arXiv subjects

Roberto Soria

Publications and source records attributed to Roberto Soria.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

arXiv2019

The Hot Gas Exhaust of Starburst Engines in Mergers: Testing Models of Stellar Feedback and Star Formation Regulation

Using archival data from the Chandra X-ray telescope, we have measured the spatial extent of the hot interstellar gas in a sample of 49 nearby interacting galaxy pairs, mergers, and merger remnants. For systems with SFR > 1 M(sun)/yr, the volume and mass of hot gas are strongly and linearly correlated with the star formation rate (SFR). This supports the idea that stellar/supernovae feedback dominates the production of hot gas in these galaxies. We compared the mass of X-ray-emitting hot gas Mx(gas) with the molecular and atomic hydrogen interstellar gas masses in these galaxies (M(H2) and M(HI), respectively), using published carbon monoxide and 21 cm HI measurements. Systems with higher SFRs have larger Mx(gas)/(M(H2) + M(HI)) ratios on average, in agreement with recent numerical simulations of star formation and feedback in merging galaxies. The Mx(gas)/(M(H2) + M(HI)) ratio also increases with dust temperature on average. The ratio Mx(gas)/SFR is anti-correlated with the IRAS 60 micron to 100 micron flux ratio and with the Spitzer 3.6 micron to 24 micron. These trends may be due to variations in the spatial density of young stars, the stellar age, the ratio of young to old stars, the initial mass function, and/or the efficiency of stellar feedback. Galaxies with low SFR (<1 M(sun)/yr) and high K band luminosities may have an excess of hot gas relative to the relation for higher SFR galaxies, while galaxies with low K band luminosities (and therefore low stellar masses) may have a deficiency in hot gas, but our sample is not large enough for strong statistical significance.

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arXiv2019

A Sparkler in the Fireworks Galaxy: Discovery of an Ultraluminous X-ray Transient with a Strong Oxygen Line in NGC 6946

We discovered and studied an ultraluminous X-ray source (CXOU J203451.1+601043) that appeared in the spiral galaxy NGC 6946 at some point between 2008 February and 2012 May, and has remained at luminosities $\approx$2-4 $\times 10^{39}$ erg s$^{-1}$ in all observations since then. Our spectral modelling shows that the source is generally soft, but with spectral variability from epoch to epoch. Using standard empirical categories of the ultraluminous regimes, we find that CXOU J203451.1+601043 was consistent with a broadened disk state in 2012, but was in a transitional state approaching the super-soft regime in 2016, with substantial down-scattering of the hard photons (similar, for example, to the ultraluminous X-ray source in NGC 55). It has since hardened again in 2018-2019 without any significant luminosity change. The most outstanding property of CXOU J203451.1+601043 is a strong emission line at an energy of of $(0.66 \pm 0.01)$ keV, with equivalent width of $\approx$100 eV, and de-absorbed line luminosity of $\approx$2 $\times 10^{38}$ erg s$^{-1}$, seen when the continuum spectrum was softest. We identify the line as OVIII Ly$α$ (rest frame energy of 0.654 keV); we interpret it as a strong indicator of a massive outflow. Our finding supports the connection between two independent observational signatures of the wind in super-Eddington sources: a lower temperature of the Comptonized component, and the presence of emission lines in the soft X-ray band. We speculate that the donor star is oxygen-rich: a CO or O-Ne-Mg white dwarf in an ultracompact binary. If that is the case, the transient behaviour of CXOU J203451.1+601043 raises intriguing theoretical questions.

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arXiv2019

A rapidly-changing jet orientation in the stellar-mass black hole V404 Cygni

Powerful relativistic jets are one of the main ways in which accreting black holes provide kinetic feedback to their surroundings. Jets launched from or redirected by the accretion flow that powers them should be affected by the dynamics of the flow, which in accreting stellar-mass black holes has shown increasing evidence for precession due to frame dragging effects that occur when the black hole spin axis is misaligned with the orbital plane of its companion star. Recently, theoretical simulations have suggested that the jets can exert an additional torque on the accretion flow, although the full interplay between the dynamics of the accretion flow and the launching of the jets is not yet understood. Here we report a rapidly changing jet orientation on a timescale of minutes to hours in the black hole X-ray binary V404 Cygni, detected with very long baseline interferometry during the peak of its 2015 outburst. We show that this can be modelled as Lense-Thirring precession of a vertically-extended slim disk that arises from the super-Eddington accretion rate. Our findings suggest that the dynamics of the precessing inner accretion disk could play a role in either directly launching or redirecting the jets within the inner few hundred gravitational radii. Similar dynamics should be expected in any strongly-accreting black hole whose spin is misaligned with the inflowing gas, both affecting the observational characteristics of the jets, and distributing the black hole feedback more uniformly over the surrounding environment.

