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1. Non-Kolmogorov turbulence in multiphase intracluster medium driven by cold gas precipitation and AGN jets

   https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stab966  

   Wang, C ; Ruszkowski, M ; Pfrommer, C ; Oh, S Peng ; Yang, H-Y K ( April 2021 , Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society)

   ABSTRACT Active galactic nuclei (AGNs) feedback is responsible for maintaining plasma in global thermal balance in extended haloes of elliptical galaxies and galaxy clusters. Local thermal instability in the hot gas leads to the formation of precipitating cold gas clouds that feed the central supermassive black holes, thus heating the hot gas and maintaining global thermal equilibrium. We perform 3D magnetohydrodynamical (MHD) simulations of self-regulated AGNs feedback in a Perseus-like galaxy cluster with the aim of understanding the impact of the feedback physics on the turbulence properties of the hot and cold phases of the intracluster medium (ICM). We find that, in general, the cold phase velocity structure function (VSF) is steeper than the prediction from Kolmogorov’s theory. We attribute the physical origin of the steeper slope of the cold phase VSF to the driving of turbulent motions primarily by the gravitational acceleration acting on the ballistic clouds. We demonstrate that, in the pure hydrodynamical case, the precipitating cold filaments may be the dominant agent driving turbulence in the hot ICM. The arguments in favour of this hypothesis are that: (i) the cold phase mass dominates over hot gas mass in the inner cool core; (ii) hot and cold gasmore »velocities are spatially correlated; (iii) both the cold and hot phase velocity distributions are radially biased. We show that, in the MHD case, the turbulence in the ambient hot medium (excluding the jet cone regions) can also be driven by the AGN jets. The driving is then facilitated by enhanced coupling due to magnetic fields of the ambient gas and the AGN jets. In the MHD case, turbulence may thus be driven by a combination of AGN jet stirring and filament motions. We conclude that future observations, including those from high spatial and spectral resolution X-ray missions, may help to constrain self-regulated AGN feedback by quantifying the multitemperature VSF in the ICM.« less
2. The Close AGN Reference Survey (CARS): IFU survey data and the BH mass dependence of long-term AGN variability

   https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202141312  

   Husemann, B. ; Singha, M. ; Scharwächter, J. ; McElroy, R. ; Neumann, J. ; Smirnova-Pinchukova, I. ; Urrutia, T. ; Baum, S. A. ; Bennert, V. N. ; Combes, F. ; et al ( March 2022 , Astronomy & Astrophysics)

   Context. Active galactic nuclei (AGN) are thought to be intimately connected with their host galaxies through feeding and feedback processes. A strong coupling is predicted and supported by cosmological simulations of galaxy formation, but the details of the physical mechanisms are still observationally unconstrained. Aims. Galaxies are complex systems of stars and a multiphase interstellar medium (ISM). A spatially resolved multiwavelength survey is required to map the interaction of AGN with their host galaxies on different spatial scales and different phases of the ISM. The goal of the Close AGN Reference Survey (CARS) is to obtain the necessary spatially resolved multiwavelength observations for an unbiased sample of local unobscured luminous AGN. Methods. We present the overall CARS survey design and the associated wide-field optical integral-field unit (IFU) spectroscopy for all 41 CARS targets at z  < 0.06 randomly selected from the Hamburg/ESO survey of luminous unobscured AGN. This data set provides the backbone of the CARS survey and allows us to characterize host galaxy morphologies, AGN parameters, precise systemic redshifts, and ionized gas distributions including excitation conditions, kinematics, and metallicities in unprecedented detail. Results. We focus our study on the size of the extended narrow-line region (ENLR) which has been traditionallymore »connected to AGN luminosity. Given the large scatter in the ENLR size–luminosity relation, we performed a large parameter search to identify potentially more fundamental relations. Remarkably, we identified the strongest correlation between the maximum projected ENLR size and the black hole mass, consistent with an R ENLR,max ∼ M BH 0.5 relationship. We interpret the maximum ENLR size as a timescale indicator of a single black hole (BH) radiative-efficient accretion episode for which we inferred 〈log( t AGN /[yr])〉 = (0.45 ± 0.08)log( M BH /[ M ⊙ ]) + 1.78 −0.67 +0.54 using forward modeling. The extrapolation of our inferred relation toward higher BH masses is consistent with an independent lifetime estimate from the He  II proximity zones around luminous AGN at z  ∼ 3. Conclusions. While our proposed link between the BH mass and AGN lifetime might be a secondary correlation itself or impacted by unknown biases, it has a few relevant implications if confirmed. For example, the famous AGN Eigenvector 1 parameter space may be partially explained by the range in AGN lifetimes. Also, the lack of observational evidence for negative AGN feedback on star formation can be explained by such timescale effects. Further observational tests are required to confirm or rule out our BH mass dependent AGN lifetime hypothesis.« less
3. The Evolution of AGN Activity in Brightest Cluster Galaxies

   https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-3881/ac5030  

   Somboonpanyakul, T. ; McDonald, M. ; Noble, A. ; Aguena, M. ; Allam, S. ; Amon, A. ; Andrade-Oliveira, F. ; Bacon, D. ; Bayliss, M. B. ; Bertin, E. ; et al ( March 2022 , The Astronomical Journal)

