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arXiv · 2609.29758

AGN winds and outflows: from accretion-disc scales to the host galaxy

Delphine Porquet
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Abstract

Ultra-fast outflows (UFOs), launched from the inner accretion disc in active galactic nuclei (AGN), are among the prime candidates for driving AGN feedback in their host galaxies. Determining their physical properties and energetics is therefore essential for assessing their impact on galaxy evolution. This review highlights recent observational progress, with particular emphasis on the groundbreaking insights enabled by high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy. The first X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM)/Resolve observations of AGN winds have revealed that the innermost UFOs are kinematically structured and inhomogeneous. In the archetypal quasar PDS 456, these observations have led to a substantial upward revision of the inferred mass outflow rate, momentum flux and kinetic power. Complementary UV, optical, IR and mm observations trace the ionised, atomic and molecular phases of AGN-driven outflows from parsec to galactic scales. However, the physical coupling between the accretion-disc wind and the galactic outflows remains one of the major unresolved questions in AGN feedback. Building on the pioneering XRISM results, NewAthena's X-ray Integral Field Unit (X-IFU) will characterise the physical properties and energetics of accretion-disc winds with unprecedented precision from the local Universe up to cosmic noon, while complementary multi-wavelength observations with facilities such as the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT), James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), and Square Kilometre Array (SKA) will determine whether and how their energy and momentum are transferred to the host galaxy.

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Delphine Porquet. 2026-09-24. AGN winds and outflows: from accretion-disc scales to the host galaxy. https://arxiv.org/abs/2609.29758

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