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M. Sako (Columbia), S. M. Kahn (Columbia), F. B. S. Paerels (Columbia), D. A. Liedahl (LLNL)
The high-resolution X-ray spectrum of the Seyfert 2 galaxy, Mkn~3, obtained with the High Energy Transmission Grating Spectrometer onboard the Chandra X-ray Observatory exhibits a wealth of discrete features produced in the circumsource medium. The high-energy spectrum is dominated by reflection of the AGN continuum radiation in a cold optically thick medium and contains bright K\alpha fluorescent lines from iron and silicon, as well as weak, blended lines from sulfur and magnesium. The soft X-ray emission is spatially extended along the O [{\small III}] ionization cone and shows discrete signatures of emission following recombination and photoexcitation produced in a warm photoionized region. The measured iron L line fluxes indicate that emission from collisionally ionized plasma is almost completely negligible, and does not contribute significantly to the total energy budget of the X-ray emission. We find that significant fractions of the H- and He-like resonance lines, as well as the observed iron L lines are produced through re-emission from the warm absorbing medium observed in Seyfert~1 galaxies. Its X-ray spectral properties are quantitatively consistent with those of a typical Seyfert~1 galaxy viewed at a different orientation, and provide further convincing evidence for the existence of an obscured Seyfert~1 nucleus in Mkn~3.
The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: masao@astro.columbia.edu