Spitzer Space Telescope - General Observer Proposal #3124


A census of AGN activity in the local Universe

Principal Investigator: David Alexander
           Institution: Instiute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge

Co-Investigators: 
Andrew Fabian, Institute of Astronomy                                 
Franz Bauer, Institute of Astronomy                                   
Kazushi Iwasawa, Institute of Astronomy                               

Science Category: AGN/quasars/radio galaxies 
 Observing Modes: IrsStare MipsPhot 
  Hours Approved: 18.1 

Abstract:
It is well established that almost all galaxies harbor a central
super-massive black hole (SMBHs).  However, how many of these SMBHs
are actively accreting?  The answer to this question can provide
constraints on the growth of local SMBHs, form the basis for
determining the definitive obscured/unobscured local AGN ratio, better
define the fraction of nearby galaxies that harbor AGNs, and further
our understanding of the AGN contribution to the infrared and X-ray
backgrounds.  Amazingly, this fundamental question has not yet been
fully answered.  We propose here for IRS high-resolution spectroscopy
and MIPS 24 micron imaging of a distance-limited (<15 Mpc) infrared
selected galaxy sample to provide a census of AGN activity in the
local Universe.  Our observations are designed so that we can detect
even weak AGN components in our galaxy sample.