The Astrophysical Journal, 837:144 (16pp), 2017 March 10 https://doi.org/10.

3847/1538-4357/837/2/144
© 2017. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.

On the Redshift of TeV BL LacObjects

Simona Paiano1,2, Marco Landoni2, Renato Falomo1, Aldo Treves3, Riccardo Scarpa4, and Chiara Righi2,3
1
INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova, Vicolo dell’Osservatorio 5 I-35122 Padova (PD), Italy
2
INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Brera, Via E. Bianchi 46 I-23807 Merate (LC), Italy
3
Università degli Studi dell’Insubria, Via Valleggio 11 I-22100 Como, Italy
4
Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias, C/O Via Lactea, s/n E38205—La Laguna (Tenerife), Espana
Received 2016 November 17; revised 2017 January 10; accepted 2017 January 14; published 2017 March 13

Abstract
We report results of a spectroscopic campaign carried out at the 10 m Gran Telescopio Canarias for a sample of 22
BL Lac objects detected (or candidates) at TeV energies, aimingto determine or constrain their redshift. This is of
fundamental importance for the interpretation of their emission models andfor population studies and is also
mandatory for studying the interaction of high-energy photons with the extragalactic background light using TeV
sources. Optical spectra with high signal-to-noise ratios in the range 4250–10000Å were obtained to search for
faint emission or absorption lines from both the host galaxy and the nucleus. We determine a new redshift for
PKS1424+240 (z = 0.604) and a tentative one for 1ES0033+595 (z = 0.467). We are able to set new
spectroscopic redshift lower limits for threeothersources on the basis of Mg II and Ca II intervening absorption
features: BZBJ1243+3627 (z > 0.483), BZBJ1540+8155 (z > 0.672), and BZB0J2323+4210 (z > 0.267). We
confirm previous redshift estimates for four blazars: S30218+357 (z = 0.944), 1ES1215+303 (z = 0.129),
WComae (z = 0.102), and MS1221.8+2452 (z = 0.218). For the remaining targets, in seven cases (S2 0109+22,
3C 66A, VER J0521+211, S4 0954+65, BZB J1120+4214, S3 1227+25, BZB J2323+4210), we do not validate
the proposed redshift. Finally, for all sources of still-unknown redshift, we set a lower limit based on the minimum
equivalent width of absorption features expected from the host galaxy.
Key words: BL Lacertae objects: general – galaxies: distances and redshifts – gamma rays: galaxies – quasars:
absorption lines – quasars: emission lines

1. Introduction candidate) BLLs with unknown or uncertain redshift to be

observed at the 10.4 m Gran Telescopio Canarias(GTC), in
Blazars are luminous emitters over the whole electro-
order to improve our knowledge of the redshift of TeV BLLs,
magnetic spectrum up to TeVenergies. They are highly
a possibly unique testbench for ultra-high-energy funda-
variable and polarized and are often dominated, especially
mental physics.
during outbursts, bygamma-ray emission. The standard
The first results of this program were presented in Landoni
paradigm for these sources is that they owe their extreme
et al. (2015) for S4 0954+65 and inPaiano et al. (2016) for S2
physical behavior to the presence of a relativistic jet closely
0109+22. In this paper, we report results for 22 additional
aligned with the observer’s direction, a model that explains
BLLs: 15 of them aredetected at TeV energies, and seven
most of the peculiar properties of these sources: superluminal
aregood TeV candidates (Massaro et al. 2013).
motion, rapid variability, huge radio brightness temperature,
In Section 2 we outline the selection criteria of our sample
and so on. From the optical point of view, blazars showing
and discuss their main properties. In Section 3 we present the
very weak lines orcompletely featureless spectra are named
data collection and the reduction procedure. In Section 4 we
BL Lac objects (BLLs;see, e.g., the review of Falomo
show the optical spectra of each object, underlying their main
et al. 2014).
features, and discuss their redshift. In Section 5 we give
Compared to other active galactic nuclei, the featureless
detailed notes on individual objects, and finally in Section 6 we
spectrum of BLLs is due to the extreme dominance of
summarize and discuss the results.
thenonthermal emission over the stellar emission of the host
In this work we assume the following cosmological
galaxy, which makes the assessment of their redshift very
parameters: H0=70kms−1 Mpc−1, ΩΛ=0.7, and Ωm=0.3.
difficult(Sbarufatti et al. 2005b, 2006a, 2006b, 2009; Landoni
et al. 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015; Shaw et al. 2013; Massaro
et al. 2014, 2015; Álvarez Crespo et al. 2016).
2. The Sample
Knowledge of the distance is, however, crucial to under-
standing the nature of these sources, the physical mechanism We selected all BLLs that are detected at the very high
responsible for their extremely energetic emission, their energy band (>100 GeV) from the online reference catalog of
intrinsic luminosity, and theircosmic evolution. Furthermore, TeV sources (TeVCAT5) with unknown or uncertain redshift
in the case of TeV BLLs, the simple knowledge of the redshift and that are observable from La Palma (δ>−20°). For objects
converts these sources into a powerful probe of the with uncertain redshift, we chose sources with contrasting
extragalactic background light through γ–γ absorption, also redshift values reported in the literature or with measurements
improving our understanding of supersymmetric particles from optical spectra of low signal-to-noise ratio. This selection
thought to be produced in their ultrarelativistic jets(see, yields 18 targets, and we obtain observations for 15 of them
e.g., Tavecchio et al. 2015). Thus, we undertook a spectro-
scopic observational campaign of a sample of TeV (or TeV 5
http://tevcat2.uchicago.edu/

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Table 1
The Sample of TeraelectronvoltBL Lac and Teraelectronvolt Candidates

