arXiv subjects

Raffaella Morganti

Publications and source records attributed to Raffaella Morganti.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Spatially resolved molecular gas conditions in the circumnuclear disc of 3C 84

The brightest cluster galaxy NGC 1275, at the centre of the Perseus cluster, hosts the radio-loud AGN 3C 84 and a circumnuclear disc (CND) of cold molecular gas onto which large-scale CO filaments accrete, yet the physical and chemical conditions of the gas in the CND remain poorly constrained. We present a spatially resolved analysis of ALMA CO(2-1), HCN(3-2), and HCO$^+$(3-2) observations at 72 pc. The data are partitioned into beam-sized hexagonal regions and modelled with a Bayesian framework that couples a neural network emulator of time-dependent chemistry (UCLCHEM) with non-LTE radiative transfer (SpectralRadex) to infer the gas density, kinetic temperature, and cosmic ray ionisation rate in each region. All three line ratios peak in the inner disc and decline with radius. The inference shows radial gradients in density ($\log_{10} n({\rm H_2}) \approx 6.3$ to $\sim 5$), kinetic temperature (~200 K to ~160 K), and cosmic ray ionisation rate ($\log_{10}(ζ/ζ_0) \approx 4.9$ to $\sim 3$). Despite the powerful radio AGN, the observed HCN(3-2)/HCO$^+$(3-2) ratio remains $\lesssim 1$ across the disc. Our modelling attributes this to optical depth saturation of HCN(3-2) ($τ\sim 1$-3), which suppresses the intensity ratio even when the HCN abundance exceeds that of HCO$^+$ by a factor of three or more. The HCN/HCO$^+$ intensity ratio therefore cannot be used as an abundance diagnostic without accounting for optical depth, and a low ratio does not necessarily imply weak AGN influence on the chemistry. Azimuthally resolved profiles suggest a localised HCO$^+$/CO enhancement at the western disc boundary, coinciding with the filament-disc accretion interface and consistent with shock processing by velocity shear between the infalling filaments and the rotating disc. These results indicate that the CND is shaped by accretion from its filamentary environment.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2026

Numerical Simulations of Restarted Jets -- I. Dynamics

We performed high-resolution three-dimensional relativistic magnetohydrodynamic (RMHD) simulations of restarted jets evolving within the cavity of a previous jet episode, using the PLUTO code. The simulations cover a spatial domain of $50\;\mbox{kpc}$ with a resolution of $40\;\mbox{pc}$. Three suites of simulations were performed to understand the impact of jet power, magnetic fields and quiescence time on the evolution of restarted jets. The restarted jets undergo a complex, multi-stage evolution, with the remnant cocoon relaxing from an initially conical structure to a mushroom-shaped morphology via an intermediate cylindrical phase. As the cocoon of the initial jet expands, dense material entrained by fluid instabilities such as Kelvin-Helmholtz and Rayleigh-Taylor significantly alter the conditions within it. As a result, the interaction of the restarted jet with the cocoon is markedly different from that of the initial jet with the ambient medium. In particular, we find that the restarted jet propagates ballistically through the rarefied remnant cocoon, without creating prominent backflows. Deceleration of the jet and associated backflows are observed only when it encounters dense structures. The structure and strength of the shocks in restarted jets are affected by jet power, magnetic field strength, and quiescence time. Finally, we discuss the implications of the dynamics for observed properties of radio galaxies.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2026

CosmoDRAGoN III: Shaping the Afterlife -- How Progenitors and Environments Sculpt Radio Galaxy Remnants

