Yvette Cedex, FranceDepartment of Astronomy, Xiamen University , Xiamen, 361005, People's Republic of China ; jfwang@xmu.edu.cnINAF/ OAS (Osservatorio d'Astrofisica e Scienza dello Spazio), Bologna via Gobetti 101, I-40129, Bologna, ItalyHarvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics , 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USAHarvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics , 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USAUniversità degli Studi Roma Tre , via della Vasca Navale 84, I-00146 Roma, ItalyESA European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) , Keplerlaan 1, 2201 AZ, Noordwijk, The NetherlandsSeyfert galaxy NGC 5252 harbors enormously extended ionization cones that have been previously detected in the optical and X-ray band, offering a unique opportunity to investigate the interaction between the central active galactic nucleus (AGN) and the surrounding gas in the AGN host galaxy. We present deep Chandra imaging spectroscopy of NGC 5252 with a total exposure time of 230 ks. The morphology in the soft X-rays shows resolved extended structure from the nucleus to a large radial distance, and for the first time we detect the outermost X-ray arc at ∼20 kpc. The X-ray cone mostly follows the direction of the optical ionization cones in the southeast and northwest directions, about 20° misaligned with the major axis of the galactic disk of NGC 5252. Fitting the spectra extracted from radial sectors with photoionization models supports that extended emission is mainly photoionized by the central AGN. We also examine the variation of the photoionization parameter along the radial extension and infer a decreasing ionizing continuum of the central engine by a factor of ∼50 over the past 64,000 yr. These findings are consistent with previous suggestions that NGC 5252 resembles a quasar relic with an M ∼ 10 ^9 M _⊙ supermassive black hole that went through a minor merger event and switched to a low accretion rate state.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad18c9AGN host galaxiesX-ray active galactic nucleiPhotoionizationHot ionized medium |
| spellingShingle | Chen Wang Junfeng Wang Mauro Dadina Giuseppina Fabbiano Martin Elvis Stefano Bianchi Matteo Guainazzi Deep Chandra Observation of the Remarkable Ionization Cones of NGC 5252 The Astrophysical Journal AGN host galaxies X-ray active galactic nuclei Photoionization Hot ionized medium |
| title | Deep Chandra Observation of the Remarkable Ionization Cones of NGC 5252 |
| title_full | Deep Chandra Observation of the Remarkable Ionization Cones of NGC 5252 |
| title_fullStr | Deep Chandra Observation of the Remarkable Ionization Cones of NGC 5252 |
| title_full_unstemmed | Deep Chandra Observation of the Remarkable Ionization Cones of NGC 5252 |
| title_short | Deep Chandra Observation of the Remarkable Ionization Cones of NGC 5252 |
| title_sort | deep chandra observation of the remarkable ionization cones of ngc 5252 |
| topic | AGN host galaxies X-ray active galactic nuclei Photoionization Hot ionized medium |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad18c9 |
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