Object name R.A. δ CLASS V E (B - V ) zliterature Reference

(J2000) (J2000)
BZB J0035+1515 00:35:14.70 15:15:04.0 TeVc 16.9 0.062 ? L
1ES 0033+595 00:35:52.60 59:50:05.0 HBL 19.5 1.386 ? L
S2 0109+22a 01:12:05.08 22:44:39.0 IBL 15.7 0.034 0.265 ? Healey et al. (2008)
RGB J0136+391 01:36:32.50 39:06:00.0 HBL 15.8 0.068 ? L
S3 0218+357 02:21:05.50 35:56:14.0 HBLb 20.0 0.061 0.944 Cohen et al. (2003)
3C 66A 02:22:39.60 43:02:08.0 IBL 15.0 0.075 0.444 ? Miller et al. (1978)
VER J0521+211 05:21:45.90 21:12:51.0 IBL 17.5 0.604 0.108 ? Shaw et al. (2013)
1ES 0647+250 06:50:46.50 25:03:00.0 HBL 15.7 0.087 ? L
S5 0716+714 07:21:53.40 71:20:36.0 IBL 15.5 0.027 ? L
BZB J0915+2933 09:15:52.40 29:33:24.0 TeVc 15.8 0.021 ? L
S4 0954+65c 09:58:47.20 65:33:55.0 LBL 17.0 0.106 0.367 ? Lawrence et al. (1986)
BZB J1120+4212 11:20:48.00 42:12:12.0 TeVc 17.3 0.001 0.124 ? Perlman et al. (1996)
1ES 1215+303 12:17:52.10 30:07:01.0 HBL 15.8 0.020 0.13 ? Bade et al. (1998)
W Comae 12:21:31.70 28:13:59.0 IBL 15.4 0.021 0.102 ? Weistrop et al. (1985)
MS 1221.8+2452 12:24:24.20 24:36:24.0 HBL 16.7 0.019 0.218 ? Morris et al. (1991)
S3 1227+255 12:30:14.10 25:18:07.0 IBL 14.7 0.017 0.135 ? Nass et al. (1996)
BZB J1243+3627 12:43:12.70 36:27:44.0 TeVc 16.2 0.010 ? L
BZB J1248+5820 12:48:18.80 58:20:29.0 TeVc 15.4 0.011 ? L
PKS 1424+240 14:27:00.40 23:48:00.0 HBL 14.6 0.050 ? L
BZB J1540+8155 15:40:15.80 81:55:06.0 TeVc 17.6 0.044 ? L
RGB J2243+203 22:43:54.70 20:21:04.0 HBL 16.0 0.042 ? L
BZB J2323+4210 23:23:52.10 42:10:59.0 TeVc 17.0 0.134 0.059 ? Perlman et al. (1996)

Notes. Col.1: Name of the target; Col.2: Right ascension; Col.3: Declination; Col.4: Class of the source: high-synchrotron peaked BL Lac (HBL),
intermediate-synchrotron peaked BL Lac (IBL), low-synchrotron peaked BL Lac (LBL), teraelectronvolt candidate BL Lac (TeVc); Col.5: V-Band magnitudes
taken from NED; Col.6: E (B - V ) taken from the NASA/IPAC Infrared Science Archive (https://irsa.ipac.caltech.edu/applications/DUST/); Col.7: Redshift;
Col.8: Reference to the redshift.
a
Details for S2 0109+22 are reported in Paiano et al. (2016).
b
Gravitationally lensed system.
c
Details for S4 0954+65 are reported in Landoni et al. (2015).

(see Table 1), which represent about 70% of the whole sample Data reduction was carried out using IRAF8 and adopting the
of TeV blazars with uncertain or unknown redshift. standard procedures for long-slit spectroscopy with bias
In addition, we selected BLLs from a sample of 41 objects6 subtraction, flat-fielding, and bad-pixel correction. Individual
proposed as TeVemitters by Massaro et al. (2013) on the basis of spectra were cleaned of cosmic-ray contamination using the L.
the combined infrared (IR) and X-ray properties of BLLs reported A. Cosmic algorithm (van Dokkum 2001).
in the ROMA-BZCAT catalog (Massaro et al. 2009), satisfying Wavelength calibration was performed using the spectra of
the criteria of uncertain redshift and observability. This selection Hg, Ar, Ne, and Xe lamps,providing an accuracy of 0.1Å
produced 12 TeV candidates, and we obtained spectra for over the whole spectral range. Spectra were corrected for
sevenof them (see Table 1),whichrepresent ∼60% of the atmospheric extinction using the mean La Palma site extinction
unknown oruncertain TeV candidate emitters proposed by table.9 Relative flux calibration was obtained from the
Massaro et al. (2013). observations of spectrophotometric standard stars secured
during the same nights asthe target observation. For each
3. Observations and Data Reduction object, the spectra obtained with the two grisms were merged
Observations were obtained between 2015 February and 2016 into a final spectrum covering the whole desired spectral range.
August in Service Mode at the GTC using the low-resolution Thanks to the availability of a direct image of the target,
spectrograph OSIRIS (Cepa et al. 2003). The instrument was which is obtained at GTC as part of target acquisition, the
configured with the two grisms R1000B and R1000R,7in order spectra could be flux calibrated. The calibration was assessed
to cover the spectral range 4000–10000 Å, and with a slit using the zero point provided by the GTC-OSIRIS webpage.10
width=1″,yielding a spectral resolution of λ/Δλ=800. For one-half of our sample, it was also possible to use stars
For each grism, three individual exposures were obtained with known flux from the SDSS survey to double-check the
(with exposure times ranging from 300 to 1200 seach, flux calibration. We found no significant difference on average
depending on the source magnitude), whichwere then combined between the two methods within ∼0.1 mag. The final spectra
into a single average image, in order to perform optimal cleaning 8
of cosmic rays and CCD cosmetic defects. Detailed information IRAF (Image Reduction and Analysis Facility) is distributed by the National
Optical Astronomy Observatories, which are operated by the Association of
on the observations are given in Table 2. Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., under cooperative agreement
with the National Science Foundation.
9
6
One-h alf of them have unknown or uncertain redshift. https://www.ing.iac.es/Astronomy/observing/manuals/
7 10
http://www.gtc.iac.es/instruments/osiris/osiris.php http://www.gtc.iac.es/instruments/osiris/media/zeropoints.html

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Table 2
Log Observations of TeraelectronvoltSources and Teraelectronvolt Candidates Obtained at GTC