Identifying remnant radio-loud active galactic nuclei (AGNs) is challenging due to their diverse morphological and spectral characteristics. Using three-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations of 15 radio galaxies, we investigate how the spectral evolution of remnants depends on progenitor power, active lifetime, environment, and underlying dynamics. The simulations span low-density group and high-density cluster environments re-gridded from smooth-particle-hydrodynamic cosmological simulations. The resulting remnants exhibit a wide range of morphologies, from amorphous structures to double-lobed forms. We find that jet power correlates with the spectral slope. As the remnant lobes evolve, we find surface brightness depends strongly on environment: group remnants are systematically dimmer and more amorphous than cluster remnants, highlighting a potential observational bias against these low-surface-brightness sources. In our models, we estimate that the peak surface brightness of a low-redshift, 50 Myr-old remnant from a low-power progenitor in a 10^{13} M_sun group environment should be routinely detectable at the 3σ level with LOFAR, although 20-30% of the emission would remain undetectable within a reasonable integration time. We find young remnants exhibit low-frequency (150-1400 MHz) spectral indices that overlap with active sources, and follow a consistent and established spectral-evolution sequence: significant curvature (α_{1400}^{6000} - α_{150}^{1400} > 0.5) develops before an ultra-steep low-frequency index (α_{150}^{1400} > 1.2). The results presented in this work are intended as a reference point for current and upcoming low-frequency studies of radio remnants.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2026

Mapping the emission and spectral properties of the FRI radio galaxy 3C 449 with LOFAR and the VLA

The jets and lobes of nearby radio galaxies are ideal laboratories to explore the spectral and dynamical evolution of the radio-emitting plasma that emanates from active galactic nuclei. Here, we present a high-resolution radio continuum study of the low-redshift (z=0.01713), Fanaroff-Riley I (FRI) radio galaxy 3C 449 performed by combining radio data at 145 MHz acquired with the LOw Frequency ARray (LOFAR) and archival Very Large Array (VLA) data at 1365, 1485, 4985, and 8485 MHz. Our LOFAR maps have angular resolutions of 20"x20" and 6.0"x6.0", and show the full extent of the known radio emission at the highest angular resolution to date. Our spectral index maps show the distribution of the spectrum in the 145-8485 MHz frequency range over a region that extends beyond 2.5'. The average 145-8485 MHz spectrum is consistent with a single power law and stays approximately constant over the inner ~50" of both jets. Beyond ~50", on both source sides, the higher-frequency spectrum steepens, indicating no significant downstream sites of particle acceleration. By modelling the spectrum under the assumption of equipartition and of a constant magnetic field across the source, we derive maps of the highest radiative age of the particles. At the outer edges of both the northern tail and southern lobe, the spectral age is ~150 Myr. If the latter age were representative of the dynamical source age, the average expansion speed of both jets during the source lifetime would be supersonic, with Mach numbers of M~4.1 and M~2.8 for the northern and southern jets, respectively. As numerical simulations of FRI jets suggest that the source's current expansion is subsonic, the high Mach numbers might arise either from the source being highly supersonic for a small fraction of its lifetime or from a severe underestimation of the spectral age due to particle acceleration on scales of hundreds of kpc.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2026

Molecular Clouds Resolved at the Onset of Cosmic Noon

We present the discovery of seven molecular clouds in the radio galaxy B2 0902+34 at redshift z=3.4. These clouds are detected as CO(0-1) absorption features against the bright radio continuum, and spectrally resolved using the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA). The velocity dispersion of the individual absorption components ranges from 3-7 km/s, which is similar to values observed for molecular clouds in the Milky Way and nearby galaxies, and imply cloud radii of R~10$^{1-2}$ pc. The absorbing clouds are found in a region of high obscuration inside a 30 kpc wide stellar nebula, as revealed by rest-frame near-ultraviolet imaging performed with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST). The fact that we spectrally resolve molecular clouds at the onset of Cosmic Noon opens prospects for studying cloud chemistry and physics that drive the formation of stars in the Early Universe.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2026

A deep MeerKAT view of associated HI absorption in radio AGNs at intermediate redshift: Role of absorber geometry and conditions of the gas

