Winds of change: The nuclear and galaxy-scale outflows and the X-ray variability of 2MASS 0918+2117

Abstract

Context. In this work, we test feedback propagation models on the test case of 2MASS 0918+2117 (2M0918), a z = 0.149 X-ray variable AGN that shows tentative evidence for nuclear ultra-fast outflows (UFOs) in a 2005 XMM-Newton observation. We also investigate whether UFOs can be related to the observed X-ray variability. Aims. We observed 2M0918 with XMM-Newton and NuSTAR in 2020 to confirm the presence of and characterize the UFOs. We performed a kinematic analysis of the publicly available 2005 SDSS optical spectrum to reveal and measure the properties of galaxy-scale ionized outflows. Furthermore, we constructed 20-year-long light curves of observed flux, line-of-sight column density, and intrinsic accretion rate from the spectra of the first four SRG/eROSITA all-sky surveys and archival observations from Chandra and XMM-Newton. Methods. We detect UFOs with v ∼ 0.16c and galaxy-scale ionized outflows with velocities of ∼700 km s−1. We also find that the drastic X-ray variability (factors > 10) can be explained in terms of variable obscuration and variable intrinsic luminosity. Results. Comparing the energetics of the two outflow phases, 2M0918 is consistent with momentum-driven wind propagation. 2M0918 expands the sample of AGN with both UFOs and ionized gas winds from 5 to 6 and brings the sample of AGN hosting multiscale outflows to 19, contributing to a clearer picture of feedback physics. From the variations in accretion rate, column density, and ionization level of the obscuring medium, we propose a scenario that connects obscurers, an accretion enhancement, and the emergence of UFOs.