A high-velocity ionized outflow and XUV photosphere in the narrow emission line quasar PG1211+143

We report on the analysis of a 60-ks XMM-Newton observation of the bright, narrow emission line quasar PG1211+143. Absorption lines are seen in both European Photon Imaging Camera and Reflection Grating Spectrometer spectra corresponding to H-and He-like ions of Fe, S, Mg, Ne, O, N and C. The observed line energies indicate an ionized outflow velocity of 24 000 km s -1 . The highest energy lines require a column density of N H 5 10 23 cm -2 , at an ionization parameter of log 3.4. If the origin of this high-velocity outflow lies in matter being driven from the inner disc, then the flow is likely to be optically thick within a radius of 130 Schwarzschild radii, providing a natural explanation for the big blue bump (and strong soft X-ray) emission in PG1211+143.