AGN jets under the microscope: A divide?
arXiv:1206.4127 · doi:10.1002/asna.201211685
Abstract
A new paradigm for active galactic jet kinematics has emerged through detailed investigations of BL Lac objects using very long baseline radio interferometry. In this new scheme, most, if not all, jet components appear to remain stationary with respect to the core but show significant non-radial motions. This paper presents results from our kinematic investigation of the jets of a statistically complete sample of radio-loud flat-spectrum active galaxies, focusing on the comparison between the jet kinematic properties of BL Lacs and flat-spectrum radio-quasars. It is shown that there is a statistically significant difference between the kinematics of the two AGN classes, with BL Lacs showing more bent jets, that are wider and show slower movement along the jet axis, compared to flat-spectrum radio-quasars. This is interpreted as evidence for helically structured jets.
arXiv commentDoctoral thesis award lecture 2011, German Astronomical Society, 14 pages, 13 figures, will appear in special edition of Astronomische Nachrichten "Reviews in Modern Astronomy"
References in corpus (33)
- First Year Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) Observations: Determination of Cosmological Parameters
- Unified Schemes for Radio-Loud Active Galactic Nuclei
- A Unified, Merger-Driven Model for the Origin of Starbursts, Quasars, the Cosmic X-Ray Background, Supermassive Black Holes and Galaxy Spheroids
- MOJAVE: Monitoring of Jets in Active Galactic Nuclei with VLBA Experiments. VI. Kinematics Analysis of a Complete Sample of Blazar Jets
- Doppler factors, Lorentz factors and viewing angles for quasars, BL Lacertae objects and radio galaxies
- Sub-milliarcsecond Imaging of Quasars and Active Galactic Nuclei III. Kinematics of Parsec-Scale Radio Jets
- MOJAVE: Monitoring of Jets in AGN with VLBA Experiments - I. First-Epoch 15 GHz Linear Polarization Images
- VLBI Observations of a Complete Sample of Radio Galaxies. 10 Years Later
- Jet opening angles and gamma-ray brightness of AGN
- Relativistic Beaming and the Intrinsic Properties of Extragalactic Radio Jets
- Multi-Epoch VLBA Observations of EGRET-Detected Quasars and BL Lac Objects: Connection between Superluminal Ejections and Gamma-Ray Flares in Blazars
- Analysis of 6cm VLBI polarization observations of a complete sample of northern BL Lacertae Objects
- A Multi-epoch VLBI Survey of the Kinematics of Caltech-Jodrell Bank Flat-Spectrum Sources, Part II: Analysis of the Kinematics
- 4C +12.50: A Superluminal Precessing Jet in the Recent Merger System IRAS 13451+1232
- Radio Circular Polarization Produced in Helical Magnetic Fields in Eight Active Galactic Nuclei
- Spectral Evolution of The Parsec-Scale Jet in The Quasar 3C345
- On the BL Lacertae objects/radio quasars and the FRI/II dichotomy
- The kinematics in the pc-scale jets of AGN The case of S5 1803+784
- Testing the FR I/BL Lac unifying model with HST observations
- GB1508+5714: a radio-loud quasar with z=4.30 and the space density of high redshift, radio--loud quasars.
- A possible jet precession in the periodic quasar B0605-085
- The soft X-ray properties of AGN from the CJF sample; A correlation analysis between soft X-ray and VLBI properties
- A Possible Periodicity in the Radio Lightcurves of 3C454.3
- Understanding BL Lac objects Structural & kinematic mode changes in the BL Lac object PKS 0735+178
- Dual frequency VSOP imaging of the jet in S5 0836+710
- A Multi-Epoch VLBI Survey of the Kinematics of CJF Sources; Part I: Model-Fit Parameters and Maps
- Non-radial motion in the TeV blazar S5 0716+714 The pc-scale kinematics of a BL Lac Object
- Modeling nuclei of radio galaxies from VLBI radio observations. Application to the BL Lac Object S5 1803+784
- The non-ballistic superluminal motion in the plane of the sky
- A kinematic study of the compact jet in quasar B3 1633+382
- Tracing the merger-driven evolution of active galaxies using the CJF sample
- Gamma-rays in flat-spectrum AGN: Revisiting the fast jet hypothesis with the CJF sample
- The non-ballistic superluminal motion in the plane of the sky-II