• Login
    View Item 
    •   Maryland Shared Open Access Repository Home
    • ScholarWorks@UMBC
    • UMBC College of Natural and Mathematical Sciences
    • UMBC Physics Department
    • View Item
    •   Maryland Shared Open Access Repository Home
    • ScholarWorks@UMBC
    • UMBC College of Natural and Mathematical Sciences
    • UMBC Physics Department
    • View Item
    JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

    Electron-positron jets associated with the quasar 3C279

    Thumbnail
    Files
    elec-pos.pdf (296.1Kb)
    Links to Files
    http://pc.astro.brandeis.edu/pdfs/elec-pos.pdf
    http://simbad.u-strasbg.fr/simbad/sim-ref?querymethod=bib&simbo=on&submit=submit+bibcode&bibcode=1998Natur.395..457W
    https://ned.ipac.caltech.edu/cgi-bin/objsearch?search_type=Search&refcode=1998Natur.395..457W
    Permanent Link
    http://hdl.handle.net/11603/17540
    Collections
    • UMBC Center for Space Sciences and Technology (CSST) / Center for Research and Exploration in Space Sciences & Technology II (CRSST II)
    • UMBC Physics Department
    Metadata
    Show full item record
    Author/Creator
    Wardle, J.F.C.
    Homan, D.C.
    Ojha, R.
    Roberts, D.H.
    Date
    1998
    Type of Work
    20 pages
    Text
    journal articles postprints
    Citation of Original Publication
    Wardle, J.F.C.; Homan, D.C.; Ojha, R.; Roberts, D.H.; Electron-positron jets associated with the quasar 3C279; Appeared in Nature vol. 395, pg. 457 (1998); http://pc.astro.brandeis.edu/pdfs/elec-pos.pdf;
    Rights
    This item is likely protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. Unless on a Creative Commons license, for uses protected by Copyright Law, contact the copyright holder or the author.
    Abstract
    A long outstanding problem in extragalactic astrophysics is the composition of the relativistic jets of plasma streaming from the nuclei of quasars and active galaxies - whether it is predominantly a "normal" (electron-proton) plasma, or a "pair" (electron-positron) plasma. Distinguishing between these possibilities is crucial for understanding the physical processes occurring close to the putative super massive black holes in galactic that create the jets. Here we present a new approach to the problem of jet composition, by detecting circularly polarized radio emission from the archtypal quasar 3C 279, using the VLBA. The circular polarization is produces by Faraday conversion, which requires that the energy distribution of the radiating particles extend to very low energies, indicating that electron-positron pairs are a major component of the jet plasma. Similar detections in three other radio sources, suggest that in general, extragalactic radio jets are composed primarily of an electron-positron plasma.


    Albin O. Kuhn Library & Gallery
    University of Maryland, Baltimore County
    1000 Hilltop Circle
    Baltimore, MD 21250
    www.umbc.edu/scholarworks

    Contact information:
    Email: scholarworks-group@umbc.edu
    Phone: 410-455-3021


    If you wish to submit a copyright complaint or withdrawal request, please email mdsoar-help@umd.edu.

     

     

    My Account

    LoginRegister

    Browse

    This CollectionBy Issue DateTitlesAuthorsSubjectsType

    Statistics

    View Usage Statistics


    Albin O. Kuhn Library & Gallery
    University of Maryland, Baltimore County
    1000 Hilltop Circle
    Baltimore, MD 21250
    www.umbc.edu/scholarworks

    Contact information:
    Email: scholarworks-group@umbc.edu
    Phone: 410-455-3021


    If you wish to submit a copyright complaint or withdrawal request, please email mdsoar-help@umd.edu.