2009/08/03 by S. Schmoll, J. M. Miller, M. Volonteri +6 · 4 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Astrophysical Phenomena and Observations #Astrophysics and Cosmic Phenomena #Black hole (networking) #Context (archaeology) #Detector #Galaxies: Formation, Evolution, Phenomena #Galaxy #Line (geometry) #Reflection (computer programming) #Spectral line #Spectrometer #astro-ph.GA #astro-ph.HE
paper · pdf · doi:10.1088/0004-637x/703/2/2171
Accepted for publication in ApJ
arxiv created 2009/08/03 · openalex publication_date 2009/09/17 · arxiv updated 2015/05/13 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
We report on the results of spectral fits made to data obtained from a 168 ks Suzaku observation of the Seyfert 1 galaxy Fairall 9. The source is clearly detected out to 30 keV. The observed spectrum is fairly simple; it is well described by a power law with soft excess and disk reflection. A broad iron line is detected, and easily separated from distinct narrow components owing to the resolution of the CCDs in the X-ray Imaging Spectrometer (XIS). The broad line is revealed to be asymmetric, consistent with a disk origin. We fit the XIS and Hard X-ray Detector spectra with relativistically blurred disk reflection models. With the assumption that the inner disk extends to the innermost stable circular orbit, the best-fit model implies a black hole spin parameter of a = 0.60 ± 0.07 and excludes extremal values at a high level of confidence. We discuss this result in the context of Seyfert observations and models of the cosmic distribution of black hole spin.