MUSE Reveals Extended Circumnuclear Outflows in the Seyfert 1 NGC 7469

Abstract

NGC 7469 is a well-known luminous infrared galaxy, with a circumnuclear star formation ring (∼830 pc radius) surrounding a Seyfert 1 active galactic nucleus (AGN). Nuclear unresolved winds were previously detected in X-rays and ultraviolet, as well as an extended biconical outflow in infrared coronal lines. We search for extended outflows by measuring the kinematics of the Hβ and [O iii] λ5007 optical emission lines, in data of the Very Large Telescope/Multi-unit Spectroscopic Explorer integral field spectrograph. We find evidence of two outflow kinematic regimes: one slower regime extending across most of the star formation (SF) ring—possibly driven by the massive SF—and a faster regime (with a maximum velocity of −715 km s−1), only observed in [O iii], in the western region between the AGN and the massive star-forming regions of the ring, likely AGN-driven. This work shows a case where combined AGN/SF feedback can be effectively spatially resolved, opening up a promising path toward a deeper understanding of feedback processes in the central kiloparsec of AGN.