It is commonly assumed that all galaxies with X-ray luminosities above about10^42 erg/s harbour AGN, regardless of their optical spectrum, due to theabsence of starburst galaxies in the local universe reaching such extremeluminosities. Here, we propose obtaining deep XMM-Newton EPIC observations ofthree extremely X-ray luminous starburst galaxies (L(X) above 10^42 erg/s),newly-discovered in a cross-correlation of the 2XMMp and SDSS DR5 catalogues. Wewill obtain X-ray data with sufficient quality to disentangle their potentiallycomplex spectra, and hence reveal whether they really are powered by hidden AGN,or are the true high X-ray luminosity pinnacle of the starburst galaxypopulation.
Instrument
EMOS1, EMOS2, EPN, OM, RGS1, RGS2
Temporal Coverage
2007-07-08T17:22:37Z/2008-04-06T01:45:39Z
Version
17.56_20190403_1200
Mission Description
The European Space Agencys (ESA) X-ray Multi-Mirror Mission (XMM-Newton) was launched by an Ariane 504 on December 10th 1999. XMM-Newton is ESAs second cornerstone of the Horizon 2000 Science Programme. It carries 3 high throughput X-ray telescopes with an unprecedented effective area, and an optical monitor, the first flown on a X-ray observatory. The large collecting area and ability to make long uninterrupted exposures provide highly sensitive observations. Since Earths atmosphere blocks out all X-rays, only a telescope in space can detect and study celestial X-ray sources. The XMM-Newton mission is helping scientists to solve a number of cosmic mysteries, ranging from the enigmatic black holes to the origins of the Universe itself. Observing time on XMM-Newton is being made available to the scientific community, applying for observational periods on a competitive basis.
European Space Agency, Dr Timothy Roberts, 2009, 'The most extreme starburst galaxiesquestionMark', 17.56_20190403_1200, European Space Agency, https://doi.org/10.5270/esa-dkxbgcn
