XMM-Newton reveals matter accreting onto the central supermassive black hole of NGC 2617
Abstract
NGC 2617 (z=0.042) underwent a strong broad-band outburst during 2013/14, concurrently switching from being a Seyfert 1.8 to be a Seyfert 1.0 sometimes during the previous 10 years. Thanks to the combination of the large effective area and the good spectral resolution of the EPIC-pn onboard XMM-Newton, striking insights about the very inner accretion flow of this AGN have been revealed. In particular, persistent Fe K absorption redshifted by ∼ 35,000 km/s was solidly detected in two observations spaced by one month: a highly ionised flow of mass toward the central supermassive black hole of NGC 2617 has started to be traced. So far NGC 2617 is a quasi-unique observational example: what are the perspectives of enlarging these studies in the future? Thanks to current large and prolonged optical surveys like the SDSS/BOSS, many "optically changing-look AGN" like NGC 2617 are being discovered month after month: XMM-Newton has the ideal instruments to perform a proper X-ray study of such objects in the near future. I will assess the impact of XMM-Newton on studying the dynamics of the inner accretion flow in AGN in a systematic way and in synergy with near- and mid-future X-ray instruments such as (ASTRO-H)Hitomi and ATHENA.
- Publication:
-
XMM-Newton: The Next Decade
- Pub Date:
- June 2016
- Bibcode:
- 2016xnnd.confE..48G