We present MeerKAT observations searching for HI absorption in a sample of 17 powerful ($L_{\rm 1.4GHz}> 10^{27}$ W Hz$^{-1}$) radio sources at intermediate redshifts ($0.25<z<0.7$). The sample is well characterised at radio and optical wavelengths, allowing us to connect the presence (or absence) of HI to the properties of the AGN and its host galaxy. The sample consists mostly of core-dominated sources and quasars. Half of the targets have a UV luminosity $L_{\rm UV} = 10^{23}$ W Hz$^{-1}$, above this limit, the gas would be expected to be ionised by this radiation. We obtained 15 spectra free (or almost free) of radio frequency interference, reaching extremely low optical depths ($τ_{\rm peak} < 0.005$) resulting in three new HI absorption detections. Two are associated HI absorptions, giving a detection rate of such systems of $13\%\pm 7\%$. Both are found in young radio sources (PKS 1151-34 and PKS 1306-09), confirming the trend that this type of sources are more often detected in HI compared to more evolved ones. The UV luminosity of both these sources is below $10^{23}$ W Hz$^{-1}$. Surprisingly, one of the detections (PKS 1151-34) is hosted by a quasar, suggesting that the radio lobes are still embedded in the circumnuclear disc. In the second source (PKS 1306-09), the HI is highly blueshifted and likely part of a jet-driven outflow. A third detection is a 'local intervening' system, caused by a galaxy in the local environment of PKS 0405-12 and located in front of the southern radio lobe of this source, about 100 kpc in projection from this quasar. Overall, the results indicate a variety of plausible situations, which resemble what is seen at low redshifts. For the associated absorption, a combination of evolutionary status of the radio sources, physical conditions, and geometry of the gas structure determine the detection rate of HI absorption.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

VLBI studies of FLASH H I 21-cm absorbers -- I

We have conducted VLBA 1.4 GHz (L-band) continuum observations towards twelve sources with HI 21-cm absorption detections at redshift $0.4<z<0.7$ in the pilot surveys of FLASH, an ongoing survey with the ASKAP radio telescope. 11 of the 12 targets are resolved in the VLBA observations. Using the parsec scale radio images, we have classified the source morphology and identified the radio core. Six of the twelve targets have core-jet morphology, four have two-sided jet morphology, one has a complex morphology, and one is unresolved. We describe a methodology to test whether the emission from the core or the total emission detected in the VLBA image has sufficient flux density to cause the entire HI 21-cm absorption, and we estimate limits on the gas covering factor and velocity-integrated optical depth (VOD). We find that for seven of the twelve sources, the core has sufficient flux density to cause all the HI 21-cm absorption detected in the ASKAP spectrum. For three other targets, with projected sizes in the range $\rm 305-409 \ pc$, a large fraction of the entire emission in the VLBA map could be occulted by the gas. For 0903+010 (NVSS J090331+010846), we estimate that at least $\approx 73\%$ of the peak absorption detected in the ASKAP spectrum could arise against the emission detected in the VLBA image. For the target 0023+010 (NVSS J002331+010114), we estimate an upper limit on the VOD of $\rm 169 \ km \ s^{-1}$, the highest in our sample. For 0903+010 (NVSS J090331+010846) we estimate a lower limit of $\rm 104 \ km \ s^{-1}$ on the VOD. We find that the distribution of HI 21-cm VODs at $0.4<z<1.0$ could increase by up to a factor of three after correction for the covering factors using our VLBA measurements.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

