Chandra Observations of the NLS1 RX J2217.9-5941

We report the results of two Chandra ACIS-S observations from February and August 2003 of the highly X-ray variable Narrow-Line Seyfert 1 galaxy RX J2217.9--5941. Observations spanning the time from the ROSAT All Sky Survey (RASS) through an ASCA observation in 1998 indicate apparently monotonically decreasing flux by a factor of 30. The Chandra observations reveal increased emission over that seen in ASCA, supporting a persistent variability rather than an X-ray outburst event. However, the cause of the strong X-ray variability remains unclear. Our Chandra observations confirm the steep soft X-ray spectrum in the 0.2-2.0 keV band found during the ROSAT All-Sky Survey observation (\ax=2.7). The spectral shape of the source appears to be variable with the spectrum becoming softer when the source becomes fainter. Best fitting models to the data include an absorbed broken power law, a blackbody plus power law, and a power law with partial covering absorption. The latter model suggests a variable partial-covering absorber in the line of sight which can explain in part the variability seen in RX J2217.9--5941. We suggest that there might be a population of Narrow Line Seyfert 1 galaxies which are at least at times highly absorbed.