BATSE OBSERVATIONS OF SEYFERT-2 GALAXIES

We use the BATSE Earth occultation technique applied to the LAD data t o search for emission in the 20-100 keV band from Seyfert 2 galaxies. Analysis from an initial sample of 17 objects indicates significant de tection at (> 6 sigma) from 5 objects, while marginal detection (3 < s igma < 6) can be claimed for other 4, possibly 5, galaxies. The high r ate (59% of the observed sample) of detection indicates both that Seyf ert 2 galaxies are indeed hard X-ray emitters as expected by the unifi ed theory of Seyfert galaxies and that BATSE has a high efficiency in discovering emission from this class of objects. Here, we report on th ese preliminary results, discuss their implications and outline future prospects of this on-going research program.