| Name: Suvendu Rakshit |
| Affiliation: Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational SciencES (ARIES) |
| Conference ID: ASI2026_675 |
| Title: Weighing the Monsters: Supermassive Black Holes in AGN |
| Abstract Type: Invited |
| Abstract Category: Plenary |
| Author(s) and Co-Author(s) with Affiliation: Suvendu Rakshit(Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational SciencES (ARIES), Nainital-263001, Uttarakhand, India) |
| Abstract: Active galaxies are believed to be powered by the accretion of matter onto supermassive black holes. Measuring black hole masses and investigating the dynamics of the sub-parsec regions of active galactic nuclei (AGN) remain challenging because of the extremely high spatial resolution required. Long-term spectro-photometric monitoring has proven to be a powerful tool for probing the central engine, determining the linear size of the broad-line region (BLR), and estimating black hole masses. At the same time, recent advances in optical spectro-interferometry have provided an independent approach to black hole mass measurements by directly constraining the angular size of the BLR. By combining the linear sizes obtained from spectro-photometric studies with angular diameter measurements from optical interferometry, it becomes possible to estimate distances to AGN across the Universe. In this talk, I will summarize results from extensive long-term spectro-photometric monitoring programs, highlight recent findings from optical interferometric observations, and discuss their implications for black hole mass measurements and distance estimates in AGN. |
