The rate of extreme coronal line emitting galaxies in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and their relation to tidal disruption events

ABSTRACT High-ionization iron coronal lines (CLs) are a rare phenomenon observed in galaxy and quasi-stellar object spectra that are thought to be created by high-energy emission from active galactic nuclei and certain types of transients. In cases known as extreme coronal line emitting galaxies (ECLEs), these CLs are strong and fade away on a time-scale of years. The most likely progenitors of these variable CLs are tidal disruption events (TDEs), which produce sufficient high-energy emission to create and sustain the CLs over these time-scales. To test the possible connection between ECLEs and TDEs, we present the most complete variable ECLE rate calculation to date and compare the results to TDE rates from the literature. To achieve this, we search for ECLEs in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). We detect sufficiently strong CLs in 16 galaxies, more than doubling the number previously found in SDSS. Using follow-up spectra from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument and Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph, Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer mid-infrared observations, and Liverpool Telescope optical photometry, we find that none of the nine new ECLEs evolve in a manner consistent with that of the five previously discovered variable ECLEs. Using this sample of five variable ECLEs, we calculate the galaxy-normalized rate of variable ECLEs in SDSS to be $R_\mathrm{G}=3.6~^{+2.6}_{-1.8}~(\mathrm{statistical})~^{+5.1}_{-0.0}~(\mathrm{systematic})\times 10^{-6}~\mathrm{galaxy}^{-1}~\mathrm{yr}^{-1}$. The mass-normalized rate is $R_\mathrm{M}=3.1~^{+2.3}_{-1.5}~(\mathrm{statistical})~^{+4.4}_{-0.0}~(\mathrm{systematic})\times 10^{-17}~\mathrm{M_\odot ^{-1}}~\mathrm{yr}^{-1}$ and the volumetric rate is $R_\mathrm{V}=7~^{+20}_{-5}~(\mathrm{statistical})~^{+10}_{-0.0}~(\mathrm{systematic})\times 10^{-9}~\mathrm{Mpc}^{-3}~\mathrm{yr}^{-1}$. Our rates are one to two orders of magnitude lower than TDE rates from the literature, which suggests that only 10–40 per cent of all TDEs produce variable ECLEs. Additional uncertainties in the rates arising from the structure of the interstellar medium have yet to be included.

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Journal
Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Published
2024-10-16
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stae2384
Citations
8
Primary Topic
Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena
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article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
2.65

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article

The rate of extreme coronal line emitting galaxies in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and their relation to tidal disruption events

Andrew Lambert, Graziano Rossi, Gregory Tarlé, J. A. Callow et al.
8 citations
Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena
2.65
article

The rate of extreme coronal line emitting galaxies in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and their relation to tidal disruption events

Andrew Lambert, Graziano Rossi, Gregory Tarlé, J. A. Callow, Martin Landriau, Jundan Nie, Or Graur, Marc Manera, A. Palmese, J. Aguilar, P. Clark, Eusebio Sanchez, Satya Gontcho A Gontcho, S. BenZvi, ENRIQUE GAZTAÑAGA, Joseph Harry Silber, J. E. Forero-Romero, Steven P. Ahlen, Aaron Meisner, David H. Brooks, Mehdi Rezaie, John Moustakas, Claire Poppett, Zhimin Zhou, P. Doel, R Miquel, B. A. Weaver, T. Claybaugh, Francisco Prada
article en
8 citations

Abstract

ABSTRACT High-ionization iron coronal lines (CLs) are a rare phenomenon observed in galaxy and quasi-stellar object spectra that are thought to be created by high-energy emission from active galactic nuclei and certain types of transients. In cases known as extreme coronal line emitting galaxies (ECLEs), these CLs are strong and fade away on a time-scale of years. The most likely progenitors of these variable CLs are tidal disruption events (TDEs), which produce sufficient high-energy emission to create and sustain the CLs over these time-scales. To test the possible connection between ECLEs and TDEs, we present the most complete variable ECLE rate calculation to date and compare the results to TDE rates from the literature. To achieve this, we search for ECLEs in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). We detect sufficiently strong CLs in 16 galaxies, more than doubling the number previously found in SDSS. Using follow-up spectra from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument and Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph, Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer mid-infrared observations, and Liverpool Telescope optical photometry, we find that none of the nine new ECLEs evolve in a manner consistent with that of the five previously discovered variable ECLEs. Using this sample of five variable ECLEs, we calculate the galaxy-normalized rate of variable ECLEs in SDSS to be $R_\mathrm{G}=3.6~^{+2.6}_{-1.8}~(\mathrm{statistical})~^{+5.1}_{-0.0}~(\mathrm{systematic})\times 10^{-6}~\mathrm{galaxy}^{-1}~\mathrm{yr}^{-1}$. The mass-normalized rate is $R_\mathrm{M}=3.1~^{+2.3}_{-1.5}~(\mathrm{statistical})~^{+4.4}_{-0.0}~(\mathrm{systematic})\times 10^{-17}~\mathrm{M_\odot ^{-1}}~\mathrm{yr}^{-1}$ and the volumetric rate is $R_\mathrm{V}=7~^{+20}_{-5}~(\mathrm{statistical})~^{+10}_{-0.0}~(\mathrm{systematic})\times 10^{-9}~\mathrm{Mpc}^{-3}~\mathrm{yr}^{-1}$. Our rates are one to two orders of magnitude lower than TDE rates from the literature, which suggests that only 10–40 per cent of all TDEs produce variable ECLEs. Additional uncertainties in the rates arising from the structure of the interstellar medium have yet to be included.

Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical SocietyVol. 535(1)
Boston University (US), Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ES), Universidad Complutense de Madrid (ES), Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (ES), Institute of Space Sciences (ES), American Museum of Natural History (US), Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (US), Universidad de Los Andes (CO), Institute for High Energy Physics (ES), Kansas State University (US), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN), University of Michigan (US), Sejong University (KR), Institut d'Estudis Espacials de Catalunya (ES), Community Science and Data Center (US), NSF NOIRLab (US), Universidad de Los Andes (BO), Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía (ES), National Astronomical Observatories (CN), Centro de Investigaciones Energéticas, Medioambientales y Tecnológicas (ES), Institute of Science and Technology, University College London (GB), University of Rochester (US), University of Portsmouth (GB), Carnegie Mellon University (US), Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (MX), Siena College (US), University of California, Berkeley (US)
National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Energy, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, American Museum of Natural History, Princeton University, Ohio State University, California Institute of Technology, University of Chicago, University of Washington, Johns Hopkins University, University of Pittsburgh, Case Western Reserve University, Drexel University, Universität Basel, University of Portsmouth, New Mexico State University, University of Cambridge, Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología, Max-Planck-Gesellschaft, Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación, Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives, Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie, Office of Science, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Science and Technology Facilities Council, Division of Astronomical Sciences, U.S. Naval Observatory, Planetary Science Division, Division of Arctic Sciences, Fermilab, Los Alamos National Laboratory
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Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena
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