Changing-look Active Galactic Nuclei from SDSS, LAMOST and DESI Survey

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Main Authors: Chen, Guohai, Yang, Wenxin, Ye, Xuhong, Chen, Zhiqiang, Pei, Zhiyuan, Xiao, Hubing, Fan, Junhui
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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author Chen, Guohai
Yang, Wenxin
Ye, Xuhong
Chen, Zhiqiang
Pei, Zhiyuan
Xiao, Hubing
Fan, Junhui
author_facet Chen, Guohai
Yang, Wenxin
Ye, Xuhong
Chen, Zhiqiang
Pei, Zhiyuan
Xiao, Hubing
Fan, Junhui
contents Although more than 1000 optical changing-look active galactic nuclei (CLAGNs) have been reported to date, their physical origin remains unclear, and repeating CLAGNs (RCLAGNs) are still rare. Expanding the CLAGN sample, especially RCLAGNs, is therefore important for constraining the underlying mechanism. We systematically search for CLAGNs by cross-matching spectroscopic observations from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) and the Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST), and further use spectra from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) to investigate repeating CL behavior. We identify 45 CLAGNs, including 40 newly reported sources. The sample is dominated by turn-off events, with 43 turn-off and 2 turn-on sources, possibly because Type 2 AGNs either lack a detectable broad-line region or have their broad emission lines obscured by circumnuclear dust. Using DESI as a third spectroscopic epoch, we identify 12 RCLAGNs. This high detection rate of repeated CL behavior suggests that CL transitions may arise from recurrent physical processes, such as accretion-rate fluctuations or disk instabilities. In the log MBH - log(Lbol/LEdd) plane, RCLAGNs further show a clear high-low-high accretion-state evolution, supporting a close link between CL behavior and recurrent changes in accretion power. Finally, the rest-frame upper limits on the transition timescales are about 10 yr for the first transition and about 4 yr for the second, reflecting different survey time baselines rather than intrinsic differences in physical transition timescales.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2605_24429
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Changing-look Active Galactic Nuclei from SDSS, LAMOST and DESI Survey
Chen, Guohai
Yang, Wenxin
Ye, Xuhong
Chen, Zhiqiang
Pei, Zhiyuan
Xiao, Hubing
Fan, Junhui
Astrophysics of Galaxies
Although more than 1000 optical changing-look active galactic nuclei (CLAGNs) have been reported to date, their physical origin remains unclear, and repeating CLAGNs (RCLAGNs) are still rare. Expanding the CLAGN sample, especially RCLAGNs, is therefore important for constraining the underlying mechanism. We systematically search for CLAGNs by cross-matching spectroscopic observations from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) and the Large Sky Area Multi-Object Fiber Spectroscopic Telescope (LAMOST), and further use spectra from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) to investigate repeating CL behavior. We identify 45 CLAGNs, including 40 newly reported sources. The sample is dominated by turn-off events, with 43 turn-off and 2 turn-on sources, possibly because Type 2 AGNs either lack a detectable broad-line region or have their broad emission lines obscured by circumnuclear dust. Using DESI as a third spectroscopic epoch, we identify 12 RCLAGNs. This high detection rate of repeated CL behavior suggests that CL transitions may arise from recurrent physical processes, such as accretion-rate fluctuations or disk instabilities. In the log MBH - log(Lbol/LEdd) plane, RCLAGNs further show a clear high-low-high accretion-state evolution, supporting a close link between CL behavior and recurrent changes in accretion power. Finally, the rest-frame upper limits on the transition timescales are about 10 yr for the first transition and about 4 yr for the second, reflecting different survey time baselines rather than intrinsic differences in physical transition timescales.
title Changing-look Active Galactic Nuclei from SDSS, LAMOST and DESI Survey
topic Astrophysics of Galaxies
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.24429