From ultraluminous X-ray to ultraluminous soft sources: NGC 55 ULX novel
Abstract
In a recent work done with XMM-Newton, we have discovered thatultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) have strong relativistic windsin agreement with the theoretical predictions of high accretionrates. These winds can become optically thick enough to block andreprocess the disk X-ray photons, making the source appear as a softthermal emitter or ultraluminous supersoft X-ray source (ULS). We wantto test this hypothesis, by studying a ULX where the wind is alreadycausing significant absorption of the X-ray continuum. NGC 55 ULX isthe optimal target, a transitional object between ULXs and ULSs, whichexhibits several strong blueshifted emission and absorption lines, andwe propose to observe it for 250 ks to determine the velocity structureand location of its strong relativistic wind.
- Publication:
-
XMM-Newton Proposal
- Pub Date:
- October 2017
- Bibcode:
- 2017xmm..prop..155P