The changing impact of radio jets as they evolve: The view from the cold gas

We present ALMA CO(1-0) and CO(3-2) observations of a powerful young radio galaxy, PKS 0023-26, hosted by a far-infrared bright galaxy. The galaxy has a luminous optical AGN and a very extended distribution of molecular gas. We used these observations (together with available CO(2-1) data) to trace the impact of the AGN across the extent of the radio emission and beyond on scales of a few kpc. Despite the strength of the optical AGN, the kinematics of the cold molecular gas is strongly affected only in the central kpc, and is more weakly affected around the northern lobe. We found other signatures of the substantial impact of the radio AGN, however. Most notably, extreme line ratios of the CO transitions in a region aligned with the radio axis indicate conditions very different from those observed in the undisturbed gas at large radii. The non-detection of CO(1-0) at the location of the core of the radio source implies extreme conditions at this location. Furthermore, on the scale of a few kpc, the cold molecular gas appears to be wrapped around the northern radio lobe. This suggests that a strong jet-cloud interaction has depleted the northern lobe of molecular gas, perhaps as a result of the hot wind behind the jet-induced shock that shreds the clouds via hydrodynamic instabilities. The higher gas velocity dispersion and molecular excitation that we observed close to this location may then be the result of a milder interaction in which the expanding jet cocoon induces turbulence in the surrounding interstellar medium. These results highlight that the impact of an AGN can manifest itself not only in the kinematics of the gas, but also in molecular line ratios and in the distribution of the gas. Although the radio plasma and the cold molecular gas are clearly coupled, the kinetic energy that is transferred to the ISM is only a small fraction of the energy available from the AGN.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

The First Large Absorption Survey in HI (FLASH): II. Pilot Survey data release and first results

The First Large Absorption Survey in HI (FLASH) is a large-area radio survey for neutral hydrogen in the redshift range 0.4 1$, and appear to be a mixture of intervening and associated systems. Interestingly, around two-thirds of the lines found in this untargeted sample are detected against sources with a peaked-spectrum radio continuum, which are only a minor (5-20%) fraction of the overall radio-source population. The overall detection rate for HI absorption lines in the Pilot Surveys (0.3 to 0.5 lines per ASKAP field) is a factor of two below the expected value. One possible reason for this is the presence of a range of spectral-line artefacts in the Pilot Survey data that have now been mitigated and are not expected to recur in the full FLASH survey. A future paper will discuss the host galaxies of the HI absorption systems identified here.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2025

Cold gas bubble inflated by a low-luminosity radio jet

We present NOEMA CO(2-1) observations of a nearby, young, low-luminosity radio source, B2 0258+35. Our earlier CO(1-0) study had shown the presence of strong jet-ISM interaction and a massive molecular gas outflow involving 75$\%$ of the circumnuclear gas. Our follow-up CO(2-1) observations have revealed even more complex gas kinematics, where the southern radio jet is driving out molecular gas in the form of a swiftly expanding bubble, with velocities up to almost 400 km s$^{-1}$. We found highly elevated CO(2-1)/CO(1-0) line ratios for the gas belonging to the bubble and also further away from the radio jets. Previous observations have shown that the active galactic nucleus (AGN) in the host galaxy, NGC 1167, is in a very low-accretion state. Thus, we attribute the high line ratios to the high gas excitation caused by the jet--ISM interaction. The radio jets, despite exhibiting a relatively low luminosity ($1.3 \times 10^{44}$ erg s$^{-1}$), are solely responsible for the observed extreme gas kinematics. This is one of the clearest detections of an expanding cold gas bubble in such a type of source, showing that the jets are affecting both the kinematics and physicals conditions of the gas. Our study adds to the growing store of evidence that low-luminosity radio sources can also affect the kinematics and physical conditions of the cold gas, which fuels star formation, in their host galaxies to a significant extent. Hence, such sources should be considered in models seeking to quantify feedback from radio AGN.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2024

Associated HI absorption and AGN feedback

The presence, distribution and kinematics of atomic neutral hydrogen in the central regions of galaxies can be traced by the HI 21~cm line observed in absorption. Depending only on the strength of the radio continuum, the associated absorption can trace the gas down to pc scale, which is ideal for exploring the HI in the nuclear regions of radio AGN. This paper gives a brief overview of the main recent findings with particular focus on the AGN-driven HI outflows. Absorption has made possible the discovery of fast and massive HI outflows and their clumpy structure on pc scales. The similarities with the predictions of numerical simulations confirm the impact of young radio jets in the feedback cycle and galaxy evolution. The field of HI absorption is rapidly expanding thanks to new ``blind" surveys and the increased spectral capabilities of the radio telescopes. This opens many possibilities for future discoveries and complements the studies of HI emission.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2024

