NGC 1266 is an early-type galaxy that was observed in multiple wavelengths as part of the Atlas3D effort remarkably hosts 109 solar masses of molecular gas and has a spectrum that exhibits extended wings up to +/-400 km/s. High resolution CARMA observations have revealed that the bulk of the gas is concentrated within 100 pc of the nucleus, leading to gas surface densities consistent with ULIRGs, yet NGC 1266 exhibits no clear evidence of having undergone an interaction. Recent SED modeling for NGC 1266 seems to reveal that the star formation rate (SFR) in the dense nuclear disk appears to fall off the Kennicutt-Schmidt (K-S) relation.
The presence of an AGN combined with the molecular gas outflowing faster than the escape velocity suggests that this galaxy might be a local candidate for AGN feedback. The fact that the SFR is unable to support such a high energy outflow strengthens this claim. Empirical estimates of the radio jet power from the 1.4 GHz continuum confirms that only a 2% energy coupling is required for the jet to drive the outflow.
NGC 1266 is the first example of molecular feedback into the IGM from a relatively normal, non-interacting galaxy. How the gas fell deeply into the potential well, and the exact nature of the driving mechanism behind the expulsion of the gas remain mysteries.