{
  "abstract": "We audit an automated relativistic-reflection pipeline that fitted one XMM-Newton EPIC-pn and NuSTAR epoch for each of 57 AGN with relxillCp+xillverCp, and repeat the analysis with its failures corrected. The pipeline's apparent constraints were not controlled: Small Window pn backgrounds were never subtracted, the nearest-in-time pairing selected mismatched or nearly empty spectra, single-start fits often stopped short of the minimum, and most fits were inadequate or at a parameter limit. The corrected analysis uses in-window backgrounds, 41 sources with eligible pn--NuSTAR pairs, multi-start fits, bidirectional profiles, criteria fixed in advance and eight model variations. 24 of the 41 reference fits have $p\\ge0.01$ and 18 pass all quality checks. Their 90% spin sets comprise 1 two-sided interval (NGC 4051, $0.46\\le a_*\\le0.93$), 6 lower bounds, 4 upper bounds, 4 disconnected sets and 3 unconstrained profiles. For 10 of the 18 the best fit lies at $i\\ge75^\\circ$, implausible for type-1 AGN, and most of those constraints disappear when $i\\le60^\\circ$ is imposed. Only 2 of the 15 constrained sets keep their type both under that limit and with pn restricted to 3--10 keV (an upper bound for Mrk 1040 and a weak lower bound for 1H 0419-577). Simulations show that, with a correct model, the 90% sets contain the true spin in 82--92% of cases without drifting edge-on, but at high inclination one low-spin simulation in six yields a false lower bound. We make no statement about the spin distribution or a spin--jet relation.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": "2610.23081",
  "author_total": 3,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "K. Balasubramaniam"
    },
    {
      "name": "H. -K. Chang"
    },
    {
      "name": "Ł. Stawarz"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/aae6q0161xaz2.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.48550/arxiv.2610.23081",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "aae6q0161xaz2",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.23081",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "LicenseRef-arXiv-nonexclusive-1.0",
  "licence_label": "arXiv licence",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "http://arxiv.org/licenses/nonexclusive-distrib/1.0/",
  "metadata_licence": "CC0-1.0",
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "arxiv",
      "astro-ph.HE"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "3103|Astrophysical Phenomena and Observations"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7222916374",
  "pdf_url": "https://arxiv.org/pdf/2610.23081",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-10-16",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/aae6q0161xaz2.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:30:32Z",
      "native_id": "2610.23081",
      "source": "arxiv",
      "url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.23081"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "astronomy",
      "origin": "arxiv:astro-ph.HE",
      "subfield": "high-energy-astrophysics"
    }
  ],
  "title": "What can a uniform reflection pipeline establish about supermassive black hole spin? An audit and a corrected analysis of 57 AGN with XMM and NuSTAR",
  "title_text": "What can a uniform reflection pipeline establish about supermassive black hole spin? An audit and a corrected analysis of 57 AGN with XMM and NuSTAR",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:33:28Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/aae6q0161xaz2",
  "venue": "arXiv",
  "versions": []
}