Resolving the Multiple Component Outflows in PG 1211+143. II. The Soft X-Ray View of the Ultrafast Outflow

Abstract The nearby quasar PG 1211+143 hosts one of the prototypical examples of an ultrafast outflow (UFO), as seen in several past XMM-Newton and Chandra observations. In 2024 December, PG 1211+143 was observed simultaneously with XRISM Resolve and XMM-Newton, allowing both the Fe K and soft X-ray outflows to be examined at high resolution simultaneously. The Resolve spectrum revealed a forest of Fe K absorption lines from the UFO, comprising up to six discrete velocity components ranging from v / c = −0.074 to v / c = −0.40. Here, we present the simultaneous XMM-Newton Reflection Grating Spectrometer (RGS) spectrum, where three lower-ionization counterparts of the Fe K velocity zones are observed, at v / c = –0.074, −0.12, and −0.33. The soft X-ray absorbers tend to be less ionized than their Fe K counterparts, with their opacity arising mainly from Fe L-shell lines and highly ionized oxygen. By comparing the Resolve and RGS absorbers, we show that the outflow can be parameterized with a density profile varying with radius as r −5/3 , while the lower-ionization zones likely originate from denser clumps of gas. Pure electron scattering appears insufficient to provide the thrust needed to power the wind, unless sufficient low-ionization gas capable of radiative line driving exists outside of the line of sight. Overall, PG 1211+143 provides further evidence for the clumpy nature of accretion disk winds, as was recently revealed in the quasar PDS 456 with XRISM.