Quasar Variability: Statistical Description and Modeling

所支持的研究将改进以前使用SDSS(斯隆数字天空调查)对光学区域中类星体的可变性进行的研究。它将为80,000个SDSS类星体组装一个包含200万个测量值的大型数据库，以在8年的基线上为2,600个类星体生成采样良好的光曲线。这将被用来开发类星体可变性的详细统计描述。这项研究将把变异性的几个模型家族统一到一个单一的综合模型中，并将结果与观测结果进行比较。这项研究将影响我们对超大质量黑洞附近区域和类星体发射机制的理解。更广泛的影响包括提供一个“科学就绪”的类星体可变性公共数据库，对学生进行培训，以及一个致力于这项研究的公共宣传网站。

The supported research will improve on previous variability studies of quasars in the optical regime using the SDSS (Sloan Digital Sky Survey). It will assemble a large database of two million measurements for 80,000 SDSS quasars, to generate well-sampled light curves for 2,600 quasars over an eight year baseline. This will be used to develop a detailed statistical description of quasar variability. The research will unify several families of models for variability into a single comprehensive model and compare the results to the observations. This study will impact our understanding of the regions close to supermassive black holes and of the mechanisms of quasar emission. The broader impacts include provision of a "science ready" public database of quasar variability, training of students, and a public outreach web site devoted to this research.