Grism B Grism R
Object tExp (s) Date Seeing tExp (s) Date Seeing r
BZB J0035+1515 2100 2015 Sep 30 0.6 1800 2015 Oct 01 0.6 17.00
1ES 0033+595 3600 2015 Sep 18 1.3 2700 2015 Sep 25 0.9 17.80
S2 0109+22 750 2015 Sep 19 1.8 750 2015 Sep 19 1.8 15.20
RGB J0136+391 900 2015 Sep 28 0.9 600 2015 Sep 28 0.9 15.80
S3 0218+357 3600 2015 Feb 05 0.9 8700 2015 Feb 05 1.2 19.90
3C 66A 750 2015 Sep 09 0.8 210 2015 Sep 06 0.8 14.70
VER J0521+211 900 2015 Sep 21 0.8 1050 2015 Sep 21 0.8 16.40
1ES 0647+250 1500 2015 Sep 22 1.4 1200 2015 Sep 22 1.4 15.80
S5 0716+714 210 2015 Nov 30 1.6 210 2015 Nov 30 1.6 13.60
BZB J0915+2933 750 2015 Dec 24 2.0 450 2015 Jun 06 2.0 15.90
S4 J0954+65 300 2015 Feb 28 1.0 450 2015 Feb 28 1.0 15.5
BZB J1120+4212 3000 2016 Jun 24 1.5 3600 2015 Jul 01 0.7 16.10
1ES 1215+303 900 2015 May 20 1.5 900 2015 May 20 1.5 14.50
W Comae 1800 2015 Jun 30 1.4 1800 2015 Jun 30 1.4 15.50
MS 1221.8+2452 3000 2015 May 31 1.3 3000 2015 May 31 1.2 16.70
S3 1227+255 450 2015 Dec 25 1.5 500 2015 Dec 25 1.5 14.90
BZB J1243+3627 1350 2015 May 21 1.2 1350 2015 May 21 1.2 15.60
BZB J1248+5820 600 2015 Dec 25 2.2 900 2015 Dec 25 2.2 15.70
PKS 1424+240 450 2015 Jun 30 1.0 450 2015 Jun 30 1.0 14.20
BZB J1540+8155 900 2015 Jun 23 1.0 900 2015 Jun 23 1.0 17.30
RGB J2243+203 600 2015 Sep 19 2.0 750 2015 Sep 19 2.0 16.20
BZB J2323+4210 3000 2016 Aug 07 1.3 3600 2015 Feb 28 0.7 17.50

Note. Col.1: Name of the target; Col.2: Total integration time withGrism B; Col.3: Date of observation with Grism B; Col.4: Seeing during the observation
withGrism B; Col 5: Total integration time withGrism R; Col.6: Date of observation with Grism R; Col. 7: Seeing during the observation with Grism R; Col.
8: r′ mag measured on the acquisition images.

Table 3
Properties of the Optical Spectra of Observed Sources

OBJECT α S/N EWmin zlim z N/Hlim

BZB J0035+1515 −1.3 183–275 0.09–0.18 0.55 (0.32) L 11
*
1ES 0033+595 40–135 0.27–0.52 0.53 (0.10) 0.467e 5
S2 0109+22 −1.0 167–375 0.07–0.16 0.35 (0.15) L 20
RGB J0136+391 −1.5 196–482 0.08–0.15 0.27 (0.14) L 6
* * *
S3 0218+357 5–20 0.944e 3
3C 66A −1.1 118–314 0.10–0.22 0.10 ( *) L 2
VER J0521+211 −0.9 82–221 0.15–0.37 0.18 (0.10) L 1
1ES 0647+250 −1.3 115–294 0.09–0.21 0.29 (0.12) L 7
S5 0716+714 −0.8 180–346 0.04–0.14 0.10 (* ) L 4
BZB J0915+2933 −1.1 89–241 0.14–0.34 0.13 (* ) L 1
S4 J0954+65 −0.9 50–120 0.15–0.20 0.45 (0.27) L 25
BZB J1120+4212 −1.6 100–190 0.12–0.23 0.28 (0.12) L 5
1ES 1215+303 −1.0 205–375 0.09–0.14 0.14 ( *) 0.129e 4
W Comae −0.6 180–260 0.09–0.17 0.19 (0.10) 0.102e,g 1
MS 1221.8+2452 −1.2 115–199 0.13–0.23 0.34 (0.15) 0.218e,g 2
S3 1227+25 −0.8 124–397 0.09–0.24 0.10 ( *) L 2
BZB J1243+3627 −1.3 208–465 0.05–0.15 0.28 (0.10) >0.48a 29
BZB J1248+5820 −0.9 76–225 0.12–0.29 0.14 ( *) L 2
PKS 1424+240 −1.1 254–436 0.04–0.10 0.10 ( *) 0.604e 184
BZB J1540+8155 −1.3 97–211 0.15–0.28 0.56 (0.22) >0.67a 14
RGB J2243+203 −1.1 109–178 0.15–0.22 0.22 (0.10) L 3
BZB J2323+4210 −1.2 160–315 0.07–0.17 0.73 (0.65) >0.267a 1

Note. Col.1: Name of the target; Col. 2: Optical spectral index derived from a power-law fit in the range 4250–10000; Col. 3: range of S/Nof the spectrum;
Col. 4: Range of the minimum equivalent width (EWmin) derived from different regions of the spectrum (see text);Col. 5: Lower limit (3σ level) of the redshift by
assuming a BL Lac host galaxy with MR=−22.9 (−21.9). In parentheses we give the redshift lower limit assuming a host galaxy one magnitude fainter. An asterisk
indicates that the redshift limit is out of theobserved range for the case of afainter host galaxy (see the Appendix);Col.6: Spectroscopic redshift; the superscript
letters aree=emission line, g=host galaxy absorption, a=intervening absorption; Col. 7: Lower limit of the nucleus-host galaxy ratio (N/H) in the rband
considering the whole flux of the host galaxy.

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The Astrophysical Journal, 837:144 (16pp), 2017 March 10 Paiano et al.

were then calibrated to have the flux at 6231Å equal to the

photometry found for the targets (see Table 2). Finally, each
spectrum has been dereddened, applying the extinction law
described in Cardelli et al. (1989) and assuming the E (B - V )
values taken from the NASA/IPAC Infrared Science Archive.11

4. Results
The optical spectra of the targets are presented in Figure 4. In
order to emphasize weak emission or absorption features, we
alsoshowthe normalized spectrum. This was obtained by
dividing the observed calibrated spectrum by a power-law
continuum fit of the spectrum, excluding the telluric absorption
bands (see Table 3). These normalized spectra were used to
evaluate the signal-to-noise ratio (S/N)in a number of spectral
regions. On average, the S/N ranges from 150 to 200 at
4500Å and 8000Å, respectively, to a peak of 320 at 6200Å.
See details in Table 3, and all these spectra can be accessed at
the website http://www.oapd.inaf.it/zbllac/