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arXiv2019

CG X-1: an eclipsing Wolf-Rayet ULX in the Circinus galaxy

We investigated the time-variability and spectral properties of the eclipsing X-ray source Circinus Galaxy X-1 (GG X-1), using Chandra, XMM-Newton and ROSAT. We phase-connected the lightcurves observed over 20 years, and obtained a best-fitting period $P = (25,970.0 \pm 0.1)$ s $\approx$7.2 hr, and a period derivative $\dot{P}/P = ( 10.2\pm4.6) \times 10^{-7}$ yr$^{-1}$. The X-ray lightcurve shows asymmetric eclipses, with sharp ingresses and slow, irregular egresses. The eclipse profile and duration vary substantially from cycle to cycle. We show that the X-ray spectra are consistent with a power-law-like component, absorbed by neutral and ionized Compton-thin material, and by a Compton-thick, partial-covering medium, responsible for the irregular dips. The high X-ray/optical flux ratio rules out the possibility that CG X-1 is a foreground Cataclysmic Variable; in agreement with previous studies, we conclude that it is the first example of a compact ultraluminous X-ray source fed by a Wolf-Rayet star or stripped Helium star. Its unocculted luminosity varies between $\approx$4 $\times 10^{39}$ erg s$^{-1}$ and $\approx$3 $\times 10^{40}$ erg s$^{-1}$. Both the donor star and the super-Eddington compact object drive powerful outflows: we suggest that the occulting clouds are produced in the wind-wind collision region and in the bow shock in front of the compact object. Among the rare sample of Wolf-Rayet X-ray binaries, CG X-1 is an exceptional target for studies of super-critical accretion and close binary evolution; it is also a likely progenitor of gravitational wave events.

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arXiv2019

Expected intermediate mass black holes in the Virgo cluster. II. Late-type galaxies

The Chandra X-ray Observatory's Cycle 18 Large Program titled "Spiral galaxies of the Virgo Cluster" will image 52 galaxies with the ACIS-S detector. Combined with archival data for an additional 22 galaxies, this will represent the complete sample of 74 spiral galaxies in the Virgo cluster with star-formation rates $\gtrsim$ 0.3 $M_{\odot}$/yr. Many of these galaxies are expected to have an active nucleus, signalling the presence of a central black hole. In preparation for this survey, we predict the central black hole masses using the latest black hole scaling relations based on spiral arm pitch angle $ϕ$, velocity dispersion $σ$, and total stellar mass $M_{\rm *,galaxy}$. With a focus on intermediate mass black holes ($10^2<M_{\rm bh}/M_{\odot}<10^5$), we highlight NGC 4713 and NGC 4178, both with $M_{\rm bh}\approx10^3$-$10^4$ (an estimate which is further supported in NGC 4178 by its nuclear star cluster mass). From Chandra archival data, we find that both galaxies have a point-like nuclear X-ray source, with unabsorbed 0.3-10 keV luminosities of a few times 10$^{38}$ erg/s. In NGC 4178, the nuclear source has a soft, probably thermal, spectrum consistent with a stellar-mass black hole in the high/soft state, while no strong constraints can be derived for the nuclear emission of NGC 4713. In total, 33 of the 74 galaxies are predicted to have $M_{\rm bh}<(10^5$-$10^6)$ $M_{\odot}$, and several are consistently predicted, via three methods, to have masses of $10^4$-$10^5\,M_{\odot}$, such as IC 3392, NGC 4294 and NGC 4413. We speculate that a sizeable population of IMBHs may reside in late-type spiral galaxies with low stellar mass ($M_{\rm *,galaxy}\lesssim10^{10}\,M_{\odot}$).

