arXiv subjects

K. Zubovas

Publications and source records attributed to K. Zubovas.

9 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Low-power jet-ISM coupling and disk-plane perturbations in the edge-on Seyfert galaxy NGC 4388

Active galactic nuclei (AGN) may regulate galaxy evolution through radiatively driven winds and collimated jets, but their relative impact and coupling to the interstellar medium (ISM) remain uncertain. We investigate the ionized gas in the nearby ($D\sim$ 17 Mpc) Seyfert 2 galaxy NGC 4388, hosting a galaxy-scale ($\sim$1.6 kpc), low-power ($\sim1.4~\times~10^{42}~erg~s^{-1}$) bipolar radio jet projected roughly perpendicular to its edge-on disk. We analyze optical integral-field spectroscopic observations from the Wide Field Mode with adaptive optics of VLT/MUSE, complemented by VLA radio data tracing the jet. We map ionized-gas emission, kinematics, excitation, and dust attenuation. We reconstruct the de-projected 3D outflow geometry and velocity field using the MOKA3D kinematic model, and estimate its mass and energetics. The ionized gas shows a rotating disk and a kpc-scale biconical outflow. We measure a total ionized outflow mass of $\sim10^6~M_\odot$, a mass outflow rate of $\sim0.2~M_\odot$~yr$^{-1}$, and a kinetic power of $\sim3\times10^{40}~erg~s^{-1}$, which gives a coupling efficiency of $\sim1\%$ relative to both the jet kinetic and the radiation-driven nuclear wind power, indicating that either mechanism could drive the outflow. We detect an extended ($\sim$2 kpc) enhancement of the gas velocity dispersion along the galaxy disk plane, oriented perpendicular to the outflow and jet axes. These regions show optical line ratios consistent with shock excitation. The spatial correspondence with ALMA CO(2-1) emission is marginal, while enhanced stellar velocity dispersion prevents an exclusive jet interpretation. We report the first observational evidence that even a low-power radio jet oriented nearly perpendicular to the galaxy disk can efficiently couple with the ISM, suggesting that jet-induced perturbations are an important AGN feedback channel regardless of jet orientation.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

MIRACLE III. JWST/MIRI expose the hidden role of the AGN outflow in NGC 1068

We present new JWST IFS observations of the active galaxy NGC 1068, combining Mid-IR and optical IFS data from MIRI and MUSE to characterize the multi-phase circumnuclear gas properties and its interaction with the AGN outflow and radio jet. MIRI data trace the multiphase gas emission up to 400 pc from the nucleus at 20--60 pc resolution, unveiling a clumpy ionized structure around the radio hot-spots and a rotating warm molecular disc. Innovative Mid-IR diagnostic diagrams highlight the role of the AGN as the main excitation source for the ionized gas in the entire MIRI field of view, consistent with optical diagnostics, and supporting the AGN-driven wind scenario. Density sensitive [NeV] and [ArV] Mid-IR transitions reveal high-density clumps (n_e > 10**4 cm**-3) along the edges of the jet and outflow, tracing gas compression by the expanding wind. We combined multi-cloud kinematic (MOKA) and photo-ionization (HOMERUN) modeling to characterize the ionized outflow properties and found that [OIV] traces an outflow 300 km/s faster than that inferred from [OIII], showing that the two lines originate from distinct gas components. This kinematic dichotomy is confirmed by the photoionization analysis, which requires a dust-poor component dominating the optical lines and a dust-rich component responsible for the Mid-IR emission. The Mid-IR-revealed dusty component carries a significantly larger ionized-gas mass than what can be inferred from optical lines alone, showing that most of the outflowing mass is hidden from classical optical diagnostics. Our modelling point to a two-stage acceleration scenario, with velocities up to ~2000 km/s, consistent with an energy-driven wind. Our findings indicates that the outflow entrains up to a few 10**6 solar masses of ionized gas and couples efficiently with the surrounding ISM, injecting turbulence and impacting the host-galaxy environment.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2024

The complex effect of gas cooling and turbulence on AGN-driven outflow properties