4.1. Search for Emission andAbsorption Features Figure 1. Ther-band optical image of the sky region around the BL Lac object
1ES 0033+595 obtained at the GTC. The source flagged as “A” is a
All spectra were carefully inspected to find emission and foreground star, and the BLL is the source labeled as “B.”
absorption features. When a possible feature was identified, we
determined its reliability by checking that it was present on the
Five different intervals were considered because the
three individual exposures (see Section 3 for details). We were
S/Nchanges with wavelength. The range of EWmin is reported
able to detect spectral lines for ninetargets. In particular, we
in Table 3,and we give a lower limit on z assuming a standard
observe [O III] 5007Å weak emission in the spectra of
average luminosity for the host galaxy MR=−22.9 (or
1ES1215+303, WComae, MS1221.8+2452, and PKS1424
MR = −21.9 in parentheses).
+240;[O II] 3727Å in 1ES0033+595, 1ES1215+303, and
PKS1424+240;the Ca II 3934, 3968Å doublet absorption
system and the G-band 4305Å absorption line in MS1221.8 5. Notes for Individual Sources
+2452;a strong emission of Mg II 2800Å in S30218+357
and intervening absorption systems due to Mg II 2800 Å in BZB J0035+1515: The source was first discovered by
BZBJ1243+3627 and BZBJ1540+8155; andfinally the Ca II Fischer et al. (1998) and cataloged as a BLL on the basis of
3934, 3968Å doublet in the spectrum of BZBJ2323+4210. its featureless optical spectrum. A more recent optical
Details are found in Figure 5 and Table 5. The spectraof spectrum, obtained as part of the SDSS survey, exhibits no
sevenadditional targets are found to be completely featureless, features (although the automatic procedure suggests some
even though a redshift is reported in theliterature. Details about tentative values, also included in the NASA/IPAC Extra-
the optical spectra and redshift estimates for each objectin our galactic Database; NED). Also Shaw et al. (2013) found a
sample are given in Section 5. featureless spectrum.
We confirm the featureless nature of the spectrum from
4200 to 9000 Å, and from our high S/Nwe obtain an EWmin
4.2. Redshift Lower Limits
of 0.09–0.18 Å, which correspondsto a redshift lower limit
Based on the assumption that all BLLs are hosted by a of z>0.55.
massive elliptical galaxy (e.g., Falomo et al. 2014), one should 1ES 0033+595: Perlman et al. (1996) identified this Einstein
be able to detect faint absorption features from the starlight Slew Survey source as a BLL, finding a featureless optical
provided that the S/Nand the spectral resolution are sufficiently spectrum (although a tentative redshift ofz = 0.086 was
high. In the case of no detection of spectral features, it is possible derived by Perlman et al., as mentioned in Falomo &
to set a lower limit to the redshift based on the minimum Kotilainen 1999). In Scarpa et al. (1999), the HST images of
equivalent width (EW) that can be measured in the spectrum. this object showtwo unresolved sources, “A” and “B,”
The minimum measurable equivalent width (EWmin) was set separated by 1 58 and with magnitude mR=17.95±0.05
according to the scheme outlined by Sbarufatti et al. and 18.30±0.05 mag, respectively. On the basis of radio
(2006a, 2006b), though in a more elaboratedprocedure (see coordinates, the authors identified the source B as the most
Appendix). In brief, from the normalized spectrum (see probable BLL counterpart and A as a possible star.
Figure 4), we computed the nominal EW byadopting a In our spectrum, the two sources are partially resolved
running window of 15Å for five intervals of the spectra that (see Figure 1), and we perform a deblending during the
avoid the prominent telluric absorption features (see Table 3). extraction process in order to obtain two separated spectra for
The procedure yields for each given interval a distribution of the targets. The spectrum of the object “A” (Figure 2) shows
EW, and we took 3times the standard deviation of the the typical stellar absorption lines of G stars, confirming the
distribution as theminimum measurable EW(see details in the previous classification. For the “B” source we obtain a
Appendix). spectrum with an S/N∼100 (see Figure 4), and although
there is some contamination of the spectrum by the
11
https://irsa.ipac.caltech.edu/applications/DUST/ companion, the nondetection of Hα indicates that the “B”

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The Astrophysical Journal, 837:144 (16pp), 2017 March 10 Paiano et al.

Figure 2. GTC spectrum of the companion source, labeled as “A” (see

Figure 1), of the BL Lac object 1ES 0033+595. Absorption lines due to CH
(4299 Å), hydrogen (4342, 4863, 6565 Å), and Mg I (5176 Å) are clearly Figure 3. Optical Rimage of the BL Lac object BZBJ2323+4210 taken at the
detected. Telluric bands are indicated by ⊕. This object can be classified as a NOT telescope (Falomo & Kotilainen 1999). Two spiral galaxies, labeled as
G-type star. G1 and G2, are present in the field of view of the BL Lac object at a distance of
∼8 5 and ∼12 0, respectively.

