Uncovering New Ionized Winds and Relativistic Hot Outflows in MCG-6-30-15 with \emph{Chandra} HETG and a Bayesian Framework
Abstract
Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) feedback plays a key role in galaxy evolution. Highly ionized outflows, detected in X-ray absorption, are a promising candidate for quasar-mode feedback. We present a new Bayesian analysis of 0.65 Ms of \emph{Chandra} High Energy Transmission Gratings (HETG) observations of MCG-6-30-15 from 2000 and 2004. Our approach detects new wind components, improving estimates of outflow demographics and impact. These include a hot ultra-fast outflow (UFO; 0.08c), recently confirmed by XRISM but seen in HETG for the first time, which has the power to potentially influence its host galaxy. We also detect the first potentially collisionally ionized absorbers in this source, a physical process typically not considered in previous analyses, but potentially important for wind impact and demographics. The warm absorber complex is resolved in unprecedented detail, uncovering evidence of a correlation between outflow velocity and ionization, constraining its geometry. We also confirm the presence of dust in the wind, clearly distinguishing it from the cold ISM components, which may impact wind acceleration. Our work highlights the power of applying new methods to deep, legacy HETG datasets, and the limitations of current atomic databases when considering OIV, V, and VI K-shell transitions. Furthermore, our work establishes a baseline for decade-scale outflow variability for new observations with XRISM and NewAthena in the future.
Related
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BibTeX
@misc{hoffman2026uncovering,
title = {{Uncovering New Ionized Winds and Relativistic Hot Outflows in MCG-6-30-15 with \emphChandra HETG and a Bayesian Framework}},
author = {Erika B. Hoffman and Anna Ogorzałek and Christopher S. Reynolds and Lia Corrales},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2609.17723},
eprint = {2609.17723},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.17723},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Uncovering New Ionized Winds and Relativistic Hot Outflows in MCG-6-30-15 with \emph{Chandra} HETG and a Bayesian Framework
AU - Erika B. Hoffman
AU - Anna Ogorzałek
AU - Christopher S. Reynolds
AU - Lia Corrales
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/15
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2609.17723
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.17723
AB - Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN) feedback plays a key role in galaxy evolution. Highly ionized outflows, detected in X-ray absorption, are a promising candidate for quasar-mode feedback. We present a new Bayesian analysis of 0.65 Ms of \emph{Chandra} High Energy Transmission Gratings (HETG) observations of MCG-6-30-15 from 2000 and 2004. Our approach detects new wind components, improving estimates of outflow demographics and impact. These include a hot ultra-fast outflow (UFO; 0.08c), recently confirmed by XRISM but seen in HETG for the first time, which has the power to potentially influence its host galaxy. We also detect the first potentially collisionally ionized absorbers in this source, a physical process typically not considered in previous analyses, but potentially important for wind impact and demographics. The warm absorber complex is resolved in unprecedented detail, uncovering evidence of a correlation between outflow velocity and ionization, constraining its geometry. We also confirm the presence of dust in the wind, clearly distinguishing it from the cold ISM components, which may impact wind acceleration. Our work highlights the power of applying new methods to deep, legacy HETG datasets, and the limitations of current atomic databases when considering OIV, V, and VI K-shell transitions. Furthermore, our work establishes a baseline for decade-scale outflow variability for new observations with XRISM and NewAthena in the future.
ER -