   Abstract We present the results of an analysis of Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) observations of the full 2500 deg 2 South Pole Telescope (SPT)-Sunyaev–Zel’dovich cluster sample. We describe a process for identifying active galactic nuclei (AGN) in brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) based on WISE mid-IR color and redshift. Applying this technique to the BCGs of the SPT-SZ sample, we calculate the AGN-hosting BCG fraction, which is defined as the fraction of BCGs hosting bright central AGNs over all possible BCGs. Assuming an evolving single-burst stellar population model, we find statistically significant evidence (>99.9%) for a mid-IR excess at high redshift compared to low redshift, suggesting that the fraction of AGN-hosting BCGs increases with redshift over the range of 0 < z < 1.3. The best-fit redshift trend of the AGN-hosting BCG fraction has the form (1 + z ) 4.1±1.0 . These results are consistent with previous studies in galaxy clusters as well as as in field galaxies. One way to explain this result is that member galaxies at high redshift tend to have more cold gas. While BCGs in nearby galaxy clusters grow mostly by dry mergers with cluster members, leading to no increase in AGN activity, BCGsmore »at high redshift could primarily merge with gas-rich satellites, providing fuel for feeding AGNs. If this observed increase in AGN activity is linked to gas-rich mergers rather than ICM cooling, we would expect to see an increase in scatter in the P cav versus L cool relation at z > 1. Last, this work confirms that the runaway cooling phase, as predicted by the classical cooling-flow model, in the Phoenix cluster is extremely rare and most BCGs have low (relative to Eddington) black hole accretion rates.« less
4. The Complete Local-Volume Groups Sample – IV. Star formation and gas content in group-dominant galaxies

   https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stab3699  

   Kolokythas, Konstantinos ; Vaddi, Sravani ; O’Sullivan, Ewan ; Loubser, Ilani ; Babul, Arif ; Raychaudhury, Somak ; Lagos, Patricio ; Jarrett, Thomas H. ( December 2021 , Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society)

   Using multiband data, we examine the star formation activity of the nearby group-dominant early-type galaxies of the Complete Local-volume Groups Sample (CLoGS) and the relation between star formation, gas content, and local environment. Only a small fraction of the galaxies (13 per cent; 6/47) are found to be far-ultraviolet (FUV) bright, with FUV to near-infrared colours indicative of recent active star formation (NGC 252, NGC 924, NGC 940, NGC 1106, NGC 7252, and ESO 507-25). These systems are lenticulars presenting the highest FUV-specific star formation rates in the sample (sSFRFUV > 5 × 1013 yr−1), significant cold gas reservoirs [M(H2) = 0.5-61 × 108 M⊙], reside in X-ray faint groups, and none hosts a powerful radio active galactic nucleus (AGN) (P$_{1.4\mathrm{ GHz}}\, \lt 10^{23}$ W Hz−1). The majority of the group-dominant galaxies (87 per cent; 41/47) are FUV faint, with no significant star formation, classified in most cases as spheroids based on their position on the infrared star-forming main sequence (87 per cent; 46/53). Examining the relationships between radio power, SFRFUV, and stellar mass, we find a lack of correlation that suggests a combination of origins for the cool gas in these galaxies, including stellar mass loss, cooling from the intra-group medium (IGrM) or galaxy halo, and acquisition through mergers or tidal interactions. X-ray bright systems, in addition to hostingmore »radio powerful AGN, have a range of SFRs but, with the exception of NGC 315, do not rise to the highest rates seen in the FUV bright systems. We suggest that central group galaxy evolution is linked to gas mass availability, with star formation favoured in the absence of a group-scale X-ray halo, but AGN jet launching is more likely in systems with a cooling IGrM.

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5. Ubiquitous cold and massive filaments in cool core clusters

   https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201935350  

   Olivares, V. ; Salome, P. ; Combes, F. ; Hamer, S. ; Guillard, P. ; Lehnert, M. D. ; Polles, F. L. ; Beckmann, R. S. ; Dubois, Y. ; Donahue, M. ; et al ( November 2019 , Astronomy & Astrophysics)

   Multi-phase filamentary structures around brightest cluster galaxies (BCG) are likely a key step of AGN-feedback. We observed molecular gas in three cool cluster cores, namely Centaurus, Abell S1101, and RXJ1539.5, and gathered ALMA (Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array) and MUSE (Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer) data for 12 other clusters. Those observations show clumpy, massive, and long (3−25 kpc) molecular filaments, preferentially located around the radio bubbles inflated by the AGN. Two objects show nuclear molecular disks. The optical nebula is certainly tracing the warm envelopes of cold molecular filaments. Surprisingly, the radial profile of the H α /CO flux ratio is roughly constant for most of the objects, suggesting that (i) between 1.2 and 6 times more cold gas could be present and (ii) local processes must be responsible for the excitation. Projected velocities are between 100 and 400 km s −1 , with disturbed kinematics and sometimes coherent gradients. This is likely due to the mixing in projection of several thin (and as yet) unresolved filaments. The velocity fields may be stirred by turbulence induced by bubbles, jets, or merger-induced sloshing. Velocity and dispersions are low, below the escape velocity. Cold clouds should eventually fall back and fuel the AGN.more »We compare the radial extent of the filaments, r fil , with the region where the X-ray gas can become thermally unstable. The filaments are always inside the low-entropy and short-cooling-time region, where t cool / t ff  <  20 (9 of 13 sources). The range of t cool / t ff of 8−23 at r fil , is likely due to (i) a more complex gravitational potential affecting the free-fall time t ff (sloshing, mergers, etc.) and (ii) the presence of inhomogeneities or uplifted gas in the ICM, affecting the cooling time t cool . For some of the sources, r fil lies where the ratio of the cooling time to the eddy-turnover time, t cool / t eddy , is approximately unity.« less