(abridged) Accretion onto supermassive black holes (SMBHs) at close to the Eddington rate can influence the host galaxy via powerful winds. Theoretical models of such winds can explain observational correlations between SMBHs and their host galaxies and the powerful multi-phase outflows observed in a number of active galaxies. Analytic models usually assume spherical symmetry and a smooth gas distribution with an adiabatic equation of state. However, the interstellar medium in real galaxies is clumpy and cooling is important, complicating the analysis. We used a suite of idealised hydrodynamical simulations to isolate the effects of turbulence and cooling on the development and global properties of AGN wind-driven outflows on kiloparsec scales. We measured the outflow velocity, mass outflow rate and momentum and energy loading factors as the system evolved over 1.2 Myr and estimated plausible observationally derived values. We find that adiabatic simulations approximately reproduce the analytical estimates of outflow properties independently of turbulence or clumpiness. However, cooling reduces the outflow energy rate by 1-2 orders of magnitude in the smooth simulations and by up to one order of magnitude in the turbulent ones. The interplay between cooling and turbulence depends on AGN luminosity: in Eddington-limited AGN, turbulence enhances the coupling between the AGN wind and the gas, while the opposite happens in lower-luminosity simulations. This occurs because dense gas clumps are resilient to low-luminosity AGN feedback but get driven away by high-luminosity AGN feedback. The overall properties of multi-phase outflowing gas in our simulations qualitatively agree with observations of multi-phase outflows. We also find that using `observable' outflow properties leads to their parameters being underestimated by a factor of a few compared with real values.

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arXiv2024

MUSE view of PDS 456: kpc-scale wind, extended ionized gas and close environment

PDS 456 is the most luminous RQQ at z<0.3 and can be regarded as a local counterpart of the powerful QSOs shining at Cosmic Noon. It hosts a strong nuclear X-ray ultra-fast outflow, and a massive and clumpy CO(3-2) molecular outflow extending up to 5 kpc from the nucleus. We analyzed the first MUSE WFM and AO-NFM optical integral field spectroscopic observations of PDS456. The AO-NFM observations provide an unprecedented spatial resolution, reaching up to 280 pc. Our findings reveal a complex circumgalactic medium around PDS 456, extending up to a maximum projected size of ~46 kpc. This includes a reservoir of gas with a mass of ~1e7-1e8 Modot, along with eight companion galaxies, and a multi-phase outflow. WFM and NFM MUSE data reveal an outflow on a large scale (~12 kpc from the quasar) in [OIII], and on smaller scales (within 3 kpc) with higher resolution (about 280 pc) in Halpha, respectively. The [OIII] outflow mass rate is 2.3 +/- 0.2 Modot/yr which is significantly lower than those typically found in other luminous quasars. Remarkably, the Ha outflow shows a similar scale, morphology, and kinematics to the CO(3-2) molecular outflow, with the latter dominating in terms of kinetic energy and mass outflow rate by two and one orders of magnitude, respectively. Our results therefore indicate that mergers, powerful AGN activity, and feedback through AGN-driven winds will collectively contribute to shaping the host galaxy evolution of PDS 456, and likely, that of similar objects at the brightest end of the AGN luminosity function across all redshifts. Moreover, the finding that the momentum boost of the total outflow deviates from the expected energy-conserving expansion for large-scale outflows highlights the need of novel AGN-driven outflow models to comprehensively interpret these phenomena.

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arXiv2019

Feeding of active galactic nuclei by dynamical perturbations

There possibly was an AGN episode in the Galactic Centre about 6 Myr ago, powerful enough to produce the Fermi bubbles. We present numerical simulations of a possible scenario giving rise to an activity episode: a collision between a central gas ring surrounding the supermassive black hole (SMBH) and an infalling molecular cloud. We investigate different initial collision angles between the cloud and the ring. We follow the hydrodynamical evolution of the system following the collision using Gadget-3 hybrid N-body/SPH code and calculate the feeding rate of the SMBH accretion disc. This rate is then used as an input for a 1D thin $α$-disc model in order to calculate the AGN luminosity. By varying the disc feeding radii we determine the limiting values for possible AGN accretion disc luminosity. Small angle collisions do not result in significant mass transport to the centre of the system, while models with highest collision angles transport close to $40\%$ of the initial matter to the accretion disc. Even with ring and cloud masses equal to $10^4 \, M_\odot$, which is the lower limit of present-day mass of the Circumnuclear ring in the Galactic Centre, the energy released over an interval of 1.5 Myr can produce $\sim 10\%$ of that required to inflate the Fermi bubbles. If the gas ring in the Galactic Centre 6 Myr ago had a mass of at least $10^5 \, M_\odot$, our proposed scenario can explain the formation of the Fermi bubbles. We estimate that such high-impact collisions might occur once every $\sim 10^8$ yr in our Galaxy.

