New active galactic nuclei science cases with interferometry. An incomplete preview

Hönig, S. F.; Herrero, Almudena Alonso; Gandhi, Poshak; Kishimoto, Makoto; Pott, Jörg-Uwe; Ramos Almeida, C.; Surdej, Jean; Tristram, Konrad R. W.
Bibliographical reference

Experimental Astronomy, Volume 46, Issue 3, pp.413-419

Advertised on:
12
2018
Number of authors
8
IAC number of authors
1
Citations
5
Refereed citations
4
Description
Infrared (IR) interferometry has made widely recognised contributions to the way we look at the dusty environment of supermassive black holes on parsec scales. It finally provided direct evidence for orientation-dependent unification of active galaxies, however it also showed that the classical "torus" picture is oversimplified. New scientific opportunities for AGN have been suggested, and will soon be carried out, focusing on the dynamical aspects of spectrally and spatially resolved interferometry, as well as the potential to employ interferometry for cosmology. This will open interferometry to new scientific communities.
Related projects
Supermassive black holes modify the distribution of molecular gas in the central regions of galaxies. Credit: HST and C. Ramos Almeida.
Nuclear Activity in Galaxies: a 3D Perspective from the Nucleus to the Outskirts
This project consists of two main research lines. First, the study of quasar-driven outflows in luminous and nearby obscured active galactic nuclei (AGN) and the impact that they have on their massive host galaxies (AGN feedback). To do so, we have obtained Gran Telescopio CANARIAS (GTC) infrared and optical observations with the instruments
Cristina
Ramos Almeida