A Sharper View of the X-Ray Spectrum of MCG–6-30-15 with XRISM, XMM-Newton, and NuSTAR

Abstract We present a time-averaged spectral analysis of the 2024 XRISM observation of the narrow-line Seyfert-1 galaxy MCG–6-30-15, taken contemporaneously with XMM-Newton and NuSTAR. Our analysis leverages a unique combination of broadband and high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy to definitively isolate and characterize both broad and narrow emission and absorption features in this source. The best-fitting model for the joint spectral analysis is very well described by reflection from the inner accretion disk illuminated by a compact corona, modified by multizone ionized absorption from an outflowing wind along the line of sight. The XRISM/Resolve data confirm that a strong, relativistically broadened Fe K α emission line is required in order to obtain an adequate model fit. The Resolve data additionally verify the presence of a v out ∼ 2300 km s −1 component of this outflowing wind, find tentative evidence for a v out ∼ 20,000 km s −1 wind component, and indicate that the reflection from distant, neutral material may originate in a nonuniform structure rather than the traditional torus of AGN unification schemes. Though a rapid prograde black hole spin is statistically preferred by the best-fitting model, consistent with previous results, the AGN flux variability over the course of the observation complicates the interpretation of the time-averaged spectra. This insight, clarified by the combination of high signal-to-noise and high spectral resolution in the joint data set, emphasizes the importance of time-resolved, high-resolution spectral analysis in unambiguously measuring the physical properties of variable AGN.