TY - JOUR
T1 - ReveaLLAGN 1
T2 - JWST Emission-line Spectra Reveal Low-luminosity Active Galactic Nucleus with Ultraviolet-deficient Spectral Energy Distributions and Warm Molecular Gas
AU - Goold, Kameron
AU - Seth, Anil
AU - Molina, Mallory
AU - Ohlson, David
AU - Acharya, Nischal
AU - Böker, Torsten
AU - Dumont, Antoine
AU - Eracleous, Michael
AU - Fernández-Ontiveros, Juan Antonio
AU - Gallo, Elena
AU - Goulding, Andy D.
AU - Greene, Jenny E.
AU - Ho, Luis C.
AU - Neumayer, Nadine
AU - Plotkin, Richard M.
AU - Prieto, Almudena
AU - Runnoe, Jessie C.
AU - Satyapal, Shobita
AU - Van de Ven, Glenn
AU - Walsh, Jonelle L.
AU - Yuan, Feng
AU - Feldmeier-Krause, Anja
AU - Gültekin, Kayhan
AU - Lützgendorf, Nora
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2026. The Author(s). Published by the American Astronomical Society.
PY - 2026/4/1
Y1 - 2026/4/1
N2 - We present near- and mid-infrared spectra of eight low-luminosity active galactic nuclei (LLAGN), spanning nearly 4 orders of magnitude in black hole mass and Eddington ratio, obtained with JWST/NIRSpec and MIRI as part of the ReveaLLAGN program, along with identical archival data of Cen A. The high spatial resolution of JWST cleanly separates active galactic nuclei (AGN) emission from host-galaxy contamination, enabling detections of high-ionization-potential lines more than an order of magnitude fainter than previously measured. Emission-line diagnostics reveal a transition at log(L bol/L Edd) ∼−3.5, where the spectral energy distribution becomes increasingly deficient in ultraviolet photons. We find that rotational H2 excitation temperatures are elevated (∼500 K higher) compared to both higher-luminosity AGN and star-forming galaxies, while the H2(0–0)S(3)/PAH11.3μm ratios are consistent with those observed in the AGN population. We discuss the possible roles of outflows, jets, and X-ray-dominated regions in shaping the interstellar medium surrounding LLAGN. Silicate emission at ∼10 μm, localized to the nuclear region, is detected in most ReveaLLAGN targets. This dataset offers the first comprehensive JWST-based characterization of infrared emission lines in the nuclear regions of LLAGN.
AB - We present near- and mid-infrared spectra of eight low-luminosity active galactic nuclei (LLAGN), spanning nearly 4 orders of magnitude in black hole mass and Eddington ratio, obtained with JWST/NIRSpec and MIRI as part of the ReveaLLAGN program, along with identical archival data of Cen A. The high spatial resolution of JWST cleanly separates active galactic nuclei (AGN) emission from host-galaxy contamination, enabling detections of high-ionization-potential lines more than an order of magnitude fainter than previously measured. Emission-line diagnostics reveal a transition at log(L bol/L Edd) ∼−3.5, where the spectral energy distribution becomes increasingly deficient in ultraviolet photons. We find that rotational H2 excitation temperatures are elevated (∼500 K higher) compared to both higher-luminosity AGN and star-forming galaxies, while the H2(0–0)S(3)/PAH11.3μm ratios are consistent with those observed in the AGN population. We discuss the possible roles of outflows, jets, and X-ray-dominated regions in shaping the interstellar medium surrounding LLAGN. Silicate emission at ∼10 μm, localized to the nuclear region, is detected in most ReveaLLAGN targets. This dataset offers the first comprehensive JWST-based characterization of infrared emission lines in the nuclear regions of LLAGN.
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105035300043
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105035300043#tab=citedBy
U2 - 10.3847/1538-4357/ae4bdd
DO - 10.3847/1538-4357/ae4bdd
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:105035300043
SN - 0004-637X
VL - 1000
JO - Astrophysical Journal
JF - Astrophysical Journal
IS - 2
M1 - 281
ER -