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arXiv2019

The $M-σ$ relation between supermassive black holes and their host galaxies

Supermassive black holes (SMBHs) are found in the centres of most galaxies. Their masses, and hence their gravitational potentials, are negligible compared with those of the host galaxy. However, several strong correlations between SMBH masses and host galaxy properties have been observed, notably the $M-σ$ relation connecting the SMBH mass to the characteristic velocity of stars in the galaxy. The existence of these correlations implies that the SMBH influences the evolution of its host galaxy. In this review, we present the most promising physical model of this influence, known as the Active galactic nucleus (AGN) wind feedback model. Winds launched from the accretion disc around the SMBH can drive powerful outflows, provided that the SMBH is massive enough - this condition establishes the $M-σ$ relation. Outflows can have a profound influence on the evolution of the host galaxy, by compressing its gas and driving it out, affecting the star formation rate. We present the current status of the model and the observational evidence for it, as well as the directions of future research.

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arXiv2011

The Milky Way's Fermi Bubbles: Echoes of the Last Quasar Outburst?

{\it Fermi}-LAT has recently detected two gamma ray bubbles disposed symmetrically with respect to the Galactic plane. The bubbles have been suggested to be in a quasi-steady state, inflated by ongoing star formation over the age of the Galaxy. Here we propose an alternative picture where the bubbles are the remnants of a large-scale wide-angle outflow from \sgra, the SMBH of our Galaxy. Such an outflow would be a natural consequence of a short but bright accretion event on to \sgra\ if it happened concurrently with the well known star formation event in the inner 0.5 pc of the Milky Way $\sim 6$ Myr ago. We find that the hypothesised near-spherical outflow is focussed into a pair of symmetrical lobes by the greater gas pressure along the Galactic plane. The outflow shocks against the interstellar gas in the Galaxy bulge. Gamma--ray emission could be powered by cosmic rays created by either \sgra\ directly or accelerated in the shocks with the external medium. The Galaxy disc remains unaffected, agreeing with recent observational evidence that supermassive black holes do not correlate with galaxy disc properties. We estimate that an accreted mass $\sim 2 \times 10^3\msun$ is needed for the accretion event to power the observed {\it Fermi}--LAT lobes. Within a factor of a few this agrees with the mass of the young stars born during the star formation event. This estimate suggests that roughly 50% of the gas was turned into stars, while the rest accreted onto \sgra. One interpretation of this is a reduced star formation efficiency inside the \sgra\ accretion disc due to stellar feedback, and the other a peculiar mass deposition geometry that resulted in a significant amount of gas falling directly inside the inner $\sim 0.03$ pc of the Galaxy.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2011

Large--Scale Outflows in Galaxies

We discuss massive outflows in galaxy bulges, particularly ones driven by accretion episodes where the central supermassive black hole reaches the Eddington limit. We show that the quasar radiation field Compton--cools the wind shock until this reaches distances $\sim 1$ kpc from the black hole, but becomes too dilute to do this at larger radii. Radiative processes cannot cool the shocked gas within the flow time at any radius. Outflows are therefore momentum-driven at small radii (as required to explain the $M - σ$ relation). At large radii they are energy-driven, contrary to recent claims. We solve analytically the motion of an energy--driven shell after the central source has turned off. This shows that the thermal energy in the shocked wind can drive further expansion for a time $\sim 10$ times longer than the active time of the central source. Outflows observed at large radii with no active central source probably result from an earlier short (few Myr) active phase of this source.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2011

Self-Regulated Star Formation and the Black Hole-Galaxy Bulge Relation

We show that star formation in galaxy bulges is self-regulating through momentum feedback, limiting the stellar bulge mass to M_b ~ sigma^4. Together with a black hole mass M_BH ~ sigma^4 set by AGN momentum feedback, this produces a linear M_BH - M_b relation. At low redshift this gives M_BH/M_b ~ 0.001, close to the observed ratio. We show that AGN feedback can remove any remaining gas from the bulge and terminate star formation once the central black hole reaches the M_BH - sigma value, contrary to earlier claims. We find a mild upward deviation from the sigma^4 law at higher redshift and at higher sigma.

astro-ph.CO↗