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arXiv2019

Monitoring of the eclipsing Wolf-Rayet ULX in the Circinus galaxy

We studied the eclipsing ultraluminous X-ray source CG X-1 in the Circinus galaxy, re-examining two decades of {\it Chandra} and {\it XMM-Newton} observations. The short binary period (7.21 hr) and high luminosity ($L_{\rm X} \approx 10^{40}$ erg s$^{-1}$) suggest a Wolf-Rayet donor, close to filling its Roche lobe; this is the most luminous Wolf-Rayet X-ray binary known to-date, and a potential progenitor of a gravitational-wave merger. We phase-connect all observations, and show an intriguing dipping pattern in the X-ray lightcurve, variable from orbit to orbit. We interpret the dips as partial occultation of the X-ray emitting region by fast-moving clumps of Compton-thick gas. We suggest that the occulting clouds are fragments of the dense shell swept-up by a bow shock ahead of the compact object, as it orbits in the wind of the more massive donor.

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arXiv2019

X-ray Activity from Different Types of Stars

X-ray emission is an important indicator of stellar activity. In this paper, we study stellar X-ray activity using the XMM-Newton and LAMOST data for different types of stars. We provide a sample including 1259 X-ray emitting stars, of which 1090 have accurate stellar parameter estimations. Our sample size is much larger than those in previous works. We find a bimodal distribution of X-ray to optical flux ratio (log(fX/fV)) for G and K stars. We interpret that this bimodality is due to two subpopulations with different coronal heating rates. Furthermore, using the full widths at half maxima calculated from Hα and H\b{eta} lines, we show that these stars in the inactive peaks have smaller rotational velocities. This is consistent with the magnetic dynamo theory that stars with low rotational velocities have low levels of stellar activity. We also examine the correlation between log(fX/fV) and luminosity of the excess emission in the Hα line, and find a tight relation between the coronal and chromospheric activity indicators.

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arXiv2018

A Combined Chandra and LAMOST Study of Stellar Activity

We probed stellar X-ray activity over a wide range of stellar parameters, using {\it Chandra} and LAMOST data. We measured the X-ray-to-bolometric luminosity ratio ($R_X = L_X/L_{\rm bol}$) for 484 main-sequence stars, and found a bimodal distribution for G and K types. We interpret this bimodality as evidence of two sub-populations with different coronal temperatures, which are caused by different coronal heating rates. Using the metallicity and velocity information, we find both of the two sub-populations are mostly located in the thin disk. We find no trend of $R_X$ with stellar age for stars older than $\sim$ 4 Gyr; there is a trough in the $R_X$ vs age distribution, with the lowest range of $R_X$ appearing at ages around 2 Gyr. We then examined the correlation between $R_X$ and $R_{\rm Hα}$ (proxy of chromospheric activity): we find that the two quantities are well correlated, as found in many earlier studies. Finally, we selected a sample of twelve stars with X-ray flares, and studied the light-curve morphology of the flares. The variety of flare profiles and timescales observed in our sample suggests the contribution of different processes of energy release.

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arXiv2018

Expected intermediate-mass black holes in the Virgo cluster. I. Early-type galaxies

We expand upon the AMUSE-Virgo survey which imaged 100 early-type Virgo cluster galaxies with the Chandra X-ray Observatory, and we place an emphasis on potential intermediate mass black holes (IMBHs). Virgo early-type galaxies with absolute magnitudes $\mathfrak{M}_B\gtrsim-20.5$ mag have $B$-band luminosities that scale with the square of the stellar velocity dispersion: $L_B\proptoσ^2$. We show that the non-linear `super-quadratic' relation $M_{\rm bh}\propto L_B^2$-$L_B^{2.5}$ from Graham & Scott yields black hole masses, $M_{\rm bh}$, that agree with the $M_{\rm bh}$-$σ$ relation down to at least $M_{\rm bh}=10^4\,M_{\odot}$. We predict that 30 of the 100 galaxies have $M_{\rm bh}\le10^5\,M_{\odot}$, with IC3602 having $M_{\rm bh}=10^4\,M_{\odot}$ and IC3633 having $M_{\rm bh}=$(6-8)$\times10^3\,M_{\odot}$. We additionally revise the black hole Eddington ratios and their scaling with black hole mass, and report a point-like Chandra source at the nucleus of five additional galaxies (NGC4382, NGC4387, NGC4417, NGC4467, and NGC4472). Moreover, three of the galaxies predicted here to host an IMBH have a point-like Chandra source near their nucleus: IC3442 ($M_{\rm bh}=2\times10^5\,M_{\odot}$); IC3492 ($M_{\rm bh}=5\times10^4\,M_{\odot}$); and IC3292 ($M_{\rm bh}=6\times10^4\,M_{\odot}$). Furthermore, IC3442 and IC3292 host a nuclear star cluster that is expected to house an IMBH. Finally, we present the ($B-K$)-$\mathfrak{M}_K$ colour-magnitude diagram and discuss the implications for the $M_{\rm bh}$-$L_K$ and $M_{\rm bh}$-$M_{\rm *,galaxy}$ relations, revealing why stripped galaxies, especially rare compact elliptical galaxies, should be excluded from $M_{\rm bh}$-$L$ and $M_{\rm bh}$-$M_{\rm *,galaxy}$ scaling relations.

