Physics
Scientific paper
Jul 2002
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2002hst..prop.9486d&link_type=abstract
HST Proposal ID #9486
Physics
Hst Proposal Id #9486
Scientific paper
LINER emission is now known to occur in many galaxies at a variety of levels, with causes as diverse as old nuclear starbursts, cooling flows, accretion disks, and jets. The early prototypes, including NGC 3998, belong to a distinct class of AGN-like LINERs with the most luminous line emission and powerful nuclear radio emission. These LINERs have ionized gaseous disks on the scale of tens of parsecs, which have now been found to be in rotation about supermassive black holes. The disks are apparently the outer parts of energy- releasing accretion disks. Powerful new UV+optical emission line diagnostics have been developed to settle the long- standing debate over whether the gas is being photoionized or shock excited. With STIS, we will be able to test ionization models, to determine whether the UV continuum is produced by a nonthermal source or by hot stars, and to determine whether that continuum is sufficient to ionize the gas. We will also make a spatially resolved study of the nucleus to test ideas about the energy transport in the disk. NGC 3998 is an exceptionally good AGN-like LINER to apply the new modelling and the sensitivity and resolution of STIS to. It is very nearby, active, bright in emission lines, UV-bright, and free of obscuration. We propose to observe its nuclear spectrum from 1150Angstrom to 10000Angstrom to get what may be our best look yet at a LINER AGN.
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