object has an extragalactic nature, and it is the blazar

counterpart as proposed by Scarpa et al. (1999). We found an clearly detected a strong, broad emission line at 5470
emission feature at 5468 Å of EW=0.4 Å (see Figure 5). Åidentified as Mg II 2800 Å, yieldinga redshift of
This feature is detected in all three individual spectra, and z=0.944 for the blazar. In addition, these authors claimed
therefore we consider it a secure detection. If identified as the detection of emission lines of [O II], Hβ, and [O III] at
[O II] 3727Å emission, a tentative redshift of z=0.467 can z=0.684, attributed to the lens galaxy. Moreover, they
be provided. claimed the detection of weak Hβ and [O III] emission in
Finally, comparing our photometry with Scarpa et al. the red noisy spectrum, also attributed to the blazar at
(1999), we obtain the same value for the A object, while for z=0.944.
the object B we obtain a magnitude difference of 1.2 with We obtain an optical spectrum ranging from 4500 to
respect to the previous one, reinforcing the classification of 10000 Å with an S/Nin the range 25–50. We confirm the
this source as a BLL. detection of Mg II and Ca II absorption lines at z=0.684,
RGB J0136+391: The first identification of this source as a and in addition we clearly detect an absorption line at 9920 Å
BLL was proposed by Laurent-Muehleisen et al. (1998), identified as Na I 5892 Å at the redshift of the lens. We do
showing a featureless optical spectrum. The same result was not detect the emissionlines [O II], Hβ,and [O III] (claimed
found in Wei et al. (1999), Piranomonte et al. (2007), and by Cohen et al. 2003). We note that some of these latter
Shaw et al. (2013). A lower limit on the redshift of z>0.40 features occur inside the telluric absorptions ofO2 and H2O.
was set on the basis of high-quality i-band images obtained at We clearly detect the strong, broad emission line at 5480 Å
the Nordic Optical Telescope (NOT;Nilsson et al. 2012). (EW=35 Å, FWHM=4700 km s−1) that, if attributed to
We found our high S/N(∼200–480) optical spectrum Mg II 2800 Å, yields the redshift of z=0.954. We stress that
completely featureless, only allowing usto set a lower limit in our spectrum we do not detect the claimed emissions Hβ
to the redshift of z>0.27. and [O III] attributed to the blazar by Cohen et al. (2003). We
S3 0218+357: This source was discovered to be a note again that these features are placed in a spectral region
gravitational lens by Patnaik et al. (1993), who detected that is heavily contaminated by strong H2O atmospheric
two similar radio sources with ∼0 33 separation and an absorption. Therefore we conclude that the redshift ofS3
Einstein ring with the same diameter. Optical counterparts of 0218+357 is still tentative since it is based on only one line.
the two radio sources were observed and detected by HST If confirmed, this source is the most distant blazar detected at
images (Jackson et al. 2000; York et al. 2005). An optical frequencies >100 GeV (Ahnen et al. 2016).
spectrum of the source was obtained by Browne et al. (1993), It is worth notingthat the shape of the continuum
who detected absorption features of Ca II and Mg II attributed exhibits a marked decline toward the blue region that is
to the lens galaxy at z=0.684. They also claimed the rather unusual for this type of source. This could be due to
detection of very weak emission lines of [O II] 3727 Å and significant intrinsic extinction or iscaused by absorption in
[O III] 5007 Å. In addition, they suggested the presence of the lens.
aweak emission feature of Mg II 2800 Åattributed to the 3C 66A: Wills & Wills (1974) identified this strong radio
blazar and proposeda redshift of 0.936. The redshift of the source as a BLL because of its featureless optical spectrum.
lens galaxy was confirmed through 21 cm H I absorption by Miller et al. (1978) proposed a redshift of z=0.444, on the
Carilli et al. (1993). Cohen et al. (2003) obtained a high- basis ofone emission line attributed to Mg II 2800 Å.
quality spectrum thatconfirms the absorption features and Thisvalue was considered by the authors as tentative and

5
The Astrophysical Journal, 837:144 (16pp), 2017 March 10 Paiano et al.

Figure 4. Spectra of the teraelectronvolt sources andteraelectronvoltcandidates obtained at GTC. Top panel: flux-calibrated and dereddened spectra. Bottom panel:
normalized spectra. The main telluric bands are indicated by ⊕, andthe absorption features from the interstellar medium of our galaxies are labeled as IS (interstellar).

highly uncertain. No other optical spectroscopy was done for Our high S/N(∼200) GTC spectrum is also featureless.
thirty years. More recently, Finke et al. (2008) showed an Based on our procedure of redshift lower limits beingestimated
optical spectrum in the range from 4200 to 8500 Å with no by EWmin, due to the relatively bright source we can set only a
detectable optical features. The featureless spectrum was also modest lower limit of z>0.10. We are not able to confirm the
confirmed by Shaw et al. (2013). Mg II emission proposed by Miller et al. (1978) because it is out

6
The Astrophysical Journal, 837:144 (16pp), 2017 March 10 Paiano et al.

Figure 4. (Continued.)

of our spectral range. However, at z=0.444 we would expect confirmed by Archambault et al. (2013),who reporta
to observe the Hβ emission line at 7020 Å, where we do not featureless spectrum.
detect any line with EW>0.2Å. We conclude that the redshift We do not confirm the redshift of the source, which
of this source is still unknown. therefore is still unknown, setting a lower limit of z>0.18.
VER J0521+211: On the basis ofa weak emission line at 1ES 0647+250: An optical spectrum of this sourcewith
5940Å attributed to [N II] 6583 Å, Shaw et al. (2013) modest S/Nwas found to befeatureless by Schachter et al.
proposed this source to be at z=0.108. This feature was not (1993), a result later confirmed by a better spectrum obtained

7
The Astrophysical Journal, 837:144 (16pp), 2017 March 10 Paiano et al.

Figure 4. (Continued.)

with the Keck telescope by Shaw et al. (2013). A relatively to water vapor. On the basis of our spectrum, we set a lower
high redshift can be supported by the absence of detection of limit of z>0.29.
the host galaxy from ahigh-quality image by Kotilainen S5 0716+714: This is a bright (V∼15) and highly variable
et al. (2011). (Bach et al. 2007) source for which several attempts to detect
Our GTC higher S/N(∼200) spectrum confirms this the redshift failed (Stickel & Kuhr 1993; Rector &
featureless behavior with absorptions at around 4400Å and Stocke 2001; Finke et al. 2008; Shaw et al. 2013). From
4880Å due to diffuse interstellar bands and at ∼6500Å due optical images, Sbarufatti et al. (2005a) set a lower limit of

8
The Astrophysical Journal, 837:144 (16pp), 2017 March 10 Paiano et al.

Figure 4. (Continued.)