Synoptic Wide-field EVN--e-MERLIN Public Survey (SWEEPS) -- I. First steps towards commensal surveys with VLBI

The high angular resolution and sensitivity of Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) offer a unique tool to identify and study active galactic nuclei and star-formation activity over cosmic time. However, despite recent technical advances, such as multiple phase centre correlation, VLBI surveys have thus far been limited to either a few well-studied deep-fields or wide-areas to a relatively shallow depth. To enter the era of extensive statistical studies at high angular resolution, a significantly larger area of the sky must be observed to much better sensitivity with VLBI. The Synoptic Wide-field EVN--e-MERLIN Public Survey (SWEEPS) is a proposed commensal observing mode for the EVN and e-MERLIN, where single-target principle investigator-led observations are re-correlated at the position of known radio sources within 12 arcmin of the pointing centre. Here, we demonstrate a proof-of-concept of this methodology by detecting a 5.6 mJy core-jet object at 1.7 GHz that would have otherwise been lost from the parent data set. This is the first object to be recovered as part of the SWEEPS pilot programme, which highlights the potential for increasing sample sizes of VLBI-detected radio sources with commensal observing modes in the near future.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2024

Core prominence as a signature of restarted jet activity in the LOFAR radio-galaxy population

(abridged) Characterizing duty cycles of recurrent phases of dormancy and activity in supermassive black holes in active galactic nuclei is crucial in understanding impact of energy released on host galaxies and their evolution. However, identifying sources in quiescent and restarted phases is challenging. Our goal is to identify and characterize a substantial sample of radio galaxies in restarted phase and explore core prominence as a signature of this activity. We expand our prior study from a $30\,\mathrm{deg^2}$ area in Lockman Hole to a larger $424\,\mathrm{deg^2}$ region in Hobby-Eberly Telescope Dark Energy Experiment (HETDEX) field using visually selected core-dominated radio galaxies. We used 144 MHz LOFAR survey images to identify galaxies with restarting jets. By applying selection criteria, including radio core dominance, low surface brightness extended emission, spectral index properties, and morphology, we found 69 candidate restarted radio galaxies. These candidates show diverse intrinsic morphology, spanning FRI, FRII, core-with-halo, and asymmetric forms, suggesting different progenitors. Among these, nine galaxies exhibit ultra-steep spectrum extended emission combined with high radio core prominence, representing previous and current epochs of jet activity. This subset supports a model where the switch-on and switch-off mechanism occurs with fast duty cycle. The restarted candidates span radio luminosities from log$_{10}$(L$_\mathrm{144 MHz}$/$\mathrm{WHz^{-1}}$) = 23.24 to 26.80, with sizes between 88 and 1659 kpc, including 16 giant radio galaxies. Their total stellar content aligns with massive elliptical galaxies. Our findings at $z<0.4$ suggest that many restarting galaxies are not found in rich cluster environments, consistent with broader radio-galaxy population. This study confirms core prominence as an effective parameter for selecting restarted radio sources.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2024

JWST/NIRSpec WIDE survey: a z=4.6 low-mass star-forming galaxy hosting a jet-driven shock with low ionisation and solar metallicity