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arXiv2018

Discovery of a pulsating Fe Ka line in GX 301-2

We report on the detection of a pulsating Fe Ka line in the High Mass X-ray Binary (HMXB) GX 301-2, from a 40-ks Chandra observation near periastron. The pulsations in the Fe Ka emission appeared only in the first 7 ks of the observation, with a period and phase profile similar to those of the continuum. The presence of pulsed fluorescent lines is an unusual property in HMXBs. After 7 ks, the continuum flux increased by a factor of three, the Fe Ka flux increased only by about 10\%, and the pulsating signal in the line disappeared. Finally, in the second half of the observation, both the continuum and the line flux dropped by a similar factor of 2. We suggest that the pulsating component of the Fe Ka line is coming from a transient non-isotropic distribution of dense gas around the neutron star, for example an accretion stream induced by periastron passage, or from the illuminated surface of the donor star.

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arXiv2018

Discovery of two eclipsing X-ray binaries in M51

We discovered eclipses and dips in two luminous (and highly variable) X-ray sources in M\,51. One (CXOM51 J132943.3$+$471135) is an ultraluminous supersoft source, with a thermal spectrum at a temperature of about 0.1 keV and characteristic blackbody radius of about $10^4$ km. The other (CXOM51 J132946.1$+$471042) has a two-component spectrum with additional thermal-plasma emission; it approached an X-ray luminosity of $10^{39}$erg s$^{-1}$ during outbursts in 2005 and 2012. From the timing of three eclipses in a series of {\it Chandra} observations, we determine the binary period ($52.75 \pm 0.63$ hr) and eclipse fraction ($22\% \pm 0.1\%$) of CXOM51 J132946.1$+$471042. We also identify a blue optical counterpart in archival {\it Hubble Space Telescope} images, consistent with a massive donor star (mass of $\sim$20--35 $M_{\odot}$). By combining the X-ray lightcurve parameters with the optical constraints on the donor star, we show that the mass ratio in the system must be $M_2/M_1 \gtrsim ~18$, and therefore the compact object is most likely a neutron star (exceeding its Eddington limit in outburst). The general significance of our result is that we illustrate one method (applicable to high-inclination sources) of identifying luminous neutron star X-ray binaries, in the absence of X-ray pulsations or phase-resolved optical spectroscopy. Finally, we discuss the different X-ray spectral appearance expected from super-Eddington neutron stars and black holes at high viewing angles.

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arXiv2017

Diffuse X-ray-emitting Gas in Major Mergers

Using archived data from the Chandra X-ray telescope, we have extracted the diffuse X-ray emission from 49 equal-mass interacting/merging galaxy pairs in a merger sequence, from widely separated pairs to merger remnants. After removal of contributions from unresolved point sources, we compared the diffuse thermal X-ray luminosity from hot gas (L(X)(gas)) with the global star formation rate (SFR). After correction for absorption within the target galaxy, we do not see strong trend of L(X)(gas)/SFR with SFR or merger stage for galaxies with SFR > 1 M(sun) yr^-1. For these galaxies, the median L(X)(gas)/SFR is 5.5 X 10^39 ((erg s^-1)/M(sun) yr^-1)), similar to that of normal spiral galaxies. These results suggest that stellar feedback in star forming galaxies reaches an approximately steady state condition, in which a relatively constant fraction of about 2% of the total energy output from supernovae and stellar winds is converted into X-ray flux. Three late-stage merger remnants with low SFRs and high K band luminosities (L(K)) have enhanced L(X)(gas)/SFR; their UV/IR/optical colors suggest that they are post-starburst galaxies, perhaps in the process of becoming ellipticals. Systems with L(K) < 10^10 L(sun) have lower L(X)(gas)/SFR ratios than the other galaxies in our sample, perhaps due to lower gravitational fields or lower metallicities. We see no relation between L(X)(gas)/SFR and Seyfert activity in this sample, suggesting that feedback from active galactic nuclei is not a major contributor to the hot gas in our sample galaxies.