z>0.5, and Nilsson et al. (2008) provided an imaging (see also Table 5), confirming the low redshift previously
redshift of z∼0.3 based on the marginal detection of the reported.
host galaxy. Finally, we note that Danforth et al. (2013), W Comae: Weistrop et al. (1985) provided an optical
based on the distribution of the absorption systems, set a spectrum and estimated a redshift of z=0.102 based on the
statistical upper limit ofz0.3. detection of [O III] 5007Å and Hα emission lines. This
We obtained a featureless optical spectrum during a high redshift was not confirmed by Finke et al. (2008), though
state of the source (r = 13.6),and we can set a redshift lower their spectra cover only the range from 3800 to 5000Å. In
limit of z>0.10. addition, the spectrum obtained by the SDSS (J122131.69
BZB J0915+2933: Wills & Wills (1976) showed a +281358.4) proposes a redshift of z=1.26. In 2003, the
continuous optical spectrum for the source and classified it host galaxy of W Comae was resolved by Nilsson et al.
as a BLL. The featureless behavior was also found by White (2003).
et al. (2000) and by Shaw et al. (2013). From our (S/N∼220) optical spectrum, we confirm the
Through our high S/Noptical spectrum, we confirm the detection of [O III] 5007Å and Hα emission lines at
featureless spectrum and set a lower limit to the redshift z=0.102. In addition, we detect at the same redshift the
of z>0.13. absorption lines due to the Ca II (3934, 3968 Å) doublet,
BZB J1120+4212: This object (also known as RBS 0970) is theG-band 4305 Å, and Mg I 5175 Å from the host galaxy.
a point-like radio source detected by various X-ray surveys MS 1221.8+2452: A tentative redshift of z=0.218 was
(see, e.g., Giommi et al. 2005). Optical spectral classification proposed by Morris et al. (1991) and Rector et al. (2000).
of the source as BLL was proposed by Perlman et al. (1996) Imaging studies of this source were able to resolve the host
on the basis of the quasi-featureless spectrum. They claim the galaxy and are consistent with the low redshift of the target
detection of starlight absorption features at z=0.124. (Falomo & Kotilainen 1999; Scarpa et al. 2000).
However, based on the spectrum reproduced in their Figure We detect the Ca II doublet and G-band 4305Å
4, the reliability of this featureis quite uncertain. This absorption lines at z=0.218, and we find emission lines
redshift is not confirmed in other spectra obtained by White at ∼7995 and ∼8020AA that if confirmed could be
et al. (2000) and Massaro et al. (2014). Also, the spectrum attributed to Hα and N II6583Å.
obtained by SDSS (J112048.06+421212.4) appears to us to S3 1227+255: Nass et al. (1996) reported z=0.135, but no
befeatureless. information on the detected spectral lines wasprovided. In
Our spectrum with S/N∼ 100–190 is featureless, and spite of the alleged low redshift, high-quality images failed to
we set a lower limit of z>0.28. detect the host galaxy(Nilsson et al. 2003). Shaw et al.
1ES 1215+303: Bade et al. (1998) reported a redshift of (2013) did not confirm this redshift, and no spectral features
z=0.130 for this target, but no information about the were found.
detected lines isgiven. On the contrary, White et al. (2000) Our optical spectrum (S/N∼250) is featureless down
showed an optical spectrum claiming a redshift of 0.237, to EW=0.1–0.2 Å. Therefore we do not confirm the
although it appears featureless from their figure. literature redshift, and we set a redshift lower limit
A more recent spectrum (S/N= 60) obtained by Ricci of z>0.10.
et al. (2015) was also found to be featureless. The target was BZB J1243+3627: White et al. (2000) reported a featureless
clearly resolved in HST exposures (Scarpa et al. 2000),revealing spectrum for this source. An absorption feature of Mg II
a massive elliptical host galaxy, suggesting the source is at low 2800Å at λ∼4160Å was detected in the SDSS spectrum,
redshift. suggesting a redshift of z 0.485 (Plotkin et al. 2010). This
Given these different redshift values, we secured a high- redshift limit appears to beconsistent with the marginal
quality optical spectrum (S/N∼300) in which we detect two detection of the host galaxy by Meisner & Romani (2010),
emission lines: [O II] 3727 Å and[O III] 5007 Å at z=0.131 who estimated z ∼ 0.50.

9
The Astrophysical Journal, 837:144 (16pp), 2017 March 10 Paiano et al.

Figure 5. Close-up of the normalized spectra around the detected spectral features of the teraelectronvolt sources and teraelectronvoltcandidates obtained at GTC. The
main telluric bands are indicated by ⊕, and spectral lines are marked by line identification.

From our spectrum (S/N∼330), we confirm the et al. (1997), Plotkin et al. (2008), and Shaw et al. (2013).
intervening absorption system due to Mg II 2800Å, and Note that NED reports z=0.847 based on the SDSS DR3
the remaining part of the spectrum is completely featureless. spectrum, although this is not confirmed by theSDSS DR13
The spectroscopic redshift lower limit is thus z>0.483. analysis. Scarpa et al. (2000) failed to detect the host galaxy
BZB J1248+5820: The source was classified as a BLL by from HST images.
Fleming et al. (1993), and no redshift was available. The Our high S/Nspectrum is featureless, and we can
featureless nature of the spectrum is reported in Henstock determine a lower limit to the redshift of z>0.14.

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The Astrophysical Journal, 837:144 (16pp), 2017 March 10 Paiano et al.

Figure 5. (Continued.)

PKS 1424+240: The source was classified as BLL by 2800 Å absorption, yielding a spectroscopic redshift lower
Fleming et al. (1993), and a featureless spectrumwas limit of z > 0.673. No intrinsic emission or absorption lines
reported by Marcha et al. (1996), White et al. (2000), and are found. The spectroscopic redshift limit is consistent with
Shaw et al. (2013). Furniss et al. (2013), from the Lyβ and our redshift limits determined by the absence of detection of
Lyγ absorptions observed in the far-ultravioletspectra from host-galaxy features.
HST/COS (Hubble Space Telescope/Cosmic Origins Spec- RGB J2243+203: Laurent-Muehleisen et al. (1998) pre-
trograph) spectra, reported a lower limit ofz>0.6035. This sentedthe first optical spectrum of this source, found to
is consistent with the nondetection of the host galaxy in HST befeatureless. Similarly, the spectrum obtained by Shaw
images (Scarpa et al. 2000). et al. (2013) is featureless, but the authors claimed the
In our high S/N∼350 optical spectrum, we detect two detection of an absorption line at ∼3900Å identified as
faint emission lines at 5981 and 8034 Å (see Figure 5), due to Mg II (2800Å). If confirmed, this would imply a redshift
[O II] 3727Å and [O III] 5007Å. The redshift corresp- ofz>0.395.
onding to this identification is 0.6047, suggesting that the Our spectrum, which does not cover the 3900Å region,
absorber at that redshift limit is associated withthe BLL. is very featureless from 4100 to 9000Å with the limits on
Note also that in the environment of the target there is a the emission or absorption lines of EWmin<0.2. This
group of galaxies at z ∼ 0.60, suggesting it is associated corresponds to a lower limit of z>0.22.
withthe BLL (Rovero et al. 2016). BZB J2323+4210: From a poor optical spectrum, Perlman
BZB J1540+8155: The source was identified as BLL by et al. (1996) claimed the detection of two starlight absorption
Schachter et al. (1993). The optical spectra obtained by features identified as Mg I (5175Å) and Na I (5892 Å), and
Perlman et al. (1996) failed to detect emission or absorption they proposed aredshift ofz=0.059. We disprove this
features. The host galaxy was not detected by HST images redshift because the Na I absorption coincides with the
(Scarpa et al. 2000), putting the source at relatively high telluric absorption at 6280 Å. Shaw et al. (2013) does not
redshift. confirm this redshift either.
In our GTC spectrum, we detect an intervening Our high S/N(∼200) spectrum is characterized by a
absorption doublet at ∼4680Å that we identify as Mg II power-law emission (Fl µ la ; α = −1.2). We clearly detect

