The SDSS-V Black Hole Mapper Reverberation Mapping Project: A Kinematically Variable Broad-line Region and Consequences for the Masses of Luminous Quasars

Abstract We present a velocity-resolved reverberation mapping analysis of the hypervariable quasar RM160 (SDSS J141041.25+531849.0) at z = 0.359 with 153 spectroscopic epochs of data representing a 10 yr baseline (2013–2023). We split the baseline into two regimes based on the 3× flux increase in the light curve: a “low state” phase during the years 2013–2019 and a “high state” phase during the years 2022–2023. The velocity-resolved lag profiles (VRLPs) indicate that gas with different kinematics dominates the line emission in different states. The H β VRLP begins with a signature of inflow onto the broad-line region (BLR) in the low state, while in the high state it is flatter with less signature of inflow. The H α VRLP begins consistent with a virialized BLR in the low state, while in the high state shows a signature of inflow. The differences in the kinematics between the Balmer lines and between the low state and the high state suggests complex BLR dynamics. We find that the BLR radius and velocity (both FWHM and σ ) do not obey a constant virial product throughout the monitoring period. We find that the BLR lags and continuum luminosity are correlated, consistent with rapid response of the BLR gas to the illuminating continuum. The BLR kinematic profile changes in unpredictable ways that are not related to continuum changes and reverberation lag. Our observations indicate that nonvirial kinematics can significantly contribute to observed line profiles, suggesting caution for black hole mass estimation in luminous and highly varying quasars like RM160.

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Publication Details

Journal
The Astrophysical Journal
Published
2024-11-01
DOI
https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad7c42
Citations
7
Primary Topic
Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
2.32

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article

The SDSS-V Black Hole Mapper Reverberation Mapping Project: A Kinematically Variable Broad-line Region and Consequences for the Masses of Luminous Quasars

C. A. Negrete, Sean Morrison, Scott F. Anderson, Donald P. Schneider et al.
7 citations
The Astrophysical Journal
Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena
2.32
article

The SDSS-V Black Hole Mapper Reverberation Mapping Project: A Kinematically Variable Broad-line Region and Consequences for the Masses of Luminous Quasars

C. A. Negrete, Sean Morrison, Scott F. Anderson, Donald P. Schneider, W. N. Brandt, Héctor J. Ibarra-Medel, C. J. Grier, Cláudio Ricci, Peter Breiding, Patrick B. Hall, Mary Loli Martínez‐Aldama, Roberto J. Assef, Zachary Stone, Kaike Pan, Y. Homayouni, Matthew J. Temple, Anton M. Koekemoer, Logan B. Fries, Benny Trakhtenbrot, Dmitry Bizyaev, Priyanka Chakraborty, Hugh W. Sharp, K. Horne, Theodore B. Smith, T. Dwelly, Megan C. Davis, Jessie C. Runnoe, Yue Shen, Jonathan R. Trump, Joel R. Brownstein
article en
7 citations

Abstract

Abstract We present a velocity-resolved reverberation mapping analysis of the hypervariable quasar RM160 (SDSS J141041.25+531849.0) at z = 0.359 with 153 spectroscopic epochs of data representing a 10 yr baseline (2013–2023). We split the baseline into two regimes based on the 3× flux increase in the light curve: a “low state” phase during the years 2013–2019 and a “high state” phase during the years 2022–2023. The velocity-resolved lag profiles (VRLPs) indicate that gas with different kinematics dominates the line emission in different states. The H β VRLP begins with a signature of inflow onto the broad-line region (BLR) in the low state, while in the high state it is flatter with less signature of inflow. The H α VRLP begins consistent with a virialized BLR in the low state, while in the high state shows a signature of inflow. The differences in the kinematics between the Balmer lines and between the low state and the high state suggests complex BLR dynamics. We find that the BLR radius and velocity (both FWHM and σ ) do not obey a constant virial product throughout the monitoring period. We find that the BLR lags and continuum luminosity are correlated, consistent with rapid response of the BLR gas to the illuminating continuum. The BLR kinematic profile changes in unpredictable ways that are not related to continuum changes and reverberation lag. Our observations indicate that nonvirial kinematics can significantly contribute to observed line profiles, suggesting caution for black hole mass estimation in luminous and highly varying quasars like RM160.

The Astrophysical JournalVol. 975(2)
New Mexico State University (US), Space Telescope Science Institute (US), Pennsylvania State University (US), University of Wisconsin–Madison (US), University of Connecticut (US), Johns Hopkins University (US), University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (US), Tel Aviv University (IL), University of St Andrews (GB), University of Concepción (CL), York University (CA), Lomonosov Moscow State University (RU), Vanderbilt University (US), University of Washington (US), Peking University (CN), University of Utah (US), Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics (DE), Kavli Institute for Theoretical Sciences (CN), Center for Astrophysics Harvard & Smithsonian (US), National Center for Supercomputing Applications (US), Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (MX), Universidad Diego Portales (CL)
National Science Foundation
Openalex Percentile: Top 12%
Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena
2.32
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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