IRAS 13349+2438 is a Seyfert galaxy located in the constellation of Boötes. It is located 1.45 billion light-years from Earth[1] and a prototype infrared-luminous low-redshift quasar with a projected luminosity of 2 x1046erg s-1 according to Beichman who discovered it in 1986.[2]
IRAS 13349+2438 has a spiral-like appearance according to digital imaging made on the galaxy's host and the nearby environment. It has a companion galaxy, suggesting the galaxy might have interacted with it, given the evidence of tidal structures.[3] It is likely the interaction has given rise to its quasar activity as interstellar dust and gas are supplied to the galaxy's nucleus. Additionally, IRAS 13349+2438 shows increasing high optical polarization at declining wavebands.[4][5] It is a radio-quiet quasar despite weak radio emission being reported at 6 GHz.[6][7]
The galaxy has strong properties of Fe II emission and weak [O III] that is relative to Hβ.[8] A study made by Chandra X-ray spectrum with the HETGS grating spectrometer, also confirms IRAS 13349+2438 has a rich absorption spectra of quasar outflows. It is also said the object contains a double-peaked absorption measure distribution whom researchers finds the object has an ionized column density of NH = (1.2 ± 0.3) x 1022 cm-2.[9]
IRAS 13349+2438 has been observed by XMM Newton Observatory a few occasions. In 2000, XMM Newton discovered the galaxy contains several broad absorption lines from various ionized elements like nitrogen, oxygen and ironL-shell ions. Further evidence shows, IRAS 13349+2438 also has an unresolved transitional array of an inner-shell absorption, possibly misidentified to be an OVII edge through observations made by moderate resolution spectrometers.[10] In 2018, IRAS 13349+2438 was observed again, which it contains large numbers of absorption lines originating from warm absorption zones with measured velocities of ~-600 km s-1.[11] A joint study by NuSTAR and XMM Newton confirms presence of iron absorption lines at both 8 and 9 keV, with velocities of 0.14c and 0.27c. Based on findings, IRAS 13349+2438 shows possible detections of multiphase ultra-fast outflows.[12]
In a study sample of narrow-line Seyfert galaxies, IRAS 13349+2438 contains an unresolved core region with an approximate size of 540 x 235 parsecs. It has a high brightness temperature of ~72,000 K, indicating the galaxy has a low-power relativistic beamed jet.[13] Furthermore, it has an average star formation rate over 100 Myr of 105.8 ± 29.5 MΘ yr-1 and mass of 21.44 ± 2.68 1010 MΘ.[14]