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arXiv2017

Optical and X-ray luminosity of expanding nebulae around ultraluminous X-ray sources

We have performed a set of simulations of expanding, spherically symmetric nebulae inflated by winds from accreting black holes in ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs). We implemented a realistic cooling function to account for free-free and bound-free cooling. For all model parameters we considered, the forward shock in the interstellar medium becomes radiative at a radius $\sim $ 100 pc. The emission is primarily in the optical and UV, and the radiative luminosity is about 50% of the total kinetic luminosity of the wind. In contrast, the reverse shock in the wind is adiabatic so long as the terminal outflow velocity of the wind $v_{\rm w} \sim 0.003c$. The shocked wind in these models radiates in X-rays, but with a luminosity of only $\sim 10^{35} \rm\,erg\,s^{-1}$. For wind velocities $v_{\rm w} \sim 0.001c$, the shocked wind becomes radiative, but it is no longer hot enough to produce X-rays. Instead it emits in optical and UV, and the radiative luminosity is comparable to 100% of the wind kinetic luminosity. We suggest that measuring the optical luminosities and putting limits on the X-ray and radio emission from shock-ionized ULX bubbles may help in estimating the mass outflow rate of the central accretion disk and the velocity of the outflow.

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arXiv2017

Outbursts of the intermediate-mass black hole HLX-1: a wind instability scenario

We model the intermediate-mass black hole HLX-1, using the Hubble Space Telescope, XMM-Newton and Swift. We quantify the relative contributions of a bluer component, function of X-ray irradiation, and a redder component, constant and likely coming from an old stellar population. We estimate a black hole mass of about (2^{+2}_{-1}) x 10^4 M_{sun}, a spin parameter a/M ~ 0.9 for moderately face-on view, and a peak outburst luminosity of about 0.3 times the Eddington luminosity. We discuss the discrepancy between the characteristic sizes inferred from the short X-ray timescale (R ~ a few 10^{11} cm) and from the optical emitter (R sqrt[cos theta] ~ 2.2 x 10^{13} cm). One possibility is that the optical emitter is a circumbinary disk; however, we disfavour this scenario because it would require a very small donor star. A more plausible scenario is that the disk is large but only the inner annuli are involved in the X-ray outburst. We propose that the recurrent outbursts are caused by an accretion-rate oscillation driven by wind instability in the inner disk. We argue that the system has a long-term-average accretion rate of a few percent Eddington, just below the upper limit of the low/hard state; a wind-driven oscillation can trigger transitions to the high/soft state, with a recurrence period of ~1 year (much longer than the binary period, which we estimate as ~10 days). The oscillation that dominated the system in the last decade is now damped such that the accretion rate no longer reaches the level required to trigger a transition. Finally, we highlight similarities between disk winds in HLX-1 and in the Galactic black hole V404 Cyg.

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arXiv2017

Spectra of Black Hole Accretion Models of Ultra-Luminous X-ray Sources

We present general relativistic radiation MHD simulations of super-Eddington accretion on a $10M_\odot$ black hole. We consider a range of mass accretion rates, black hole spins, and magnetic field configurations. We compute the spectra and images of the models as a function of viewing angle, and compare them with the observed properties of ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs). The models easily produce apparent luminosities in excess of $10^{40}~{\rm erg\,s^{-1}}$ for pole-on observers. However, the angle-integrated radiative luminosities rarely exceed $2.5\times10^{39}~{\rm erg\,s^{-1}}$ even for mass accretion rates of tens of Eddington. The systems are thus radiatively inefficient, though they are energetically efficient when the energy output in winds and jets is also counted. The simulated models reproduce the main empirical types of spectra --- disk-like, supersoft, soft, hard --- observed in ULXs. The magnetic field configuration, whether MAD ("magnetically arrested disk") or SANE ("standard and normal evolution"), has a strong effect on the results. In SANE models, the X-ray spectral hardness is almost independent of accretion rate, but decreases steeply with increasing inclination. MAD models with non-spinning black holes produce significantly softer spectra at higher values of $\dot{M}$, even at low inclinations. MAD models with rapidly spinning black holes are quite different from all other models. They are radiatively efficient (efficiency factor $\sim10-20\%$), super-efficient when the mechanical energy output is also included ($70\%$), and produce hard blazar-like spectra. In all models, the emission shows strong geometrical beaming, which disagrees with the more isotropic illumination favored by observations of ULX bubbles.

