RUI: Probing the Physics of Active Galaxy Jets: High-resolution Radio Studies of a Complete Sample of Lobe-dominated Quasars and Related Radio Galaxies

这个项目的主要目标是扩展和扩展活动星系核（AGN）的高分辨率无线电研究，这将对我们理解这些天体中的相对论性喷流的物理特性做出重大贡献，并在此过程中阐明活动星系的统一模型。活跃的星系，包括类星体和射电星系，很可能在它们的中心区域有超大质量黑洞，这些黑洞最终导致了这些星系核所表现出的强烈的、偶发的辐射。通过尚不完全了解的电磁过程，物质在黑洞附近被加速，并被引导成以接近光速向外传播的射流。喷流的物理模型通常预测，它们的观测性质将在很大程度上取决于喷流轴与我们从地球上的视线的方向。因此，为了对这些模型进行统计测试，将研究覆盖很宽方向范围的扩展射电源。射电望远镜将被用来对这些物体中的喷流进行成像，从光年到数百万光年不等；这些图像将用于寻找射流结构中作为取向角函数的系统趋势，以确定表观超光速或“超光速”射流速度的统计分布，并跟踪相对论性喷流的轨迹。观测结果还将用于确定喷流的物理条件并绘制其磁场图。来自三一大学和阿拉莫社区学院区的几名本科生将直接参与这项研究。这将加强他们对研究生学习的准备，并为来自代表性不足群体的学生提供在考虑物理科学职业选择时从事科学研究的机会。本项目由美国国家科学基金会星系外天文学和宇宙学项目（AST/EXC）资助

AST 0098253HoughThe principal objective of this project is to extend and expand a high-resolution radio study of active galactic nuclei (AGN) that will make major contributions to our understanding of the physics of relativistic jets in these objects and, in the process, shed light on unified models of activegalaxies. Active galaxies, including quasars and radio galaxies, most likely harbor supermassive black holes in their central regions that are ultimately responsible for the intense, episodic emission the nuclei of these galaxies exhibit. By electromagnetic processes which are still not well understood, material is accelerated in the vicinity of the black hole and channeled intojets that travel outward near the speed of light. Physical models of jets generally predict that their observed properties will strongly depend on the orientation of the jet axis to our line of sightfrom Earth. Thus to perform statistical tests of these models, extended radio sources covering a very wide range in orientation will be studied. Radio telescopes will be used to image the jets in these objects on scales from light-years up to millions of light-years; the images will be used to look for systematic trends in the jet structures as a function of orientation angle, to determine the statistical distribution of apparent faster-than-light, or "superluminal", jet speeds and to follow the trajectories of the relativistic outflows. Observations will also be used to determine physical conditions in the jets and to map their magnetic fields, Several undergraduates - from both Trinity University and the Alamo Community College District - will be direct participants in this research. This will enhance their preparation for graduate study and offer students from underrepresented groups the opportunity to do science as they consider career options in the physical sciences.Funding for this project was provided by the NSF program for Extragalactic Astronomy & Cosmology (AST/EXC).***