We present NIRSpec/MSA observations from the JWST large-area survey WIDE, targeting the rest-frame UV-optical spectrum of Ulema, a radio-AGN host at redshift z=4.6348. The low-resolution prism spectrum displays high equivalent width nebular emission, with remarkably high ratios of low-ionisation species of oxygen, nitrogen and sulphur, relative to hydrogen; auroral O$^+$ emission is clearly detected, possibly also C$^+$. From the high-resolution grating spectrum, we measure a gas velocity dispersion $σ$~400 km s$^{-1}$, broad enough to rule out star-forming gas in equilibrium in the gravitational potential of the galaxy. Emission-line ratio diagnostics suggest that the nebular emission is due to a shock which ran out of pre-shock gas. To infer the physical properties of the system, we model simultaneously the galaxy spectral energy distribution (SED) and shock-driven line emission under a Bayesian framework. We find a relatively low-mass, star-forming system (M* = 1.4$\times$10^{10} M$_\odot$, SFR = 70 M$_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$), where shock-driven emission contributes 50 per cent to the total H$β$ luminosity. The nebular metallicity is near solar - three times higher than that predicted by the mass-metallicity relation at z=4.6, possibly related to fast-paced chemical evolution near the galaxy nucleus. We find no evidence for a recent decline in the SFR of the galaxy, meaning that, already at this early epoch, fast radio-mode AGN feedback was poorly coupled with the bulk of the star-forming gas; therefore, most of the feedback energy must end up in the galaxy halo, setting the stage for future quenching.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2024

Connecting the radio AGN life cycle to feedback: Ionised gas is more disturbed in young radio AGN

In the host galaxies of radio AGN, kinematically disturbed gas due to jet-driven feedback is a widely observed phenomenon. Simulations predict that the impact of jets on the surrounding gas changes as they grow. Useful insights into this phenomenon can be obtained by characterising radio AGN into different evolutionary stages and studying their impact on gas kinematics. We present a systematic study of the [OIII] gas kinematics for a sample of 5720 radio AGN up to $z\sim0.8$ with a large 1.4 GHz luminosity range of $\approx10^{22.5}-10^{28}$W/Hz, and 1693 [OIII] detections. Taking advantage of the wide frequency coverage of LOFAR and VLA surveys from $144-3000$MHz, we determine the radio spectral shapes, using them to characterise sources into different stages of the radio AGN life cycle. We determine the [OIII] kinematics from SDSS spectra and link it to the life cycle. Our main conclusion is that the [OIII] gas is $\sim$3 times more likely to be disturbed in the peaked spectrum (PS) sources (that represent a young phase of activity) than non-peaked spectrum (NPS) sources (that represent more evolved sources) at $z<0.4$. This changes to a factor of $\sim$2 at $z>0.4$. This shows that on average, the strong impact of jets is limited to the initial stages of the radio AGN life cycle. At later stages, the impact on gas is more gentle. We also determine the dependence of this trend on 1.4GHz and [OIII] luminosities and find that the difference between the two groups increases with 1.4GHz luminosity. Young radio AGN with $L_\mathrm{1.4GHz}>10^{25}$W/Hz have the most extreme impact on [OIII]. Using a stacking analysis, we are further able to trace the changing impact on [OIII] in the high-frequency peaked spectrum (i.e. youngest), low-frequency peaked spectrum ("less young"), and non-peaked spectrum (evolved) radio AGN.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2024

Turbulent circumnuclear disc and cold gas outflow in the newborn radio source 4C 31.04