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The Astrophysical Journal, 837:144 (16pp), 2017 March 10 Paiano et al.

an absorption doublet at ∼5000Å (EW∼0.25 Å) and an redshift lower limits for these objects from z=0.1 to z=0.55
absorption line at 7465 Å. We identify these features as Ca II (see Table 3).
3934, 3968 Å, and Na I 5892 Å absorption lines at In addition to the lower limits of the redshift for objects with
z=0.267. If these lines were ascribed to the starlight of featureless spectra, we can also estimate an average upper limit
the host galaxy, we would expect to observe some forthe redshift of the sample of observed targets based on the
modulation imprinted on the continuum, which isnot number of Mg II 2800 Å intervening absorption systems
present. Moreover, this redshift appears remarkablyincon- observed in our spectra. Given our observed spectral range, we
sistent with the lower limits (zlim > 0.65) derived from the are potentially able to detect Mg II 2800 Å intervening
nondetection of the host galaxy. absorption lines (of EW 0.2Å) for absorbers that are at
We further note these absorption features are rather z>0.5. Excluding the objects that are at z<0.5 (four
narrow (FWHM ∼ 10 Å) compared to thetypical Ca II line sources), we observe twoabsorption systems of Mg II over
width from galaxies and are indicative of interstellar 18 targets. To evaluate an average upper limit to the redshift of
absorptions. Indeed, at ∼8 5 and 12″ (southeast) from the these sources, we compute the expected number of Mg II
target (see Figure 3), there are two spiral galaxies with halo intervening absorptions as a function of the redshift. To this
gas thatcould be responsible forthe absorption features aim, we assume the cumulative incidence rates of Mg II
observed. At z=0.267, the projected separation between absorbers derived for a very extended sample of QSO spectra
the target and these galaxies is ∼40 kpc. obtained by SDSS (Zhu & Ménard 2013). It turns out that the
We conclude that the redshift of BZBJ2323+4210 is still average maximum redshift of the sample is inferred to be
unknown, and we set a spectroscopic lower limit of z>0.267 z∼0.65. At higher redshiftwe would expect to detect many
and a lower limit based on the host-galaxy feature of z>0.65 more absorption systems. For instance, if the average redshift
(see also Archambault et al. 2016). of these sources were z=1,we should detect ∼10 Mg II
The case has some analogy with that of the BLL absorption systems in the spectra of 18 targets.
MH2136-428 (Landoni et al. 2014), where narrow absorption The relatively low upper limit of the redshift derived above
lines appear in the spectrum due to the halo of an interloping together with the lack of detection of absorption lines from the
bright galaxy. host galaxies suggests that these targets have a high nucleus-to-
host galaxy ratio. For each object with a featureless continuum,
we have derived a lower limit to the redshift on the basis of the
assumption that the source is hosted by a massive early-type
6. Discussion galaxy (see theAppendix for details) and at a given limit of
detectable EW of an absorption feature. We can now associate
We secured high S/N spectra in the range 4200–9500Å for
a minimum N/H to these redshift lower limits (see Table 3). It
a sample of 22 BLLs, selected for being TeVemitters or good
turns out that some objects in our sample have anN/H>10
candidates based on their IR properties. Most of these sources (assuming the targets are hosted by a “standard galaxy”;e.g.,
either had anunknown redshift or the value was rather Falomo et al. 2014). This is significantly higher than the typical
uncertain. From the new spectroscopy we are able to determine value (N/H∼1) for BLLs for which the host galaxy is directly
the redshift for fiveobjects (S3 0218+357, 1ES 1215+303, imaged by HST, and it is similar to that estimated for
W Comae, MS 1221.8+2452, and PKS 1424+240). For unresolved sources at relatively high (z = 0.5–1.0) redshift
PKS1424+240, one of the farthest BLLs detected in the (see, e.g., Urry et al. 2000). Since on average our targets are
TeV regime, no previous estimate of the redshift was available. likely at moderate redshift (see above), the high N/H is
For three objects, BZBJ1243+3627 with an uncertain redshift suggestive of a particularly beamed nuclear emission. How
and BZBJ1540+8155and BZBJ2323+4210 with previously strong could be the flux from the nucleus compared with that of
unknown redshift, we found intervening absorptions that allow its host galaxy? For anextremely highDoppler factor δ, we
us to set spectroscopic lower limits. For the remaining 13 could have N/H∼1000. Detection of the spectral features of
sources, we found that in spite of the high S/N their spectrum the host galaxy therefore will require observations with very
is featureless. We can set limits to any emission or absorption high S/N and adequate spectral resolution. This appears
features to 0.05–0.50Å depending on the S/N of the targets feasible only in the Extremely Large Telescope (ELT) era (see
and the wavelength region. For seven of these targets, there e.g., Landoni et al. 2014).
was a previous tentative redshift that we do not confirm from
our observations. The main reasons for this difference are as
follows: old spectra have poor S/N, wrong source identifica- Appendix
tion, very tentative line identifications, and redshift given Redshift Lower Limit of BL Lac Objects from Host-galaxy
without information on the detected spectral features (no Absorption Lines
spectrum shown). It is worth notingthat unfortunately these Given the featureless nature of many BL Lac sources, it is of
unconfirmed, likely wrong values (also appearing in NED) are great interest to estimate lower limits of the redshift for these
often used to derive physical properties of the sources. kind of targets and in particular for those that are also emitters
On the basis of the assumption that all of the objects with (or candidates) at γ frequencies. In the cases where no spectral
pure featureless spectra are hosted by a massive elliptical features are detected, the only way to estimate the redshift or a
galaxy, as is the case for most (virtually all) BLLs, we have lower limit from optical data is to use the characteristics of the
then determined a lower limit for their redshift from the host galaxies. A direct method is to use high-quality images to
minimum detectable EW of some absorption lines of the host detect the surrounding nebulosity, or to assessupper limits of
galaxy (see theAppendix for details). Depending on the the host brightness and then derive a redshift lower limit.
brightness of the observed nuclei (r = 13.6–19.9), we can set Alternatively one can search for the host-galaxy features that

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The Astrophysical Journal, 837:144 (16pp), 2017 March 10 Paiano et al.

