Major contributor to AGN feedback: VLT X-shooter observations of S IV BALQSO outflows

We present the most energetic BALQSO outflow measured to date, with a kinetic luminosity of at least 10⁴⁶ erg s^-1, which is 5% of the bolometric luminosity of this high Eddington ratio quasar. The associated mass-flow rate is 400 solar masses per year. Such kinetic luminosity and mass-flow rate should provide strong active galactic nucleus feedback effects. The outflow is located at about 300 pc from the quasar and has a velocity of roughly 8000 km s^-1. Our distance and energetic measurements are based in large part on the identification and measurement of S IV and S IV* broad absorption lines (BALs). The use of this high-ionization species allows us to generalize the result to the majority of high-ionization BALQSOs that are identified by their C IV absorption. We also report the energetics of two other outflows seen in another object using the same technique. The distances of all three outflows from the central source (100-2000 pc) suggest that we observe BAL troughs much farther away from the central source than the assumed acceleration region of these outflows (0.01-0.1 pc).