We present deep kpc- and pc-scale neutral atomic hydrogen (HI) absorption observations of a very young radio source (< 5000 yrs), 4C 31.04, using the WSRT and the Global VLBI array. Using $z=0.0598$, we detect a broad absorption feature centred at the systemic velocity, and narrow absorption redshifted by 220 km/s both previously observed. Additionally, we detect a new blueshifted, broad, shallow absorption wing. At pc scales, the broad absorption at the systemic velocity is detected across the entire radio source while the shallow wing is only seen against part of the eastern lobe. The velocity dispersion of the gas is overall high ($\geq$40 km/s), and is highest (>60 km/s) in the region including the outflow and the radio hot spot. While we detect a velocity gradient along the western lobe and parts of the eastern lobe, most of the gas along the rest of the eastern lobe exhibits no signs of rotation. We therefore conclude that the radio lobes of 4C 31.04 are expanding into a circumnuclear disc, partially disrupting it and making the gas highly turbulent. The distribution of gas is predominantly smooth at the spatial resolution of ~4 pc studied here. However, clumps of gas are also present, particularly along the eastern lobe. This lobe is strongly interacting with the clouds and driving an outflow ~35 pc from the radio core, with a mass-outflow rate of $0.3 \leq \dot{M} \leq 1.4$ M$_\odot$/yr. We compare our observations with a model on the survival of atomic gas clouds in radio-jet-driven outflows and find that the existence of a sub-kpc outflow implies high gas density and inefficient mixing of the cold gas with the hot medium, leading to shorter cooling times. Overall, this provides further evidence of the strong impact of young radio jets on cold ISM and supports the predictions of simulations regarding jet$-$ISM interactions and the nature of the gas into which the jets expand.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2024

What have we learned about the life cycle of radio galaxies from new radio surveys

The recurrent activity of radio AGN, with phases of activity alternating with periods of quiescence, has been known since the early studies of these objects. The full relevance of this cycle is emphasised by the requirement, from the AGN feedback scenario, of a recurrent impact of the energy released by the SMBH during the lifetime of the host galaxy: only in this way can AGN feedback influence galaxy evolution. Radio AGN in different evolutionary phases can be identified by their properties, like morphology and spectral indices. Dying/remnant and restarted sources have been the most elusive to select and characterise, but they are crucial to quantify the full life cycle. Thanks to the availability of new, large radio surveys (particularly at low frequencies), it is finally possible to make a more complete census of these rare sources and start building larger samples. This paper gives an overview of the recent work conducted using a variety of radio telescopes and surveys, highlighting some of the new results characterising the properties of dying/remnant and restarted radio sources and what has been learned about the life cycle of radio AGN. The comparison with the predictions from numerical simulations is also discussed. The results so far show that remnant and restarted radio AGN have a variety of properties which make these objects more complex than previously thought.

astro-ph.GA↗

arXiv2024

ALMA reveals a compact and massive molecular outflow driven by the young AGN in a nearby ULIRG

The ultra luminous infrared galaxy (ULIRG) F13451+1232 is an excellent example of a galaxy merger in the early stages of active galactic nucleus (AGN) activity, a phase in which AGN-driven outflows are expected to be particularly important. However, previous observations have determined that the mass outflow rates of the warm ionised and neutral gas phases in F13451+1232 are relatively modest, and there has been no robust detection of molecular outflows. Using high spatial resolution ALMA CO(1-0) observations, we detect a kiloparsec-scale circumnuclear disk, as well as extended ($r\sim440$ pc), intermediate-velocity (300<|$v$|<400 km s$^{-1}$) cold molecular gas emission that cannot be explained by rotational disk motions. If interpreted as AGN-driven outflows, the mass outflow rates associated with this intermediate-velocity gas are relatively modest ($\dot{M}_\mathrm{out}=22$-$27$ M$_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$); however, we also detect a compact ($r_\mathrm{out}$<120 pc), high velocity (400<$v$<680 km s$^{-1}$) cold molecular outflow near the primary nucleus of F13451+1232, which carries an order of magnitude more mass ($\dot{M}_\mathrm{out}\sim230$ M$_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$) than (and several times the kinetic power of) the previously-detected warmer phases. Moreover, the similar spatial scales of this compact outflow and the radio structure indicate that it is likely accelerated by the small-scale ($r\sim130$ pc) AGN jet in the primary nucleus of F13451+1232. Considering the compactness of the nuclear outflow and intermediate-velocity non-rotating gas that we detect, we argue that high spatial-resolution observations are necessary to properly quantify the properties of AGN-driven outflows and their impacts on host galaxies.

astro-ph.GA↗