Figure 8. The relation between the EW of theCa II absorption feature

(assuming EW = 8 Å) and the redshift for the spectrum of a BL Lac object of
magnitude r=15. The relation assumes that the host galaxy has M
(R)=−22.9 (green solid line and solidcircles). The other two similar
relations are for M(R)=−22.4 (magenta dashed line) and M(R)=−21.9
(orange dotted line). The dashed horizontal line gives the assumed EWmin level
Figure 6. Left: simulation of the optical spectrum of a BL Lac object at z=0.2 (0.1 Å), and the vertical lines represent the intersection with the above
for different nucleus-to-host galaxy ratios. The values of N/H refer to ther relationships with EWmin level. In this case the redshift isz>0.23 (for the
band. The nonthermal component is assumed a power law with spectral index average host galaxy; other values in parentheses).
−1. No noise is included. Right: the normalized spectrum of the source
(nonthermal plus starlight). The figure illustrates the effect of the nonthermal
component to dilute the equivalent width of the spectral features.
S/N spectra of adequate resolution are needed. Here we focus
on this second approach.
Assuming the observed targets have giant elliptical host
galaxies of similar luminosity distribution asthe population of
BLLs for which the host galaxy has been resolved, it is
plausible to assume that they are hosted by massive early-type
galaxies (see,e.g., Falomo et al. 2014 and references therein).
Since the luminosity distribution of these host galaxies is
relatively narrow (see, e.g., Urry et al. 2000), it is possible to
use the host-galaxy luminosity as a sort of standard candle to
evaluate the distance of the objects or to set lower limits in the
cases where no signature from the starlight is found (Sbarufatti
et al. 2006a).
In order to estimate lower limits forthe redshift of lineless
objects, we follow and extend the procedure proposed by
Sbarufatti et al. (2006a) for good S/N optical spectra. The basic
idea is that, under the assumption that the observed spectrum is
due to the contribution of a (often dominant) nonthermal
component, usually described by a power law, and to
astarlight component from a standard host galaxy (see
example Figure 6), it is possible to set lower limits ontheir
redshift.
In fact, the effect of the strong nonthermal emission is to
dilute the EW of the absorption features of the host galaxy
depending on the flux ratio of the two components (nonthermal
and starlight). Using high S/N spectra, it is thus possible to set
suitable upper limits onthe EW of the absorption features from
the host galaxy. These limits depend on the S/N and the
spectral resolution of the observations and on the brightness of
Figure 7. Distribution of all measurements of EW computed in a defined the source.
spectral interval (avoiding the telluric bands) byadopting a running window of
fixed size. The EWmin is defined as 3 times σEW where σEW is the standard We assume that the underlying host galaxy is a giant
deviation of the distribution (see text for more details). elliptical of absolute magnitude M(R)=−22.9 (Sbarufatti
et al. 2005a) and use thespectrum templateof Kinney
et al. (1996).
are heavily obscured by the dominant nonthermal emission For each observed spectrum, we then evaluate the dilution
(Sbarufatti et al. 2006a). In the first case,high-resolution and factor of an absorption line (namely H,K of Ca II 3924, 3970 Å,
deep images are required,while in the second one, very high G-band 4304 Å, Mg I 5175 Å) of this host galaxy as a function

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The Astrophysical Journal, 837:144 (16pp), 2017 March 10 Paiano et al.

Figure 9. Simulation of the normalized optical spectrum of a BL Lac object at z=0.2 in the region of the H, K Ca II lines. The simulation assumes three different
nucleus-to-starlight flux ratios at the observed wavelength of theCa II lines (from top to bottom) and three levels of S/N (from left to right). The two dotted vertical
lines indicate the position of the H, K features for reference. The horizontal dashed line gives the normalized continuum. The simulation includes the statistical noise.
The figure illustrates how the detectability of Ca II lines depends on N/H and S/N (see also text). In each panel we give the S/N of the spectrum, the nucleus-to-host
ratio,and the minimum EW assuming standard or 1 mag fainter host-galaxy luminosity.

Vaucouleurs brightness profile and an effective radius

Table 4
Correspondence between the Wavelength Range, Absorption Lines, and Re=8 kpc.
Redshift Range From the observed magnitude of the source and the
assumption that the underlying host galaxy is a giant elliptical,
Wavelength Range Absorption Line Redshift Range
we derive the minimum redshift of the target from the
4250–5000 Ca II 0.08–0.27 minimum detectable equivalent width (EWmin) of a specific
5000–6200 Ca II 0.27–0.58 absorption feature (see example in Figure 8). This depends on
6400–6800 Ca II 0.63–0.73
the S/N of the spectrum and the brightness of the object during
7800–8100 Mg I 0.51–0.57 the observations. To estimate EWmin we computed the nominal
8400–8900 Mg I 0.63–0.72 EW byadopting a running window of fixed size (typically
15Å) for a number of intervals where the S/N is approxi-
Note. Col.1: Wavelength range of the optical spectrum; Col.2: Host mately constant and avoiding the prominent telluric absorption
galaxy absorption line used; Col.3: Redshift range corresponding to the bands. For each interval, we define EWmin=3×σEW where
wavelength range.
σEW is the standard deviation of the distribution of all
measurements of EW (see Figure 7). For each spectral interval,
of the redshift. To perform this, we took into account a given feature (for instance Ca II absorption) is considered
bothkcorrection (using the host-galaxy template spectrum) detected only if the S/N is sufficiently high to measure the
and the starlight flux lost through the slit. The latter term absorption feature with EW>EWmin. In Figure 9 we show an
was computed by assuming thatthe host galaxy has a de example of simulated optical spectra of BLLs in the region of

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The Astrophysical Journal, 837:144 (16pp), 2017 March 10 Paiano et al.

Table 5 buttheir S/N is visually worse (∼30–50) than that of our

Measurements of Spectral Lines spectra (∼100–200),sothe detection of the host-galaxy
OBJECT λobs EW (Observed) Line ID zline signature at z∼0.5 is very unlikely.
Å Å
1ES 0033+595 5468 0.40 [O II] 3727 0.467 References
S3 0218+357 5470 46.8 Mg II 2800 0.954
1ES 1215+303 4214 0.16 [O II] 3727 0.131 Ahnen, M. L., Ansoldi, S., Antonelli, L. A., et al. 2016, A&A, 595, A98
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