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arXiv2016

Crossing the Eddington limit: examining disk spectra at high accretion rates

The faintest ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs), those with 0.3-10 keV luminosities 1 < L_X/10^39 < 3 erg s^-1, tend to have X-ray spectra that are disk-like but broader than expected for thin accretion disks. These `broadened disk' spectra are thought to indicate near- or mildly super-Eddington accretion onto stellar remnant black holes. Here we report that a sample of bright thermal-dominant black hole binaries, which have Eddington ratios constrained to moderate values, also show broadened disk spectra in the 0.3-10 keV band at an order of magnitude lower luminosities. This broadening would be missed in studies that only look above ~2 keV. While this may suggest that broadened disk ULXs could be powered by accretion onto massive stellar remnant black holes with close to maximal spin, we argue in favor of a scenario where they are at close to the Eddington luminosity, such that radiation pressure would be expected to result in geometrically slim, advective accretion disks. However, this implies that an additional physical mechanism is required to produce the observed broad spectra at low Eddington ratios.

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arXiv2016

Two eclipsing ultraluminous X-ray sources in M 51

We present the discovery, from archival Chandra and XMM-Newton data, of X-ray eclipses in two ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs), located in the same region of the galaxy M 51: CXOM51 J132940.0$+$471237 (ULX-1, for simplicity) and CXOM51 J132939.5$+$471244 (ULX-2). Three eclipses were detected for ULX-1, two for ULX-2. The presence of eclipses puts strong constraints on the viewing angle, suggesting that both ULXs are seen almost edge-on and are certainly not beamed towards us. Despite the similar viewing angles and luminosities ($L_{\rm X} \approx 2 \times 10^{39}$ erg s$^{-1}$ in the $0.3$-$8$ keV band for both sources), their X-ray properties are different. ULX-1 has a soft spectrum, well fitted by Comptonization emission from a medium with electron temperature $kT_e \approx 1$ keV. ULX-2 is harder, well fitted by a slim disk with $kT_{\rm in} \approx 1.5$-$1.8$ keV and normalization consistent with a $\sim 10 M_{\odot}$ black hole. ULX-1 has a significant contribution from multi-temperature thermal plasma emission ($L_{\rm X,mekal} \approx 2 \times 10^{38}$ erg s$^{-1}$); about $10$% of this emission remains visible during the eclipses, proving that the emitting gas comes from a region slightly more extended than the size of the donor star. From the sequence and duration of the Chandra observations in and out of eclipse, we constrain the binary period of ULX-1 to be either $\approx 6.3$ days, or $\approx 12.5-13$ days. If the donor star fills its Roche lobe (a plausible assumption for ULXs), both cases require an evolved donor; most likely a blue supergiant, given the young age of the stellar population in that galactic environment.

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arXiv2016

Does the intermediate mass black hole in LEDA 87300 (RGG 118) follow the near-quadratic (M_bh)-(M_spheroid) relation?

The mass scaling relation between supermassive black holes and their host spheroids has previously been described by a quadratic or steeper relation at low masses (10^5 < M_bh/M_sun < 10^7). How this extends into the realm of intermediate mass black holes (10^2 < M_bh/M_sun < 10^5) is not yet clear, although for the barred Sm galaxy LEDA 87300, Baldassare et al. have recently reported a nominal virial mass M_bh=5x10^4 M_sun residing in a `spheroid' of stellar mass equal to 6.3x10^8 M_sun. We point out, for the first time, that LEDA 87300 therefore appears to reside on the near-quadratic M_bh-M_{sph,*} relation. However, Baldassare et al. modelled the bulge _and_ bar as the single spheroidal component of this galaxy. Here we perform a 3-component bulge+bar+disk decomposition and find a bulge luminosity which is 7.7 times fainter than the published `bulge' luminosity. After correcting for dust we find that M_bulge=0.9x10^8 M_sun, and M_bulge/M_disk=0.04 - which is now in accord with ratios typically found in Scd-Sm galaxies. We go on to discuss slight revisions to the stellar velocity dispersion (40+/-11 km/s) and black hole mass (M_bh=2.9x10^4 M_sun) and show that LEDA 87300 remains consistent with both the M_bh-sigma relation and the near-quadratic M_bh-M_{sph,*} relation when using the reduced bulge mass. LEDA 87300 therefore offers the first support for the rapid but regulated (near-quadratic) growth of black holes, relative to their host bulge/spheroid, extending into the domain of intermediate mass black holes.

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