Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics
Scientific paper
2003-09-18
Mon.Not.Roy.Astron.Soc.353:338,2004
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
Submitted to MNRAS. A version with higher-resolution figures is available for download at http://www.mrao.cam.ac.uk/~rg200 as
Scientific paper
10.1111/j.1365-2966.2004.08071.x
The relativistically broadened iron K-alpha line at 6.4 keV observed in the Seyfert 1 galaxy MCG-6-30-15 has provided a probe of the strong-gravity environment near a black hole, in particular suggesting that it is rapidly spinning. An important variable in such analyses is the geometry of the illuminating source. We present a new technique which constrains this geometry based on the spectral line shape, based on a model of discrete, point-like flaring regions in the X-ray corona. We apply it to simulated reverberation maps and give examples of successful reconstructions of complex coronal flaring patterns. For time-averaged spectral lines the problem is highly degenerate, and so its inversion more challenging. We quantify this degeneracy and give a measure of the spatial accuracy of the method in this case, before checking that it is consistent with the existing picture of MCG-6-30-15 by applying it to recent data from XMM-Newton.
Goyder R.
Lasenby Anthony N.
No associations
LandOfFree
Inferring the coronal flaring patterns in AGN from reverberation maps does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.
If you have personal experience with Inferring the coronal flaring patterns in AGN from reverberation maps, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Inferring the coronal flaring patterns in AGN from reverberation maps will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-69878