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Published October 1, 2017 | Submitted
Journal Article Open

XMM-Newton and NuSTAR joint observations of Mrk 915: a deep look into the X-ray properties

Abstract

We report on the X-ray monitoring programme (covering slightly more than 11 d) carried out jointly by XMM–Newton and NuSTAR on the intermediate Seyfert galaxy Mrk 915. The light curves extracted in different energy ranges show a variation in intensity but not a significant change in the spectral shape. The X-ray spectra reveal the presence of a two-phase warm absorber: a fully covering mildly ionized structure [log ξ/(erg cm s^(−1)) ∼ 2.3, N_H ∼ 1.3 × 10^(21) cm^(−2)] and a partial covering (∼90 per cent) lower ionized one [log ξ/(erg cm s^(−1)) ∼ 0.6, N_H ∼ 2 × 10^(22) cm^(−2)]. A reflection component from distant matter is also present. Finally, a high-column density (N_H ∼ 1.5 × 10^(23) cm^(−2)) distribution of neutral matter covering a small fraction of the central region is observed, almost constant, in all observations. The main driver of the variations observed between the data sets is a decrease in the intrinsic emission by a factor of ∼1.5. Slight variations in the partial covering ionized absorber are detected, while the data are consistent with no variation of the total covering absorber. The most likely interpretation of the present data locates this complex absorber closer to the central source than the narrow line region, possibly in the broad line region, in the innermost part of the torus, or in between. The neutral obscurer may either be part of this stratified structure or associated with the walls of the torus, grazed by (and partially intercepting) the line of sight.

Additional Information

© 2017 The Authors. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Royal Astronomical Society. Accepted 2017 May 31. Received 2017 May 31; in original form 2017 February 1. Published: 03 June 2017. Based on observations obtained with the XMM–Newton and the NuSTAR satellites. We are grateful to the referee for her/his constructive comments that improved the paper. We warmly thank A. Caccianiga for the useful discussions and helpful suggestions. Support from the Italian Space Agency is acknowledged (contract ASI INAF NuSTAR I/037/12/0). Based on observations obtained with XMM-Newton, an ESA science mission with instruments and contributions directly funded by ESA Member States and the USA, NASA. This work made use of data from the NuSTAR mission, a project led by the California Institute of Technology, managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and funded by NASA. This research has made use of the NuSTAR Data Analysis Software (NUSTARDAS) jointly developed by the ASI Science Data Center and the California Institute of Technology. This research has made use of NASA's Astrophysics Data System.

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Created:
August 19, 2023
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October 25, 2023