| Issue |
A&A
Volume 706, February 2026
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Article Number | A326 | |
| Number of page(s) | 9 | |
| Section | Extragalactic astronomy | |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202557272 | |
| Published online | 17 February 2026 | |
The MURALES survey
VIII. Discovery of a dual active nucleus in the radio galaxy 3C 313
1
INAF – Osservatorio Astrofisico di Torino Via Osservatorio 20 I-10025 Pino Torinese, Italy
2
Instituto de Astronomía y Ciencias Planetarias, Universidad de Atacama Copayapu 485 Copiapó, Chile
3
Dipartimento di Fisica, Università degli Studi di Torino Via Pietro Giuria 1 10125 (Torino), Italy
★ Corresponding author: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Received:
16
September
2025
Accepted:
14
November
2025
We present the results of VLT/MUSE integral-field spectroscopy of the radio galaxy 3C 313 at z = 0.459, combined with HST and Chandra images. The high-resolution optical and X-ray images show the presence of two sources separated by 0.″63 (3.7 kpc). The narrow emission lines produced by highly ionized gas show a double-peaked profile, with a separation corresponding to ∼400 km s−1. No permitted broad lines are observed. We conclude that 3C 313 hosts a dual active galactic nucleus (AGN), with both nuclei being optically obscured type II. The low ionization [O II] line instead has a single profile, and it was likely produced by the large scale, low-density interstellar medium. 3C 313 is the second dual AGN discovered among the 63 sources observed as part of the MURALES survey. Besides the emission associated with the two nuclei, we found a tail of line emission extending for ∼18 kpc aligned with the radio structure. We interpret this structure as a nuclear outflow of ionized gas.
Key words: galaxies: active / galaxies: nuclei
© The Authors 2026
Open Access article, published by EDP Sciences, under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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