Chemical Abundances and Geometry in QSO Broad Absorption Line Regions

Details Chemical Abundances and Geometry in QSO Broad Absorption Line Regions Chemical Abundances and Geometry in QSO Broad Absorption Line Regions

Jul 1999

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1999hst..prop.8355j&link_type=abstract

HST Proposal ID #8355

Physics

Hst Proposal Id #8355 Agn Physics

Scientific paper

We propose to use archival HST UV spectra to study the chemical abundances in QSO broad absorption line {BAL} regions while taking into account the geometry of the emission/absorption regions and, in particular, partial covering of the background sources by the absorber. Previous studies of BALQSO spectra point to extreme metallicities, 50 to 100 times solar for some elements {Turnshek et al. 1996} and a phosphorus to carbon ratio of around 65 times solar {Junkkarinen et al. 1997}. Other studies suggest that the abundances are 1 to 10 times solar {Korista et al. 1996}. The extreme apparent metallicities may result from ignoring, in the analysis, complex ionization and partial covering effects {Hamann 1998}. The combination of archival HST UV spectra with existing optical spectra {including Keck HIRES spectra} will provide a better test of both the ionization and partial covering effects. The UV spectra include many lines and provide constraints on partial covering especially from saturated lines that are not black. The high resolution Keck spectra of isolated BALs provide extremely accurate absorption templates and give direct measurements of partial covering in narrower components in the BAL outflow. An analysis of BALQSO spectra that includes the background source geometry and partial covering is now needed before the chemical abundances derived from BALQSOs can be considered reliable.

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