1. Resolving Dual Active Galactic Nuclei with ~100 pc separation in MCG-03-34-64
- Author
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Falcao, Anna Trindade, Turner, T. J., Kraemer, S. B., Braito, V., Reeves, J., Schmitt, H. R., and Feuillet, L.
- Subjects
Astrophysics - Astrophysics of Galaxies - Abstract
We report the serendipitous multiwavelength discovery of a candidate dual black hole system with a separation of ~100 pc, in the gas-rich luminous infrared galaxy MCG-03-34-64 (z=0.016). Hubble Space Telescope/ACS observations show three distinct optical centroids in the [O III] narrow-band and F814W images. Subsequent analysis of Chandra/ACIS data shows two spatially-resolved peaks of equal intensity in the neutral Fe Ka (6.2-6.6 keV) band, while high-resolution radio continuum observations with the Very Large Array at 8.46 GHz (3.6 cm band) show two spatially-coincident radio peaks. Fast shocks as the ionizing source seem unlikely, given the energies required for production of Fe Ka. If confirmed, the separation of ~100 pc would represent the closest dual AGN reported to date with spatially-resolved, multiwavelength observations.
- Published
- 2024