Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics
Scientific paper
May 1992
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1992aipc..254..473k&link_type=abstract
In: Testing the AGN paradigm; Proceedings of the 2nd Annual Topical Astrophysics Conference, Univ. of Maryland, College Park, Oc
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
9
Active Galactic Nuclei, Occultation, Optical Reflection, Optical Thickness, Line Of Sight, Physical Properties, Spectral Signatures
Scientific paper
Advances in elucidating the physical state of the region responsible for obscuration and reflection in AGN are reviewed. Obscuration geometry, opacity and energy flow, and predicted spectra are examined. Models in which the obscuration is concentrated in a torus at comparatively small distance from the nucleus produce a distinct spectral signature: a relatively warm IR spectrum and strong anisotropy. Progress has also been made in constraining the physical character and dynamics of the reflecting material. Its origin appears to be in evaporation of obscuring material, which is then expelled in a Compton heated wind. Little mass can be expelled unless L/L(E) is greater than 0.1, so evidence for reflection places an upper bound on the central mass; conversely, there may be cases in which there is obscuration, but the central mass is too great to permit much reflection.
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